His Pontificate was more Papal self-promotion than it indicated concern for the problems and the decline of the Church. Besides that his promoters feared the media more than God.
[kreuz.net] There are Delays up until now, and an end to the beaten-with-whip Beatification of John Paul II (+ 2005).
This is according to Vaticanist Andrea Tornielli on the website of the Milan Newspaper 'Il Giornale' under the Titel: "Of >>santo subito<<>>saint never<<" The beatification process has made no progress. In the Vatican there is a devise, "there's no hurry". Officially there's a problem with the miraculous healing, which is attributed to the intercession of the late John Paul II. Tornielli explained, that the expected 2011 Beatification has probably fallen in the under water. One of the Vatican's expert medical consultants has questioned according to, 'Il Giornale', the supposed healing of a French Nun, Sister Marie-Simon-Perre (49). So, the postulator for the beatification, Prelate Slobomir Oder, is required to submit a new supposed wonder. According to reports by Tornielli he would rather -- in the face of the countless miracle reports -- the agony of the choice. For Tornielli there is no doubt that the be.beatification process of John Paul II., has experienced "in these immediate months" a noticeable delay. These are not only because of the technical problems in connection with the miracle. Countless voices in the Vatican would like no unnecessary speed in time, the countless shadows and suspicions made visible by important prelates in the close to John Paul II. In the Vatican it was for a decade an open secret that Pope John Paul II had significantly neglected his daily duties in the daily operation of the Church. Often one speaks of a "polish inefficiency", which made its presence behind the walls of the Vatican known. Tornielli identified as a small example the handling of the abuse cases under John Paul II. He meant in the first line the decades'long foreseeable giant scandal around the founder of the Legionaries of Christ. The most recent case struck the Archbishop of Naples, Crescenzio Kardinal Sepe. He was an unquestionable favorite of John Paul II and is said to have served in his time as Missions Congregation as Prefect where he was implicated in questionable financial transactions. Read original...
Editor: There were already reports that this was supposed to have happened back in AApril 2 of this year.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Belgium Case
The Fall of the Belgian Church
From the desk of Alexandra Colen on Thu, 2010-06-24 23:26
In Belgium, today, police searched the residence of the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels and the crypt of the Archbishop’s cathedral in Mechelen. They were looking for evidence of cover-ups in the ongoing investigation into widespread pedophilia practices within the Belgian church in the decades during which Cardinal Godfried Danneels was Archbishop. Danneels retired in January of this year.
Police also confiscated 450 files containing reports of pedophile offences by members of the clergy, that had been submitted to an investigation committee which was established within the church to deal with pedophilia cases.
Since the revelation in April that Cardinal Danneels’s close friend and collaborator, Mgr Roger Vangheluwe, the Bishop of Bruges, had been a practicing pedophile throughout, and even before, his career as a bishop, victims have gained confidence that they will be taken seriously, and complaints have been pouring in, both to the courts and to the extra-judicial investigation committee of the archdiocese. The new archbishop Mgr. André-Joseph Léonard, has urged victims to take their case to the courts.
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/4471
From the desk of Alexandra Colen on Thu, 2010-06-24 23:26
In Belgium, today, police searched the residence of the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels and the crypt of the Archbishop’s cathedral in Mechelen. They were looking for evidence of cover-ups in the ongoing investigation into widespread pedophilia practices within the Belgian church in the decades during which Cardinal Godfried Danneels was Archbishop. Danneels retired in January of this year.
Police also confiscated 450 files containing reports of pedophile offences by members of the clergy, that had been submitted to an investigation committee which was established within the church to deal with pedophilia cases.
Since the revelation in April that Cardinal Danneels’s close friend and collaborator, Mgr Roger Vangheluwe, the Bishop of Bruges, had been a practicing pedophile throughout, and even before, his career as a bishop, victims have gained confidence that they will be taken seriously, and complaints have been pouring in, both to the courts and to the extra-judicial investigation committee of the archdiocese. The new archbishop Mgr. André-Joseph Léonard, has urged victims to take their case to the courts.
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/4471
Maronite Monk Beatified in Lebanon
KFIFAN, Lebanon – A Maronite monk was beatified by the Vatican on Sunday before a huge gathering of the faithful in northern Lebanon, an AFP reporter said.
Archbishop Angelo Amato, special envoy of Pope Benedict XVI, read the papal decree bestowing the title of "blessed" on Estephan Nehmeh (1889-1938), who devoted his life to "meditative prayer and unlimited service to the poorest."
The beatification of the monk, a member of the most powerful Christian church in Lebanon, was approved after doctors appointed by the Holy See in 2007 certified the "miraculous" cure of his niece, Sister Marina, from cancer.
http://www.ouwet.com/
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Archbishop Angelo Amato, special envoy of Pope Benedict XVI, read the papal decree bestowing the title of "blessed" on Estephan Nehmeh (1889-1938), who devoted his life to "meditative prayer and unlimited service to the poorest."
The beatification of the monk, a member of the most powerful Christian church in Lebanon, was approved after doctors appointed by the Holy See in 2007 certified the "miraculous" cure of his niece, Sister Marina, from cancer.
http://www.ouwet.com/
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Former Conservative MP Anne Widecombe to be Ambassador to Vatican
In a move designed to stress a commitment to the Catholic Church, the Coalition has decided that the former Conservative MP would represent a suitably high-profile appointment.
William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, is understood to have endorsed the nomination, which will be sent to the Vatican for final approval before an announcement is made later in the summer.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/7856193/Ann-Widdecombe-lined-up-as-ambassador-to-the-Vatican.html
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Bulgarian Bishop: Gay Parade Stands for Depravity, Shame
The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is praying for the “repentance” and “sobering up” of the participants in the Sofia Pride gay parade, said Saturday in a sermon Plovdiv Bishop Nikolay.
Nikolay, who is the youngest of all Bulgarian bishops, condemned the third Sofia gay parade as an expression of depravity and sin.
“God's scripture says that these are death sins, it is shameful to even talk about them, not to mention demonstrating them in such an overt way in the downtown of the capital before the eyes of the moral people and children. Let's watch out to protect our children from the depravity, sin, and evil,” declared the bishop.
“Our law is the Bible. As we can see European laws contradict Christian laws to a great extent. The Holy Church can give people the way to counteract against this spiritual virus,” he said shortly before the taking place of the 3rd annual gay pride parade in Sofia.
Plovdiv Bishop Nikolay is known for his hardline statements, including claiming that the holding of the 2009 concert in Sofia of US pop star Madonna caused God to punish the Bulgarian nation with the sinking of a tourist boat in the Ohrid Lake a few days later, in which 15 Bulgarian tourists perished.
Link to SNA...
Nikolay, who is the youngest of all Bulgarian bishops, condemned the third Sofia gay parade as an expression of depravity and sin.
“God's scripture says that these are death sins, it is shameful to even talk about them, not to mention demonstrating them in such an overt way in the downtown of the capital before the eyes of the moral people and children. Let's watch out to protect our children from the depravity, sin, and evil,” declared the bishop.
“Our law is the Bible. As we can see European laws contradict Christian laws to a great extent. The Holy Church can give people the way to counteract against this spiritual virus,” he said shortly before the taking place of the 3rd annual gay pride parade in Sofia.
Plovdiv Bishop Nikolay is known for his hardline statements, including claiming that the holding of the 2009 concert in Sofia of US pop star Madonna caused God to punish the Bulgarian nation with the sinking of a tourist boat in the Ohrid Lake a few days later, in which 15 Bulgarian tourists perished.
Link to SNA...
Bishop Mixa Wants Another Diocese
In his most recent visit to Rome Bishop Mixa asked for a Diocese of his own, away from his old-liberal intrigue diocese.
[kreuz.net, Augsburg] Bishop Mixa is said to have asked Pope Benedict XVI for a new Diocese.
The weekly magazine 'Focus' reported this in its day's press report.
The publication has in recent times produced more canards and has proven itself in Church affairs as not well-informed.
The source of the new information is unclear.
Msgr Mixa informed of his intention to visit Rome in the second week of June by letter.
He addressed the letter to the old-liberal Prefect of the Bishops' Congregation, Giovanni Battista Cardinal Re.
Bishop Mixa also indicated, that he has no alcohol problem and also is guilty of no sexual improprieties.
Slander-Dossier of German Bishops Even More in the Mist
The most recent slanders, which his pure colleagues presented as a "Secret Dossier" to the media, insist the contrary.
The Bishop unfortunately is alcoholic and has coerced two priests with homosexual advances -- the German slander-bishops maintain in the public without evidence.
In contrast to the journalists of the newspaper 'Frankfurter Allgemeine' and 'Suddeutsche' - who fight in the jaw match against teh Bishop on the front most line -- Msgr Mixa and his Attorney of the slandering "Secret Documents" would have clearly appreciated this.
At least at this point 'Focus' has some clarity on the Papal audience for next week.
According to information from 'kreuz.net' Bishop Mixa did was not admitted to a clinic in Basel for alcohol extraction.
Link to original...
[kreuz.net, Augsburg] Bishop Mixa is said to have asked Pope Benedict XVI for a new Diocese.
The weekly magazine 'Focus' reported this in its day's press report.
The publication has in recent times produced more canards and has proven itself in Church affairs as not well-informed.
The source of the new information is unclear.
Msgr Mixa informed of his intention to visit Rome in the second week of June by letter.
He addressed the letter to the old-liberal Prefect of the Bishops' Congregation, Giovanni Battista Cardinal Re.
Bishop Mixa also indicated, that he has no alcohol problem and also is guilty of no sexual improprieties.
Slander-Dossier of German Bishops Even More in the Mist
The most recent slanders, which his pure colleagues presented as a "Secret Dossier" to the media, insist the contrary.
The Bishop unfortunately is alcoholic and has coerced two priests with homosexual advances -- the German slander-bishops maintain in the public without evidence.
In contrast to the journalists of the newspaper 'Frankfurter Allgemeine' and 'Suddeutsche' - who fight in the jaw match against teh Bishop on the front most line -- Msgr Mixa and his Attorney of the slandering "Secret Documents" would have clearly appreciated this.
At least at this point 'Focus' has some clarity on the Papal audience for next week.
According to information from 'kreuz.net' Bishop Mixa did was not admitted to a clinic in Basel for alcohol extraction.
Link to original...
Roger Ebert and the Happier Days
Posted By Brother André Marie On June 26, 2010
Film critic and columnist Roger Ebert penned a column for his blog at the Chicago Sun-Times, My Vocation as a Priest [1]. It’s a benevolent, slightly sentimental look at his Catholic upbringing. At one time, he considered the priestly vocation. But it turns out he was one of those, “whose mother had the vocation” — to use the words of an old priest I knew. Not only did Roger Ebert not become a priest, he lost his Catholic Faith outright. Certain aspects of his column — well written, as one would expect — show the glories of pre-Vatican II American Catholicism in all their splendor. For instance, he pays tribute to the Church’s aesthetic aspect when he says:
In my childhood the Church arched high above everything. I was awed by its ceremonies. Years later I agreed completely with Pauline Kael when she said that the three greatest American directors of the 1970s–Scorsese, Altman and Coppola–had derived much of their artistic richness from having grown up in the pre-Vatican Two era of Latin, incense, mortal sins, indulgences, dire sufferings in hell, Gregorian chant, and so on. Protestants and even Jews were victims, I suppose, of sensory deprivation.
Other passages show that those “Good Old Days,” [2] of American Catholicism, supposedly such a high-water mark for the religion, were not all they were cracked up to be. The Dominican teaching Sister who was dogmatically permissive, the seminarian who uttered a glaringly stupid remark about hell and Dante as he dragged on a cigarette: these were signs that the iconic Catholicism of the era had splotches on it, bad ones.
Read further...
Vatican names Belgian bishop's successor amid abuse scandal < Belgian news | Expatica Belgium
[Expatica Belgium] The Vatican on Friday named a successor to the bishop of Bruges in Belgium, Roger Vangheluwe, who resigned after admitting child sex abuse.
In a statement, the Vatican said Pope Benedict XVI named Jozef De Kesel in place of 73-year-old Vangheluwe, who resigned in April after admitting sexually abusing a boy for years.
De Kesel was until now the bishop of the Bulna diocese and auxiliary at the Mechelen-Brussels archdiocese near Brussels, the Belgian Catholic Church headquarters raided by police on Thursday amid fresh accusations of child sex abuse.
The raid, involving dozens of officers and investigators, followed a string of accusations "denouncing abuse of minors committed by a certain number of Church figures," prosecutors said.
Vatican names Belgian bishop's successor amid abuse scandal < Belgian news | Expatica Belgium
Friday, June 25, 2010
Saint Benedict Center Wins Judgement Against Zoning Restrictions
NH church receives more than $1.1 million over unconstitutional zoning restrictions
ADF-allied attorney secures one of largest zoning settlements in U.S. history from town of Richmond officials who called church’s moral positions ‘abhorrent’
RICHMOND, N.H. — Friday, June 25, 2010 — An Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney has secured a $1.15 million settlement on behalf of Saint Benedict Center of Richmond in a lawsuit over the town’s unconstitutional zoning restrictions. The center contended officials singled it out for discrimination after certain officials expressed their view that the church’s moral positions on matters such as abortion and homosexual behavior are “abhorrent.”
The settlement payment–coming after two state court orders in favor of the church–marks one of the largest settlements in U.S. history involving the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a federal law that protects churches from unequal treatment in land use disputes with local governments.
“Churches shouldn’t be singled out for discrimination and penalized by a city’s zoning restrictions because of their religious viewpoint,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Doug Napier. “It was right that Saint Benedict Center was compensated for years of unconstitutional restrictions that made it impossible to finish the construction of its church and school building.”
In enacting RLUIPA, Congress stated, “The right to assemble for worship is at the very core of the free exercise of religion. Churches and synagogues cannot function without physical space adequate to their needs and consistent with their theological requirements. The right to build, buy, or rent such a space is an indispensable adjunct of the core First Amendment right to assemble for religious purposes.”
In June 2007, Saint Benedict Center–a small, traditional Catholic congregation that has operated a monastery, convent, house of worship, and religious school in Richmond since 1989–filed suit against the town of Richmond after the town imposed more than 30 conditions upon SBC’s proposed new church and school building. A court determined in a summary judgment order last October that the conditions made completion of construction impossible and constituted a substantial burden on the church’s religious exercise under RLUIPA. The church noted to the court that the planning board chairman, who drafted several of the conditions, e-mailed other town officials about his disgust for the church’s religious teachings, stating that its stance on abortion, homosexual behavior, pornography, and divorce were “abhorrent.”
After the court issued an order that deferred a ruling on the problematic construction conditions, the town agreed to pay the church $1.15 million in monetary damages and attorneys’ fees, and the town’s board of selectmen agreed to a separate settlement that makes completion of the church and school building possible.
“Disagreement with an organization’s religious or political views should never motivate the government to impose special restrictions upon a church’s building project,” said lead counsel Michael Tierney of Manchester, one of nearly 1,700 attorneys in the ADF alliance. Tierney, who practices with the law firm Wadleigh, Starr and Peters, PLLC, filed and settled Saint Benedict Center v. Town of Richmond in the New Hampshire Superior Court for Cheshire County.
Pronunciation guide: Tierney (Teer-nee), Napier (Nuh-peer)
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
Link to SBC...
ADF-allied attorney secures one of largest zoning settlements in U.S. history from town of Richmond officials who called church’s moral positions ‘abhorrent’
RICHMOND, N.H. — Friday, June 25, 2010 — An Alliance Defense Fund allied attorney has secured a $1.15 million settlement on behalf of Saint Benedict Center of Richmond in a lawsuit over the town’s unconstitutional zoning restrictions. The center contended officials singled it out for discrimination after certain officials expressed their view that the church’s moral positions on matters such as abortion and homosexual behavior are “abhorrent.”
The settlement payment–coming after two state court orders in favor of the church–marks one of the largest settlements in U.S. history involving the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a federal law that protects churches from unequal treatment in land use disputes with local governments.
“Churches shouldn’t be singled out for discrimination and penalized by a city’s zoning restrictions because of their religious viewpoint,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Doug Napier. “It was right that Saint Benedict Center was compensated for years of unconstitutional restrictions that made it impossible to finish the construction of its church and school building.”
In enacting RLUIPA, Congress stated, “The right to assemble for worship is at the very core of the free exercise of religion. Churches and synagogues cannot function without physical space adequate to their needs and consistent with their theological requirements. The right to build, buy, or rent such a space is an indispensable adjunct of the core First Amendment right to assemble for religious purposes.”
In June 2007, Saint Benedict Center–a small, traditional Catholic congregation that has operated a monastery, convent, house of worship, and religious school in Richmond since 1989–filed suit against the town of Richmond after the town imposed more than 30 conditions upon SBC’s proposed new church and school building. A court determined in a summary judgment order last October that the conditions made completion of construction impossible and constituted a substantial burden on the church’s religious exercise under RLUIPA. The church noted to the court that the planning board chairman, who drafted several of the conditions, e-mailed other town officials about his disgust for the church’s religious teachings, stating that its stance on abortion, homosexual behavior, pornography, and divorce were “abhorrent.”
After the court issued an order that deferred a ruling on the problematic construction conditions, the town agreed to pay the church $1.15 million in monetary damages and attorneys’ fees, and the town’s board of selectmen agreed to a separate settlement that makes completion of the church and school building possible.
“Disagreement with an organization’s religious or political views should never motivate the government to impose special restrictions upon a church’s building project,” said lead counsel Michael Tierney of Manchester, one of nearly 1,700 attorneys in the ADF alliance. Tierney, who practices with the law firm Wadleigh, Starr and Peters, PLLC, filed and settled Saint Benedict Center v. Town of Richmond in the New Hampshire Superior Court for Cheshire County.
Pronunciation guide: Tierney (Teer-nee), Napier (Nuh-peer)
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
Link to SBC...
Setback for Fans of 'Homosexual Marriages'
The Court for Human Rights: Marriage between Homosexuals is not a public obligation.
Munich (kath.net) The European Court for Human Rights has decided on a complaint by two Austrian citizens, that states could not be forced to introduce gay marriage. This comes from a press conference of the Court on Thursday. Two homosexual men from Austria had complained, who were denied a civil marriage in 2002.
The Austrian administration had indicated, that a marriage can only be between a man and a woman. Then both men felt that their fundamental rights were injured and applied to the European Courts for Human Rights in Strassburg, (Klage Nr. 30141/04 vom 5. August 2004) to obliged Austria to a decision to marry them. This the Court refused to do. The States in Europe are not obliged to recognize marriages between homosexuals, said the judgement.
In the notice of the Court it reads: "THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS DOES NOT OBLIGE STATES TO ENSURE THE RIGHT TO MARRY HOMOSEXUAL COUPLES".
The Court firmly established, that neither Article 12 (right to marry) nor Article 14 (law against discrimination) in connection with Article 8 (right to regard of private- and family life) is injured, if the right for homosexuals to marry is not broadened.
The decision, if the marriage only constitutes a bond between man and woman or on same-sex couples is deferred to the states. It is their decision, to judge the allowable limits for their society. The judge maintained clearly, hoever, that in states, in which the possibility for same-sex marriage exists, there is no obligation, to regard in every consideration such civil unions as marriages.
The judgement of seven judges in the assembled chamber, can be appealed for three months. If an appeal is entered and if the appeal will be reheard, the case will be brought before the high court which consists of 17 judges where the decision will be made.
With this court decision CSU-Politician Norbert Geis is resolved that his marriage and idea of faimly is not only in agreement with the basic law, but also in agreement with human rights. The SPD-Politician Klaus Wowereit had reprimanded Norbert Geis in November 2009 in a television appearance, that he has a reactionary conception of family and marriage. Geis sees that his idea of family and marriage, on the contrary, is in no way reactionary, he is of the opinion of the Courts: Geis is not only on the right side of constitutional law, but also on the side of the times and the right thinking case-law related to human rights.
For the governing mayor of Berlin, Wowereit has the current judgement still a further, immediate significance. The Berlin Senate had just a few days before decided on a bill for a federal initiative, which proposes to open marriage also to homosexuals.
Link to kathnet...
Munich (kath.net) The European Court for Human Rights has decided on a complaint by two Austrian citizens, that states could not be forced to introduce gay marriage. This comes from a press conference of the Court on Thursday. Two homosexual men from Austria had complained, who were denied a civil marriage in 2002.
The Austrian administration had indicated, that a marriage can only be between a man and a woman. Then both men felt that their fundamental rights were injured and applied to the European Courts for Human Rights in Strassburg, (Klage Nr. 30141/04 vom 5. August 2004) to obliged Austria to a decision to marry them. This the Court refused to do. The States in Europe are not obliged to recognize marriages between homosexuals, said the judgement.
In the notice of the Court it reads: "THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS DOES NOT OBLIGE STATES TO ENSURE THE RIGHT TO MARRY HOMOSEXUAL COUPLES".
The Court firmly established, that neither Article 12 (right to marry) nor Article 14 (law against discrimination) in connection with Article 8 (right to regard of private- and family life) is injured, if the right for homosexuals to marry is not broadened.
The decision, if the marriage only constitutes a bond between man and woman or on same-sex couples is deferred to the states. It is their decision, to judge the allowable limits for their society. The judge maintained clearly, hoever, that in states, in which the possibility for same-sex marriage exists, there is no obligation, to regard in every consideration such civil unions as marriages.
The judgement of seven judges in the assembled chamber, can be appealed for three months. If an appeal is entered and if the appeal will be reheard, the case will be brought before the high court which consists of 17 judges where the decision will be made.
With this court decision CSU-Politician Norbert Geis is resolved that his marriage and idea of faimly is not only in agreement with the basic law, but also in agreement with human rights. The SPD-Politician Klaus Wowereit had reprimanded Norbert Geis in November 2009 in a television appearance, that he has a reactionary conception of family and marriage. Geis sees that his idea of family and marriage, on the contrary, is in no way reactionary, he is of the opinion of the Courts: Geis is not only on the right side of constitutional law, but also on the side of the times and the right thinking case-law related to human rights.
For the governing mayor of Berlin, Wowereit has the current judgement still a further, immediate significance. The Berlin Senate had just a few days before decided on a bill for a federal initiative, which proposes to open marriage also to homosexuals.
Link to kathnet...
Statue of Stalin Being Removed in Bulgaria
The statue of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin is seen after it was dismantled in his hometown of Gori, some 80 km west of Tbilisi, Georgia, 25 June 2010. Georgia dismantled the statue on 25 June 2010, two years after a defeat in a five-day war with Russia.
Link to sofia news...
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Notre Dame Pro-Life Protester Suffers Heart Attack
By Kathleen Gilbert
SOUTH BEND, Indiana, June 24, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Thanks to the strain of being subjected to criminal prosecution on charges of trespassing, one of the 88 peaceful pro-life protesters arrested at the University of Notre Dame in May of last year recently suffered a heart attack. According to Dr. Therese Beste's doctor, she continues to suffer from post-traumatic stress related to the prosecuation.
The doctor's diagnosis has been submitted to the pro-lifers' defense lawyer as members of the group, known as the "Notre Dame 88," continue to face prosecution and a possible penalty of up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Beste, a Michigan resident, told LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) that she travelled to Indiana in May 2009 because she was "horrified" to learn that Notre Dame, "Our Blessed Mother's University," would be honoring "the most pro-abortion politician in our nation." The university had invited Obama to give the commencement address and receive an honorary law degree.
Link to original...
SOUTH BEND, Indiana, June 24, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Thanks to the strain of being subjected to criminal prosecution on charges of trespassing, one of the 88 peaceful pro-life protesters arrested at the University of Notre Dame in May of last year recently suffered a heart attack. According to Dr. Therese Beste's doctor, she continues to suffer from post-traumatic stress related to the prosecuation.
The doctor's diagnosis has been submitted to the pro-lifers' defense lawyer as members of the group, known as the "Notre Dame 88," continue to face prosecution and a possible penalty of up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Beste, a Michigan resident, told LifeSiteNews.com (LSN) that she travelled to Indiana in May 2009 because she was "horrified" to learn that Notre Dame, "Our Blessed Mother's University," would be honoring "the most pro-abortion politician in our nation." The university had invited Obama to give the commencement address and receive an honorary law degree.
Link to original...
Mixa locutus -- causa finita?
The actual "Mixa File" is still not closed -- No clarification of the German Bishops' clarification -- Why the diocese has clearly the directives of the German Bishop's Conference.
Augsburg (kath.net) Even after the clarifications of the German Bishops Conference on Tuesday and the letter from Bishop Walter Mixa this Wednesday, the Causa Mixa is still leaving a number of questions unclear.
One question remains in connection with the clarification of the German Bishops Conference (GBC), which on Tuesday had affirmed the alleged "Secret Dossier" on Mixa. It says: "They affirmed that the documents and accusations against him in April 2010 had been passed on to Rome. Pope Benedict XVI acted upon this and accepted Bishop Mixa's resignation."
It is completely unclear on the one hand, if the accusation is to be seen as true, if there has been an orderly investigation and if it on the other hand, there is a causal connection between the Pope's decision and the accusation. One kath.net- inquiry to this theme led to Matthias Kopp, the speaker for the GBC, who gave the following answer: "Please understand that I can't answer your questions as if they were represented in a text of the presiding Bishops today."
It is certain that in the past week not one of the high-ranking Bishops of Germany knew of the "Secret Dossier" as kath.net was aware. Clearly, only the closest circle of the German Bishops Conference, some of the members of the Diocese of Augsburg and the Archbishop of Munich were privy.
It is as good as in the hand that the internal Church correspondence from this circle was directing the FAX and the South German Times. Bishop Mixa himself clearly knew nothing of this correspondence.
"That the press has access to the archive of the Vatican or the Papal Nuncio, is for the time being improbable. Therefore the source is especially nebulous like the reported occurrence," explained Mixa-Attorney Gerhard Decker on Sunday to kath.net. Even in the 3-sided-correspondence of Bishop Mixa to the Bishops Congregation, where all of these accusations are theoretically arising, it is not certain.
For more confusion yesterday as members of the Augsburg Diocesan administration and by Bishop Walter Mixa approved a "joint clarification" in a passage. "The Diocese will seek, while a final decision for the successor to the Bishop's office is not known, a temporary home for Bishop Emeritus Dr. Mixa. A confirmation is being sought with the Bavarian Bishops per their clarification of the current day." An explanation of the Bavarian Bishops is till now not forthcoming.
It is exiting that on the beginning of July that Bishop Mixa and Pope Benedict will meet. It's somewhat absurd in this relation to point to #3 of the joint clarification: "the invitation of the Holy Father to a meeting in Rome with Bishop Emeritus Dr. Mixa will happily proceed; his resignation and his circumstances will not be the subject of this discussion."
What the Pope will discuss with Bishop Mixa no one knows and whoever knows the Pope knows that he will surely not let himself be limited. How should this resignation with all its open questions not be a topic? It is clear from the 3-page-letter of Bishop Mixa to Rome, that this will be the motive for his visit.
Mixa's criticisms of the instigation of his colleagues stand out in the room like before: "It should have been brotherly. I should have been advised of a leave till all the accusations were thoroughly investigated. Instead they hurried to the Pope and showed the so-called abuse case like a trump, which de facto consisted of not more than six hand-written sentences of a highly dubious, scribbled memo.", he said to "Welt" a few days ago.
Even high-ranking Church officials of the Diocese of Augsburg refrain from criticism. They have, in the matter of the supposed abuse case about Bishop Mixa, clearly not followed the corresponding guidelines of the German Bishops Conference.
It is clear, that the "educational abuse" was already apparent to the Eichstaetter Pastoral Associate L. already on the 25th of March 2010 in Augsburg. In conjunction with the directives of the German Bishops Conference: "The accredited agent researches the circumstances and is the contact person for the law enforcement authorities."
Accordingly, the accredited agent of the Diocese of Augsburg, i.e. Cathedral Vicar Heinrich hasn't researched this. He has not to-date sought any contact with the suspected victim.
Even in another point the Diocese of Augsburg has clearly violated their own guidelines. The indifference to the complaint was a serious break of the valid directives on the part of the Diocese of Augsburg, as it states: "every complaint or claim of suspicion will be thoroughly investigated. Immediately after becoming aware of suspicion or an incident, the responsible party must commence investigating.
He conducts an interview with the accused, upon which he consults a lawyer. A protocol is to be followed during the interview, for which the responsible party is obliged to follow. With the (presumptive) victim respective his legal guardian will be contacted. According to the protocol, the incident will be assessed and established, how the victim is best to be helped and how to further proceed."
Fact: This did not happen in the Diocese of Augsburg at all. There was no interview with Bishop Mixa and there was no protocol, which would have been undersigned by the participants.
If the victim was approached, may be doubted, for the directives of the GCB states further: "The welfare of the Church goes first to the victim. The defense of the victim from further abuse or public release of information is to be especially avoided. There is also a responsibility for the welfare of the accused. He remains until proven otherwise, innocent. If it is found that the suspicion is groundless, the necessary steps will be taken to restore the good reputation of the person." Presently, there hasn't been any apology to Bishop Walter Mixa.
If one looks exactly at the directives of the GBC and the incidents in the Diocese in conjunction with the alleged victim, then it is clear, that the suppositions of the Diocese of Augsburg could not stand.
On the 16th of June a communication was made by the Diocese: "Those responsible in the Diocese have followed what is just and necessary and appropriate to the directives of the German Bishops Conference and the Freisinger Bishops Conference. The Diocese of Augsburg expressly denies that it had made public any accusations of abuse.
Otherwise the prosecuting attorney's initial inquest was not known at the of Bishop Emeritus Walter Mixa of the Diocese of Augsburg's signing of his resignation."
This supposition is in any event in complete contradiction to the kath.net copy of the original act of the State Prosecuting Attorney. From him it was clear, that the Diocese even previously must have known of the alleged abuse case.
In the kath.net memo concerned, by Augsburger Pastoral Assistant F., who advocated as a "representative for possible victims of sexual and physical violence", said elsewhere: "On March 25 2010 I have spoken about the case with Mr. Heinrich [Responsible Party for Abuse in the Diocese!]. Bishop Mixa had incidentally signed his resignation on 21 April 2010.
Even a Church critic like Alan Posener had stated in Cicero, that Mixa is being treated unjustly. Posener maintains, that Mixa has the same rights as every other Citizen has. "That belongs to his personal rights, which follow, that the worth of a man is unassailable." Fact: The actual "Acta Mixa" is not closed.
Augsburg (kath.net) Even after the clarifications of the German Bishops Conference on Tuesday and the letter from Bishop Walter Mixa this Wednesday, the Causa Mixa is still leaving a number of questions unclear.
One question remains in connection with the clarification of the German Bishops Conference (GBC), which on Tuesday had affirmed the alleged "Secret Dossier" on Mixa. It says: "They affirmed that the documents and accusations against him in April 2010 had been passed on to Rome. Pope Benedict XVI acted upon this and accepted Bishop Mixa's resignation."
It is completely unclear on the one hand, if the accusation is to be seen as true, if there has been an orderly investigation and if it on the other hand, there is a causal connection between the Pope's decision and the accusation. One kath.net- inquiry to this theme led to Matthias Kopp, the speaker for the GBC, who gave the following answer: "Please understand that I can't answer your questions as if they were represented in a text of the presiding Bishops today."
It is certain that in the past week not one of the high-ranking Bishops of Germany knew of the "Secret Dossier" as kath.net was aware. Clearly, only the closest circle of the German Bishops Conference, some of the members of the Diocese of Augsburg and the Archbishop of Munich were privy.
It is as good as in the hand that the internal Church correspondence from this circle was directing the FAX and the South German Times. Bishop Mixa himself clearly knew nothing of this correspondence.
"That the press has access to the archive of the Vatican or the Papal Nuncio, is for the time being improbable. Therefore the source is especially nebulous like the reported occurrence," explained Mixa-Attorney Gerhard Decker on Sunday to kath.net. Even in the 3-sided-correspondence of Bishop Mixa to the Bishops Congregation, where all of these accusations are theoretically arising, it is not certain.
For more confusion yesterday as members of the Augsburg Diocesan administration and by Bishop Walter Mixa approved a "joint clarification" in a passage. "The Diocese will seek, while a final decision for the successor to the Bishop's office is not known, a temporary home for Bishop Emeritus Dr. Mixa. A confirmation is being sought with the Bavarian Bishops per their clarification of the current day." An explanation of the Bavarian Bishops is till now not forthcoming.
It is exiting that on the beginning of July that Bishop Mixa and Pope Benedict will meet. It's somewhat absurd in this relation to point to #3 of the joint clarification: "the invitation of the Holy Father to a meeting in Rome with Bishop Emeritus Dr. Mixa will happily proceed; his resignation and his circumstances will not be the subject of this discussion."
What the Pope will discuss with Bishop Mixa no one knows and whoever knows the Pope knows that he will surely not let himself be limited. How should this resignation with all its open questions not be a topic? It is clear from the 3-page-letter of Bishop Mixa to Rome, that this will be the motive for his visit.
Mixa's criticisms of the instigation of his colleagues stand out in the room like before: "It should have been brotherly. I should have been advised of a leave till all the accusations were thoroughly investigated. Instead they hurried to the Pope and showed the so-called abuse case like a trump, which de facto consisted of not more than six hand-written sentences of a highly dubious, scribbled memo.", he said to "Welt" a few days ago.
Even high-ranking Church officials of the Diocese of Augsburg refrain from criticism. They have, in the matter of the supposed abuse case about Bishop Mixa, clearly not followed the corresponding guidelines of the German Bishops Conference.
It is clear, that the "educational abuse" was already apparent to the Eichstaetter Pastoral Associate L. already on the 25th of March 2010 in Augsburg. In conjunction with the directives of the German Bishops Conference: "The accredited agent researches the circumstances and is the contact person for the law enforcement authorities."
Accordingly, the accredited agent of the Diocese of Augsburg, i.e. Cathedral Vicar Heinrich hasn't researched this. He has not to-date sought any contact with the suspected victim.
Even in another point the Diocese of Augsburg has clearly violated their own guidelines. The indifference to the complaint was a serious break of the valid directives on the part of the Diocese of Augsburg, as it states: "every complaint or claim of suspicion will be thoroughly investigated. Immediately after becoming aware of suspicion or an incident, the responsible party must commence investigating.
He conducts an interview with the accused, upon which he consults a lawyer. A protocol is to be followed during the interview, for which the responsible party is obliged to follow. With the (presumptive) victim respective his legal guardian will be contacted. According to the protocol, the incident will be assessed and established, how the victim is best to be helped and how to further proceed."
Fact: This did not happen in the Diocese of Augsburg at all. There was no interview with Bishop Mixa and there was no protocol, which would have been undersigned by the participants.
If the victim was approached, may be doubted, for the directives of the GCB states further: "The welfare of the Church goes first to the victim. The defense of the victim from further abuse or public release of information is to be especially avoided. There is also a responsibility for the welfare of the accused. He remains until proven otherwise, innocent. If it is found that the suspicion is groundless, the necessary steps will be taken to restore the good reputation of the person." Presently, there hasn't been any apology to Bishop Walter Mixa.
If one looks exactly at the directives of the GBC and the incidents in the Diocese in conjunction with the alleged victim, then it is clear, that the suppositions of the Diocese of Augsburg could not stand.
On the 16th of June a communication was made by the Diocese: "Those responsible in the Diocese have followed what is just and necessary and appropriate to the directives of the German Bishops Conference and the Freisinger Bishops Conference. The Diocese of Augsburg expressly denies that it had made public any accusations of abuse.
Otherwise the prosecuting attorney's initial inquest was not known at the of Bishop Emeritus Walter Mixa of the Diocese of Augsburg's signing of his resignation."
This supposition is in any event in complete contradiction to the kath.net copy of the original act of the State Prosecuting Attorney. From him it was clear, that the Diocese even previously must have known of the alleged abuse case.
In the kath.net memo concerned, by Augsburger Pastoral Assistant F., who advocated as a "representative for possible victims of sexual and physical violence", said elsewhere: "On March 25 2010 I have spoken about the case with Mr. Heinrich [Responsible Party for Abuse in the Diocese!]. Bishop Mixa had incidentally signed his resignation on 21 April 2010.
Even a Church critic like Alan Posener had stated in Cicero, that Mixa is being treated unjustly. Posener maintains, that Mixa has the same rights as every other Citizen has. "That belongs to his personal rights, which follow, that the worth of a man is unassailable." Fact: The actual "Acta Mixa" is not closed.
Freedom in Russia Before Stalin, Mao and Obama
Though the Russian absolutist monarchy was overthrown by shrill egomaniacs like Lenin about ten years before I was born, I know it better than I do any other absolutist monarchy. So let me give you a couple of examples from its public life.
The Soviet propaganda implied more and more insistently that the Soviet Russians were the world's superior race. But if they were, why didn't they come to power centuries earlier, and not in 1917? That was where the Soviet propaganda began to represent Russians who had lived in the pre-1917 regime as idiots because that was what the tsarist regime had allegedly made out of them to prevent the revolutionary overthrow of the "tsarist regime."
The secret opposition to the "tsarist regime" was on throughout the second half of the eighteenth century.
After tsarevich Constantine, who lived in Poland, had secretly renounced any claim to the imperial succession, his brother tsarevich Nicholas was crowned emperor of Russia. Nicholas was disliked, while Constantine had a big following in Russia ("Constantine and Constitution"). In December of 1825, Russian troops in St. Petersburg refused to take the oath of allegiance to Nicholas, who for hours tried his best to bring to reason the mutinous soldiers. When that did not work, he consented to use force, and a few rounds of grapeshot quelled the mutiny. The Decembrists (as they came to be called) demanded the abolition of serfdom and the attainment of some degree of representative government. The chief conspirators were arrested and interrogated by the emperor in person.
Let me draw a comparison with events closer to us. The Tiananmen rebels (alive by the end of the suppression of rebellion) numbered 11 people, and all eleven were shot on the spot. The Decembrists and the Tiananmen rebels both pursued a similar goal: constitutional government. But while all Tiananmen rebels caught alive were shot, some of the Decembrists were sent to a city named Chita. They reconstructed and repaired it to live in to their pleasure. Others began to work in mines in Siberia to have some food to stay alive.
Alexander Pushkin, regarded as the greatest Russian poet of the time, began his poem addressed to the rebels as follows:
In the depths of the Siberian ores,
Preserve your proud noble patience.
Your sorrowful toil will not be lost,
Nor will be your lofty aspirations.
Nekrasov lived to the age of 57, and he continued spreading his misery nationwide in his poetry and his magazines. He was never stopped and was never asked to make his literary mood less miserable. He died in 1878 while serfdom (slave ownership) had been abolished in 1861, but his mood of misery hardly changed.
On the other hand, no monarch was so showered with flattery as Stalin was — he was glorified as the source of everything valuable on earth:
In the broadest spaces of our wonder — country,
While to victories in war and in peace there is no end,
We composed a song so joyous
About our leader and great friend.
Stalin is our military glory,
Stalin is our youth and our highest flight.
Fighting with songs and with them winning,
Our people follow Stalin in peace as they do in fight!
Let us now take a glance again at the British monarchy. The queen is to talk with and approve the person presented to her to be Her Majesty's Prime Minister (a rough equivalent of the U.S. president) if she accepts him. He is presented to the queen by his party, which had a majority in general elections.
Usually information about a person's ability is obtained via written sources. But at a certain point, a live person has to be evaluated by his peers through his performance, especially when one is considered to be Her Majesty's Prime Minister. It is up to the queen to accept or reject the prospective candidate.
I suppose it would have taken the queen a minute or two to reject Obama. Many voters may be incapable of understanding the mind of a person running for president they are going to vote for. On the other hand, the queen engages in human dialogue, showing her an abyss between refreshing intelligence, extraordinary intelligence, and genius in understanding the civic and military realities. Thus, Winston Churchill was endorsed as the prime minister, and possibly his official appearance made Hitler leave Western Europe alone and attack Russia, which led to his defeat in Russia and suicide.
The Soviet propaganda pictured the Russian absolutist monarchy as the lowest degradation of human society. Yet Stalin's Russia was an abysmal jump downward, compared with the Russia of the time of Pushkin and Nekrasov.
A society is not the latest machine, in which everything valuable is preserved as much as possible. The Russian absolutist monarchy or the queen in Britain may be more useful than the futuristic dreams, of which Stalin's Russia, Hitler's Germany, or post-1949 China were to consist.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lev Navrozov can be reached by e-mail at navlev@cloud9.net. To learn more about and support his work at the Center for the Survival of Western Democracies, click here. If you intend to make a tax-exempt donation to the non-profit Center, please let us know via e-mail at navlev@cloud9.net, and we will send you all relevant information. Thank you.
Link to original...
The Soviet propaganda implied more and more insistently that the Soviet Russians were the world's superior race. But if they were, why didn't they come to power centuries earlier, and not in 1917? That was where the Soviet propaganda began to represent Russians who had lived in the pre-1917 regime as idiots because that was what the tsarist regime had allegedly made out of them to prevent the revolutionary overthrow of the "tsarist regime."
The secret opposition to the "tsarist regime" was on throughout the second half of the eighteenth century.
After tsarevich Constantine, who lived in Poland, had secretly renounced any claim to the imperial succession, his brother tsarevich Nicholas was crowned emperor of Russia. Nicholas was disliked, while Constantine had a big following in Russia ("Constantine and Constitution"). In December of 1825, Russian troops in St. Petersburg refused to take the oath of allegiance to Nicholas, who for hours tried his best to bring to reason the mutinous soldiers. When that did not work, he consented to use force, and a few rounds of grapeshot quelled the mutiny. The Decembrists (as they came to be called) demanded the abolition of serfdom and the attainment of some degree of representative government. The chief conspirators were arrested and interrogated by the emperor in person.
Let me draw a comparison with events closer to us. The Tiananmen rebels (alive by the end of the suppression of rebellion) numbered 11 people, and all eleven were shot on the spot. The Decembrists and the Tiananmen rebels both pursued a similar goal: constitutional government. But while all Tiananmen rebels caught alive were shot, some of the Decembrists were sent to a city named Chita. They reconstructed and repaired it to live in to their pleasure. Others began to work in mines in Siberia to have some food to stay alive.
Alexander Pushkin, regarded as the greatest Russian poet of the time, began his poem addressed to the rebels as follows:
In the depths of the Siberian ores,
Preserve your proud noble patience.
Your sorrowful toil will not be lost,
Nor will be your lofty aspirations.
Nekrasov lived to the age of 57, and he continued spreading his misery nationwide in his poetry and his magazines. He was never stopped and was never asked to make his literary mood less miserable. He died in 1878 while serfdom (slave ownership) had been abolished in 1861, but his mood of misery hardly changed.
On the other hand, no monarch was so showered with flattery as Stalin was — he was glorified as the source of everything valuable on earth:
In the broadest spaces of our wonder — country,
While to victories in war and in peace there is no end,
We composed a song so joyous
About our leader and great friend.
Stalin is our military glory,
Stalin is our youth and our highest flight.
Fighting with songs and with them winning,
Our people follow Stalin in peace as they do in fight!
Let us now take a glance again at the British monarchy. The queen is to talk with and approve the person presented to her to be Her Majesty's Prime Minister (a rough equivalent of the U.S. president) if she accepts him. He is presented to the queen by his party, which had a majority in general elections.
Usually information about a person's ability is obtained via written sources. But at a certain point, a live person has to be evaluated by his peers through his performance, especially when one is considered to be Her Majesty's Prime Minister. It is up to the queen to accept or reject the prospective candidate.
I suppose it would have taken the queen a minute or two to reject Obama. Many voters may be incapable of understanding the mind of a person running for president they are going to vote for. On the other hand, the queen engages in human dialogue, showing her an abyss between refreshing intelligence, extraordinary intelligence, and genius in understanding the civic and military realities. Thus, Winston Churchill was endorsed as the prime minister, and possibly his official appearance made Hitler leave Western Europe alone and attack Russia, which led to his defeat in Russia and suicide.
The Soviet propaganda pictured the Russian absolutist monarchy as the lowest degradation of human society. Yet Stalin's Russia was an abysmal jump downward, compared with the Russia of the time of Pushkin and Nekrasov.
A society is not the latest machine, in which everything valuable is preserved as much as possible. The Russian absolutist monarchy or the queen in Britain may be more useful than the futuristic dreams, of which Stalin's Russia, Hitler's Germany, or post-1949 China were to consist.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lev Navrozov can be reached by e-mail at navlev@cloud9.net. To learn more about and support his work at the Center for the Survival of Western Democracies, click here. If you intend to make a tax-exempt donation to the non-profit Center, please let us know via e-mail at navlev@cloud9.net, and we will send you all relevant information. Thank you.
Link to original...
Poland Gets New Primate, Archbishop Jozef Kowalczyk
Archbishop Jozef Kowalczyk is quitting as apostolic nuncio to Poland and assume the duties of the archbishop of Gniezno and primate of Poland on June 26.
On 8 May, the Pope Benedict XVI appointed Jozef Kowalczyk the archbishop of Gniezno and primate of Poland. Kowalczyk’s episcopal enthronement will take place on 26 June in the cathedral in the central-western city of Gniezno, which has a similar status to Canterbury or Reims cathedrals in Great Britain and France.
During the celebrations of St. Peter and Paul’s Day, 29 June, Archbishop Kowalczyk will receive a pallium, an ecclesiastical vestment worn by metropolitans and primates, from the Pope.
Jozef Kowalczyk has served as the first apostolic nuncio to Poland since II WW for over twenty years. He negotiated with Polish authorities the text of the concordat signed in 1993
Until a new apostolic nuncio is appointed, the secretary of the nunciature Father Ionut Paul Strejac will act as charge d’affairs. (mg)
Link to original...
On 8 May, the Pope Benedict XVI appointed Jozef Kowalczyk the archbishop of Gniezno and primate of Poland. Kowalczyk’s episcopal enthronement will take place on 26 June in the cathedral in the central-western city of Gniezno, which has a similar status to Canterbury or Reims cathedrals in Great Britain and France.
During the celebrations of St. Peter and Paul’s Day, 29 June, Archbishop Kowalczyk will receive a pallium, an ecclesiastical vestment worn by metropolitans and primates, from the Pope.
Jozef Kowalczyk has served as the first apostolic nuncio to Poland since II WW for over twenty years. He negotiated with Polish authorities the text of the concordat signed in 1993
Until a new apostolic nuncio is appointed, the secretary of the nunciature Father Ionut Paul Strejac will act as charge d’affairs. (mg)
Link to original...
US bishops back Olmsted in Arizona abortion drama :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
Could the USCCB be any more useless? It's high time this bloated bureaucratic shakedown operation were jettisoned for something more streamlined; and Catholic.
US bishops back Olmsted in Arizona abortion drama :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
US bishops back Olmsted in Arizona abortion drama :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
Consecration of Tridentine Altar in Moscow
On Sunday 20 June, Archbishop Paul Pezzi, the Ordinary of Archdiocese of the Mother Of God in Moscow, Russia, consecrated a refurbished wooden altar for the Extraordinary form of the Roman Rite. This altar is situated in the Big Chapel of the Moscow Cathedral of Immaculate Conception of The Blessed Virgin Mary. The consecration ceremony followed the 'usus antiquor.' After consecration of the altar, Fr. Augustine Dzenzel celebrated Mass in the Extraordinary Form. This is the first time since 1936, when the ruling Ordinary of this Archdiocese participated in the traditional Latin liturgy.
h/t: ggreg
Judge weighs Pride fest's request to keep preacher out | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ
He will not be able to legally distribute bibles at the Pride Festival.
Judge weighs Pride fest's request to keep preacher out | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ
Judge weighs Pride fest's request to keep preacher out | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ
Young Wisconsin Catholics Come out in Force to Support Bishop Morlino
By Kathleen Gilbert
MADISON, Wisconsin, June 23, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Catholics in the diocese of Madison, WI are hitting back at negative media coverage of their bishop after he welcomed priests with the Society of Jesus Christ the Priest, a group renowned for their traditionalist liturgy and fidelity to orthodox Catholic teaching. Supporters note that, contrary to the picture painted by dissenting voices in the media, Morlino's focus on orthodoxy is increasingly popular with Catholic youth - even in the liberal stronghold of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Madison Bishop Robert Morlino, one of the most outspoken advocates for the unborn among the U.S. Catholic hierarchy, has defended the priests against criticism that the move represented a "step backward" and that the priests' approach is, in the words of one parishioner, “quite different than we have become accustomed to." Morlino heard parishioners from St. Mary's Parish in Platteville at an occasionally-heated meeting on Monday.
Despite media coverage focusing on dissenting voices, many were eager to voice support for their bishop - especially among pro-life Catholics.
Read further...
MADISON, Wisconsin, June 23, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Catholics in the diocese of Madison, WI are hitting back at negative media coverage of their bishop after he welcomed priests with the Society of Jesus Christ the Priest, a group renowned for their traditionalist liturgy and fidelity to orthodox Catholic teaching. Supporters note that, contrary to the picture painted by dissenting voices in the media, Morlino's focus on orthodoxy is increasingly popular with Catholic youth - even in the liberal stronghold of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Madison Bishop Robert Morlino, one of the most outspoken advocates for the unborn among the U.S. Catholic hierarchy, has defended the priests against criticism that the move represented a "step backward" and that the priests' approach is, in the words of one parishioner, “quite different than we have become accustomed to." Morlino heard parishioners from St. Mary's Parish in Platteville at an occasionally-heated meeting on Monday.
Despite media coverage focusing on dissenting voices, many were eager to voice support for their bishop - especially among pro-life Catholics.
Read further...
Occultism and Gnosticism Fill in the Void in the Czech Republic
Thanks to the deceits of Masonic associations fueling Czech Nationalism and the destructive presence of an impending Soviet menace, the Catholic Church has been sorely beaten in this once mostly Catholic nation.
After 1918, a Wilsonian Europe had no room for the Hapsburg Monarchy, and the deliberate elimination of the Hapsburg throne, put the altar of Christendom at the mercy of secular forces who saw it as a temporarily useful tool to be eventually phased out.
Read entire article, here.
After 1918, a Wilsonian Europe had no room for the Hapsburg Monarchy, and the deliberate elimination of the Hapsburg throne, put the altar of Christendom at the mercy of secular forces who saw it as a temporarily useful tool to be eventually phased out.
[Guardian] Czechs may not be very enthusiastic churchgoers but many of them easily accept the idea that fortune-tellers can predict the future, lucky charms bring good fortune or that the stars might influence their lives. Moreover, claims about Czech non-religiosity are also complicated by the growth of charismatic and evangelical movements in recent years. Even though the total number of evangelicals and charismatics is small, some of these denominations have multiplied their membership several times in the 10 years between the last two censuses.
Weak support for traditional church religion is partly a legacy of Czech nationalism of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century and its interpretation of the country's religious history. Catholicism, which was the major religion at that time, was seen as an Austrian import that forcibly replaced the "true" religion of the Czech nation – Protestantism. The denunciation of the Hapsburg monarchy and German language and culture (though, paradoxically, the German-speaking urban intelligentsia played a major role in the first wave of Czech nationalism) thus also included also a rejection of the Catholic faith. Nationalist anti-Catholic arguments appealed to many Czechs even though most of the population remained formally affiliated to the Roman Catholic church.
Read entire article, here.
Matteo Ricci moves closer to Sainthood
John Zmirak's polemical article at Insidecatholic, here:
Matteo Ricci moves closer
If you don't know the story of Father Ricci's extraordinary mission to China, it's worth reading up on, for the light it casts on preaching the gospel to alien cultures. To summarize very briefly a controversy that would last for centuries, Father Ricci tried to "inculturate" Christian faith in China. Learning the Mandarin language, Chinese court customs, and finally adopting Chinese dress, Ricci mastered the nuances of Confucian philosophy and Chinese culture. Exploring the speculative works revered by that nation's scholars, Father Ricci found words in Chinese philosophy that could either refer to "the heavens" (i.e., the sky) or "Heaven" (the ordering principle in Creation) -- so Ricci chose to use them in the second, theological sense. In much the same way, St. Paul had told the Greeks: "For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you" (Acts 17:23).
Matteo Ricci moves closer
USCCB Media Blog: Truth be told?
That's it, fret about details and conceal the way things are. Hopefully, people who foolishly give money and support to the USCCB and their various Socialist agendas will cease doing so.
Considering that the USCCB receives over 33% of its budget from the Federal Government, it's not too difficult to imagine that they would be compromised.
No wonder they spend so little time working on souls, and a lot more time promoting Socialist agendas of wealth redistribution and pacifism.
USCCB Media Blog: Truth be told?
Considering that the USCCB receives over 33% of its budget from the Federal Government, it's not too difficult to imagine that they would be compromised.
No wonder they spend so little time working on souls, and a lot more time promoting Socialist agendas of wealth redistribution and pacifism.
USCCB Media Blog: Truth be told?
French Foreign Legion Chaplain Serves Troops in Afghanistan: Hard Core
June 21, 2010. This is just one of a thousand jumps by Benoît de Pommerol, the chaplain of the paratrooper brigade of the French Foreign Legion. He's lived with them for 10 years. His last destination was the war in Afghanistan.
Since he came to the Legion, de Pommerol hasn't hesitated to act like a soldier in order to better help them. That's why he trains with the legionaires.
A day in the Legion begins with Mass in a former Soviet bunker on a mountain east of Kabul.
Source: Le Figaro
And Rome Reports, here.
Jesuit Theology Professor and "Friend of Darwin" says Science and Religion Are Compaitable
In 2008, Haught received a "Friend of Darwin Award" from the National Center for Science Education. Additionally, in 2009, in recognition of his work on theology and science, Haught was awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Louvain. Here.
Read further...
Participants in dialogue between religion and science must work to dispel the notion that the two disciplines stand in total opposition to each other, said a theologian with the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University in Washington.
"Just like I have been trying to do my entire life, the dialogue should attempt to remove the false obstacles in the way of discussion, namely that religion and science are incompatible opposites," John Haught told Catholic News Service June 18.
The interview was prompted by a panel discussion hosted two days earlier by the Dialogue on Science, Ethics and Religion, which is part of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Moderated by Jennifer Wiseman, the new director of the dialogue, the panel had four speakers who discussed the theme "Re-Envisioning the Science and Religion Dialogue." They reached an agreement on three basic principles: no name-calling, civility and a need to help develop an interest in science among the public.
One crucial viewpoint was missing on the panel: the Catholic perspective.
Haught has written 18 books on the subject, including "The Cosmic Adventure: Science, Religion and the Quest for Purpose," "God After Darwin: A Theology of Evolution" and "Responses to 101 Questions on God and Evolution." He has been involved with religion and science dialogue for many years, teaching a course on the dialogue at Georgetown University.
"Many people still do not have a very deep understanding of the relationship between science and faith," he said, adding that many don't even have much interest in this relationship.
"Look at the numbers: 50 to 60 percent of Christians consider evolution and Christian faith incompatible," he said.
To Haught, most who believe in the conflict model of religion-science dialogue cannot explain why they think the two are irreconcilable.
Catholics who hold this view need "to get over it," he said. "There isn't any controversy about the reality of the evolution in the scientific community, so why in the church?"
As Pope John Paul II said in a message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences on Oct. 22, 1996, Catholics need to construct a theology that shows how divine knowledge, providence and wisdom can be affirmed because of evolution.
Pope Benedict XVI said in 2007 that evolution and the existence of God the creator should not be seen as two ideas in strict opposition to each other.
"Evolution exists, but it is not enough to answer the great questions," such as how human beings came to exist and why human beings have an inherent dignity, he said.
That is why the religion-science dialogue is so important, said Haught.
"If the Catholic Church wishes to remain with an appropriate understanding of God, then it must accept evolution," Haught said.
He suggested that the dialogue should reach out to the seminaries and schools of theology and show the importance of science education.
Even more than that, he said they should reach out to the people sitting in the pews. "It will be important to hold more available conferences and other opportunities for people to meet and discuss the topic."
The dialogue should focus on bringing people into contact with the whole body of theology and science, said Haught.
Read further...
Defenders respond to criticisms of CNA report :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
(CNA).- Controversy continues about the Catholic News Agency story on Cardinal Francis George’s criticism of the Catholic Health Association’s (CHA) actions during the health care debate. Defenders of CNA note the substance of the report is supported by other sources, while critics focus on the accuracy of several quotations.
At the U.S. bishops’ executive session last week, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) president reportedly discussed the fallout resulting from CHA’s support for the health care legislation despite the bishops’ opposition. Among the bishops’ objections to the bill were that its abortion restrictions were insufficient.
Several bishops who wished to remain anonymous told CNA that Cardinal George charged CHA and other Catholic groups with providing “cover” for undecided legislators to support President Obama’s legislation. According to these sources, the cardinal clearly remarked that CHA president Sr. Carol Keehan and her colleagues were to blame for the passage of the bill. He said these groups’ actions also weakened the moral voice of the bishops in the U.S., caused confusion and wounded Catholic unity.
In response, USCCB Secretary of Communications Helen Osman criticized
Defenders respond to criticisms of CNA report :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
At the U.S. bishops’ executive session last week, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) president reportedly discussed the fallout resulting from CHA’s support for the health care legislation despite the bishops’ opposition. Among the bishops’ objections to the bill were that its abortion restrictions were insufficient.
Several bishops who wished to remain anonymous told CNA that Cardinal George charged CHA and other Catholic groups with providing “cover” for undecided legislators to support President Obama’s legislation. According to these sources, the cardinal clearly remarked that CHA president Sr. Carol Keehan and her colleagues were to blame for the passage of the bill. He said these groups’ actions also weakened the moral voice of the bishops in the U.S., caused confusion and wounded Catholic unity.
In response, USCCB Secretary of Communications Helen Osman criticized
Defenders respond to criticisms of CNA report :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
Federal Police Raid Belgian Church's HQ
[Brussels] It will be interesting to see if this implicates Cardinal Daneels who assigned a lot of the predators to their positions of trust and protected them after it was found that they were guilty. There's nothing currently about what the police have found, but there should be a report shortly.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Father McBrien's Favorites: Notre Dame Classics: Dual Magisterium
Father Z has blogged about Father McBrien's favorite Bishops. Which reminds us. Are we really all Catholics in all this?
It's interesting how German Bishops Marx of Munich (an alleged "Baroque" Conservative who's eager for promotion) and Zollitsch (under investigation for child abuse) have stabbed Bishop Mixa in the back and deliberately leaked a dossier full of vague claims of homosexuality and alchohol abuse, while hanging him out to dry in public, talking about his 'alchohol abuse problems' and 'mental instabillity'.
These are not the ministrations of Catholics, but the tactics of Communists, especially the part about attacking Bishop Mixa's mental stability. (Note how Bishop Gerhard Mueller was passed over for Cardinal Kasper's job.)
Meanwhile, even NCR's golden haired boy John Allen can see there's a dual Magisterium.
Author and Mother of Three Excoriates UK Bishops
We were talking earlier about the meeting of the Austrian and Slovenian Bishops to discuss the sex abuse and take steps to prevent it, well, here's what the English Bishops are doing to "prevent" it, and it's what the American Bishops have done as well.
Link to original...
BRAGA, Portugal, June 21, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Fiorella Nash, Catholic author and mother of three, spoke to the Knights of Our Lady on the weekend of June 4-6, and upbraided the Bishops Conference of England and Wales for failing to sufficiently oppose explicit sex education in schools and even colluding with the "anti-life policies of the Government."
In her speech, "The State of Family Life in Great Britain," Nash called the government's aggressive promotion of sex education the "greatest threat to family life in Britain today."
"Sex education in Britain, as in many other countries, means the aggressive promotion of an ideology about human sexuality which is entirely at odds with Catholic teaching," she said.
Schools in Britain are currently pushing information about contraception and abortion upon children without parental knowledge or consent, and "this is happening with the co-operation of the Catholic authorities," she said.
Link to original...
Alice Cooper and the Fascination of Evil
The stage shows of American rock musician, Alice Cooper seek to shock and provoke. Indeed the reborn Christian will not show the mastery of evil, rather his fans will be shown the finality of Heaven and Hell.
The concert of the US-American rock musician Alice Cooper has shocking and provoking elements like scenes of torture and execution scenes. Indeed, Alice Cooper is Christian and wants his fans to think about the reality of Heaven and Hell. He said this in an interview with the "Cologne City Informer".
He was born in 1948 as Vincent Furnier in a Christian family and his father was a protestant minister. When he was becoming famous in his younger years, he was very far from his faith. He became an alcoholic and drove his marriage to ruin. 1983 he entered into a recovery clinic and became surprisingly quickly free of his alcohol addiction. "The doctors could not figure out how I had recovered so quickly. I knew, though, that God had helped me. Since then I've cared about the immortality of my soul", said the musician to the Koeln Statdtanzeiger Since his recovery, he's read daily from the Bible and goes Sundays to church.
In his music and in his stage shows, he keeps himself apart from evil, because it, even like death, works a powerful fascination. Alice Cooper actually said: "Whoever travels with a car on the street, and looks left at Disney World and then sees two autos crash on the right, will always look to the right. We have this morbid curiosity, because we know, that we will all finally die."
It isn't just a game with evil with him though. "This fascination is dangerous though. For that reason I try to make it clear to my fans, that Hell is final. Whoever wants to go to heaven, should not waste his life on earth." On his Homepage he has cited the words: "Evil will be punished. It will never win." In his various stage shows he puts himself in various bad guy roles, which come to a bad end.
On the question if his father and his current pastor are not horrified by his shows, he told the Koeln paper: "Certainly not. Both have seen most of my concerts and were impressed, how multifacetedly Alice Cooper embodies evil. For the most part many of my critics must admit after a concert visit, that I do not honor the Devil. On the contrary: I ridicule the Devil."
Original at Kath.net...
The concert of the US-American rock musician Alice Cooper has shocking and provoking elements like scenes of torture and execution scenes. Indeed, Alice Cooper is Christian and wants his fans to think about the reality of Heaven and Hell. He said this in an interview with the "Cologne City Informer".
He was born in 1948 as Vincent Furnier in a Christian family and his father was a protestant minister. When he was becoming famous in his younger years, he was very far from his faith. He became an alcoholic and drove his marriage to ruin. 1983 he entered into a recovery clinic and became surprisingly quickly free of his alcohol addiction. "The doctors could not figure out how I had recovered so quickly. I knew, though, that God had helped me. Since then I've cared about the immortality of my soul", said the musician to the Koeln Statdtanzeiger Since his recovery, he's read daily from the Bible and goes Sundays to church.
In his music and in his stage shows, he keeps himself apart from evil, because it, even like death, works a powerful fascination. Alice Cooper actually said: "Whoever travels with a car on the street, and looks left at Disney World and then sees two autos crash on the right, will always look to the right. We have this morbid curiosity, because we know, that we will all finally die."
It isn't just a game with evil with him though. "This fascination is dangerous though. For that reason I try to make it clear to my fans, that Hell is final. Whoever wants to go to heaven, should not waste his life on earth." On his Homepage he has cited the words: "Evil will be punished. It will never win." In his various stage shows he puts himself in various bad guy roles, which come to a bad end.
On the question if his father and his current pastor are not horrified by his shows, he told the Koeln paper: "Certainly not. Both have seen most of my concerts and were impressed, how multifacetedly Alice Cooper embodies evil. For the most part many of my critics must admit after a concert visit, that I do not honor the Devil. On the contrary: I ridicule the Devil."
Original at Kath.net...
Austrian Catholics a thorn in Vatican's side
By VERONIKA OLEKSYN (AP) – 7 hours ago
VIENNA — Long a thorn in the Vatican's side, Austrian Catholics have ramped up their quest for a more liberal church in the wake of the global clerical sex abuse scandal.
And while much of the push for change comes from the grassroots, the country's powerful cardinal recently caused a stir with strong gestures in support of reform, raising the stakes in the confrontation between the Vatican and dissidents pushing to allow priests to marry and women to be ordained.
What is particularly troubling for Rome is that Austria — historically a major symbol of Catholicism in Europe and a bulwark against the Protestant Reformation — is losing worshippers in record numbers as calls for reform grow stronger.
Link to article...read further.
VIENNA — Long a thorn in the Vatican's side, Austrian Catholics have ramped up their quest for a more liberal church in the wake of the global clerical sex abuse scandal.
And while much of the push for change comes from the grassroots, the country's powerful cardinal recently caused a stir with strong gestures in support of reform, raising the stakes in the confrontation between the Vatican and dissidents pushing to allow priests to marry and women to be ordained.
What is particularly troubling for Rome is that Austria — historically a major symbol of Catholicism in Europe and a bulwark against the Protestant Reformation — is losing worshippers in record numbers as calls for reform grow stronger.
Link to article...read further.
Pope calls for imitation of St. Thomas Aquinas' devotion to Eucharist :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
(CNA/EWTN News).- Basing his catechesis for a third and final time on the legacy of St. Thomas Aquinas, Pope Benedict highlighted Aquinas’ “masterpiece,” the “Summa Theologica.” He referred to the saint's devotion to the Eucharist, making the call for all people to "fall in love" with the Blessed Sacrament.
An estimated 7,000 pilgrims and faithful joined the Pope in the Paul VI Hall for Wednesday's general audience. Among those in attendance was a group from Malawi in tribal dress who performed a traditional dance for the Holy Father from their seats in the packed auditorium.
Referring to the "masterpiece" of the “Summa Theologica,” Benedict XVI noted the saint’s “serene confidence in the harmony of faith and reason, and in the ability of reason, enlightened by faith, to come to an understanding of God and his saving plan.”
Pope calls for imitation of St. Thomas Aquinas' devotion to Eucharist :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
An estimated 7,000 pilgrims and faithful joined the Pope in the Paul VI Hall for Wednesday's general audience. Among those in attendance was a group from Malawi in tribal dress who performed a traditional dance for the Holy Father from their seats in the packed auditorium.
Referring to the "masterpiece" of the “Summa Theologica,” Benedict XVI noted the saint’s “serene confidence in the harmony of faith and reason, and in the ability of reason, enlightened by faith, to come to an understanding of God and his saving plan.”
Pope calls for imitation of St. Thomas Aquinas' devotion to Eucharist :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)
Chavez Says, "Let them Eat Cake" Bishops Protest
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's Roman Catholic Church is blaming the government of President Hugo Chavez for the decomposition of more than 22,000 tons (20,000 metric tons) of food inside a port.
Church leaders condemn what they call the irresponsibility of officials at the state-run company that imported the food, calling the scandal "a sin that Heaven is crying over."
Chavez has urged prosecutors to bring all those responsible to justice. Authorities have arrested the ex-president of the company and two other officials.
The Venezuelan Bishops' Conference said Tuesday the decomposed food is an example of government mismanagement. It complained of what it calls "the moral deterioration of public institutions."
Link to original at FOX News...
Church leaders condemn what they call the irresponsibility of officials at the state-run company that imported the food, calling the scandal "a sin that Heaven is crying over."
Chavez has urged prosecutors to bring all those responsible to justice. Authorities have arrested the ex-president of the company and two other officials.
The Venezuelan Bishops' Conference said Tuesday the decomposed food is an example of government mismanagement. It complained of what it calls "the moral deterioration of public institutions."
Link to original at FOX News...
Cardinal Kasper Will Retire Now Replaced by Koch
It could have been Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller when we talked about it earlier, but instead it will be Bishop Koch. This is very good news indeed.
The Anglo-Catholic has picked up on this, here. Here's what The Anglo-Catholic found on google.
The Anglo-Catholic has picked up on this, here. Here's what The Anglo-Catholic found on google.
Many people have signed a petition for the unqualified acceptance of the council. Right from the start, the expression "unqualified acceptance" irritates me because I don’t know anyone — myself included — to whom it would apply. A few arbitrarily chosen examples will suffice:
– The council did not abolish Latin in the liturgy. On the contrary, it emphasized that in the Roman Rite, apart from exceptional cases, the use of the Latin language must be maintained. Who among the vocal defenders of the council wishes "unqualified acceptance" of that?
– The council declared that the Church regards Gregorian Chant as the "music proper to the Roman Rite," and that it must therefore "be given primary place." In how many parishes is this implemented "without qualification?"
– The council expressly requested that governmental authorities voluntarily give up those rights to participation in the selection of bishops, that had arisen over the course of time. Which defender of the council advocates "without qualification" for that?
– The council described the fundamental nature of the liturgy as the celebration the paschal mystery and the eucharistic sacrifice as "the completion of the work of our salvation." How can that be reconciled with my experience, made in many different parishes, that the sacrificial understanding of the Mass has been completely eliminated from the liturgical language and the Mass is now understood only as a meal or "the breaking of bread?" In what way can one justify this profound change by reference to the council?
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Anglicans Consider New Alternatives
Here's what "the Anglo-Catholic" said about what's going on in the Anglican Communion:
An Outsider's View
When people see some disaster coming which is going to destroy their home, what do most of them do? Grab the family treasures if they can, gather up the things that mean the most to them, and then get someplace where it’s safe. I think the Latin phrase for that is “Anglicanorum coetibus.”
An Outsider's View
SSPX Seminaries are Significantly Outperforming The Jesuit Counterparts
The June Ordinands are on the Way
The Jesuits have just ordained 6 men from the Midwest, which is presumed to be Wisconsin Province, the Louisiana Province has produced 3. In a virtual Goofus and Gallant scenario, the Jesuits seem to be doing very little with the enormous gifts they've been given.
Now, compare that to the SSPX in Zaitzkofen which just ordained three to the priesthood this last Sunday on the 21st. They were ordained by Bishop Fellay and will say their first Mass on the 28th at the Seminary. Threats from the heterodox ordinary, Bishop Mueller, that it would threaten the reconciliation talks now going on in Rome notwithstanding, the ordination has gone ahead. Although the German Province of the SSPX lacks the access of big Universities, facilities and endowments possessed by the Jesuits they are tracking to overtake them in yearly vocations to the priesthood.
There have been no complaints from the local ordinary of Winona, Bishop Lavoir, however, to the new ordinations and the Saint Thomas Aquinas Seminary there has ordained 9. Last year, they had ordained 10 and are likely to continue a fruitful harvest of priests to fill up the increasing demand for the Mass of All Ages and alleviate the exttremely heavy work burden of their brother priests in the fields of the Lord.
Just a brief speculation: You'd think that the Jesuits with their heavily endowed and accredited Universities would be capable of producing more vocations with the overabundance of resources. No, the number of vocations seems inversely proportional to the number of concelebrants, in this case 300, at their ordinations.
We think that resources should follow success, and times they are a changin' as "newer rites" fall into disfavor for what was always done in older and finer times, and those who are, as Saint Pius X said, the true friends of the Church, the Traditionalists, will continue to carry out the Great Commission, while lesser men and those who lead them will certainly find creature comforts, the praise of their peers and neighbors, but will they please God?
It seems increasingly clear that Pope Benedict is more likely to favor the scholastically trained militants coming from SSPX Seminaries to the kinds of men trained elsewhere with less rigour and esprit de corp.
Correction: The Jesuits ordained from the "Midwest" were actually ordained in Chicago and include boys from all over the Midwest. The Chicago Province alone has 386 Jesuits and four Universities with numerous other preparatory and high schools, here. Also there weren't 9 as we'd initially reported, but only 6.
Pound for pound, what dog do you want on your side in the battle for souls?
The Jesuits have just ordained 6 men from the Midwest, which is presumed to be Wisconsin Province, the Louisiana Province has produced 3. In a virtual Goofus and Gallant scenario, the Jesuits seem to be doing very little with the enormous gifts they've been given.
Now, compare that to the SSPX in Zaitzkofen which just ordained three to the priesthood this last Sunday on the 21st. They were ordained by Bishop Fellay and will say their first Mass on the 28th at the Seminary. Threats from the heterodox ordinary, Bishop Mueller, that it would threaten the reconciliation talks now going on in Rome notwithstanding, the ordination has gone ahead. Although the German Province of the SSPX lacks the access of big Universities, facilities and endowments possessed by the Jesuits they are tracking to overtake them in yearly vocations to the priesthood.
There have been no complaints from the local ordinary of Winona, Bishop Lavoir, however, to the new ordinations and the Saint Thomas Aquinas Seminary there has ordained 9. Last year, they had ordained 10 and are likely to continue a fruitful harvest of priests to fill up the increasing demand for the Mass of All Ages and alleviate the exttremely heavy work burden of their brother priests in the fields of the Lord.
Just a brief speculation: You'd think that the Jesuits with their heavily endowed and accredited Universities would be capable of producing more vocations with the overabundance of resources. No, the number of vocations seems inversely proportional to the number of concelebrants, in this case 300, at their ordinations.
We think that resources should follow success, and times they are a changin' as "newer rites" fall into disfavor for what was always done in older and finer times, and those who are, as Saint Pius X said, the true friends of the Church, the Traditionalists, will continue to carry out the Great Commission, while lesser men and those who lead them will certainly find creature comforts, the praise of their peers and neighbors, but will they please God?
It seems increasingly clear that Pope Benedict is more likely to favor the scholastically trained militants coming from SSPX Seminaries to the kinds of men trained elsewhere with less rigour and esprit de corp.
Correction: The Jesuits ordained from the "Midwest" were actually ordained in Chicago and include boys from all over the Midwest. The Chicago Province alone has 386 Jesuits and four Universities with numerous other preparatory and high schools, here. Also there weren't 9 as we'd initially reported, but only 6.
Pound for pound, what dog do you want on your side in the battle for souls?
Lifesite News Says Cardinal Mahony is "Gay Friendly"
LOS ANGELES, June 22, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – In a videotaped deposition released last Tuesday, Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony admits he did not think it necessary to contact police after learning of the sex abuse perpetrated by a priest in his diocese against two boys. Instead, Mahony transferred the priest to other locations, where the abuse could potentially continue.
The archdiocese had tried but failed to keep private the deposition, which was taken as part of a lawsuit that resulted in a $2.2 million settlement.
The five-hour videotaped deposition, the first to be released to the public, shows Mahony explaining his conduct after former priest Michael Baker confessed to him in 1986 that he had molested two boys. Baker, who has been accused of abuse by at least 23 individuals, is now serving a 10-year jail sentence on charges of molestation.
Link to original...
The archdiocese had tried but failed to keep private the deposition, which was taken as part of a lawsuit that resulted in a $2.2 million settlement.
The five-hour videotaped deposition, the first to be released to the public, shows Mahony explaining his conduct after former priest Michael Baker confessed to him in 1986 that he had molested two boys. Baker, who has been accused of abuse by at least 23 individuals, is now serving a 10-year jail sentence on charges of molestation.
Link to original...
Asian Catholic Church is Growing
Seoul (AsiaNews) - For the first time, the number of Catholics in Korea has exceeded 10% of the total population. There are 115,997 more Catholics than in 2008.
It is the Church to bear witness to the considerable increase of the faithful in Korea, today 10.1% of the population. The statistics were compiled based on pastoral documents collected from 16 dioceses, seven universities and a number of Catholic religious institutes in Korea.
Of the 15 dioceses, which have a total of 5 million and 120 thousand faithful, the largest is the Archdiocese of Seoul, where 27.4% of Catholics live. The number of baptized in 2009 rose to 157 thousand, 10.9% more than in 2008. If the number of children baptized grew by 7.5% in one year, the number of those baptized before reaching one year, which decreased significantly, is of concern, indicating that it is still necessary to encourage the baptism of newborn infants.
Read further...
It is the Church to bear witness to the considerable increase of the faithful in Korea, today 10.1% of the population. The statistics were compiled based on pastoral documents collected from 16 dioceses, seven universities and a number of Catholic religious institutes in Korea.
Of the 15 dioceses, which have a total of 5 million and 120 thousand faithful, the largest is the Archdiocese of Seoul, where 27.4% of Catholics live. The number of baptized in 2009 rose to 157 thousand, 10.9% more than in 2008. If the number of children baptized grew by 7.5% in one year, the number of those baptized before reaching one year, which decreased significantly, is of concern, indicating that it is still necessary to encourage the baptism of newborn infants.
Read further...
Asian Catholic Church is Growing
Seoul (AsiaNews) - For the first time, the number of Catholics in Korea has exceeded 10% of the total population. There are 115,997 more Catholics than in 2008.
It is the Church to bear witness to the considerable increase of the faithful in Korea, today 10.1% of the population. The statistics were compiled based on pastoral documents collected from 16 dioceses, seven universities and a number of Catholic religious institutes in Korea.
Of the 15 dioceses, which have a total of 5 million and 120 thousand faithful, the largest is the Archdiocese of Seoul, where 27.4% of Catholics live. The number of baptized in 2009 rose to 157 thousand, 10.9% more than in 2008. If the number of children baptized grew by 7.5% in one year, the number of those baptized before reaching one year, which decreased significantly, is of concern, indicating that it is still necessary to encourage the baptism of newborn infants.
Read further...
It is the Church to bear witness to the considerable increase of the faithful in Korea, today 10.1% of the population. The statistics were compiled based on pastoral documents collected from 16 dioceses, seven universities and a number of Catholic religious institutes in Korea.
Of the 15 dioceses, which have a total of 5 million and 120 thousand faithful, the largest is the Archdiocese of Seoul, where 27.4% of Catholics live. The number of baptized in 2009 rose to 157 thousand, 10.9% more than in 2008. If the number of children baptized grew by 7.5% in one year, the number of those baptized before reaching one year, which decreased significantly, is of concern, indicating that it is still necessary to encourage the baptism of newborn infants.
Read further...
Archeologists Claim They've Found the Oldest Images of the Apostles
[Rome, Reuters] Archaeologists and art restorers using new laser technology have discovered what they believe are the oldest paintings of the faces of Jesus Christ’s Apostles. The images in a branch of the catacombs of St Tecla near St Paul’s Basilica, just outside the walls of ancient Rome, were painted at the end of the 4th century or the start of the 5th century.
Archaeologists believe these images may have been among those that most influenced later artists’ depictions of the faces of Christ’s most important early followers. “These are the first images that we know of the faces of these four Apostles,” said Professor Fabrizio Bisconti, the head of archaeology for Rome’s numerous catacombs, which are owned and maintained by the Vatican.
The full-face icons include visages of St Peter, St Andrew, and St John, who were among Jesus’ original 12 Apostles, and St Paul, who became an Apostle after Christ’s death.
Read further...
Archaeologists believe these images may have been among those that most influenced later artists’ depictions of the faces of Christ’s most important early followers. “These are the first images that we know of the faces of these four Apostles,” said Professor Fabrizio Bisconti, the head of archaeology for Rome’s numerous catacombs, which are owned and maintained by the Vatican.
The full-face icons include visages of St Peter, St Andrew, and St John, who were among Jesus’ original 12 Apostles, and St Paul, who became an Apostle after Christ’s death.
Read further...
Will Father Feeney's SBC in New Hampshire be Regularized?
Just received this note from Brother Andre-Marie of the Saint Benedict Center in New Hampshire. Because some reports were leaked out on-line regarding talks with the local ordinary, Brother wants this to be made known. The Saint Benedict Center will with the knowledge of the local ordinary continue to follow the spiritual legacy of Father Leonard Feeney and has received, for the time being, a chaplain from the Archdiocese. Approval from the local ordinary of the work of the Center is possibly forthcoming, but the good Bishop is recovering from back surgery. Here's what Brother Andre-Marie sent us.
Stay tuned.
Dear Larry,
Thank you for doing the manly and Catholic thing in writing to obtain information from me directly on the latest scuttlebutt over SBC and our dealings with the Diocese of Manchester. As we earlier discussed, the cause of this recent round of rumors is the notice that appeared in the Cathedral parish bulletin. The pastor, who knew very little of what was going on, penned a poorly written paragraph that was also highly inaccurate. This got circulated around the Internet because the bulletin goes on the Cathedral web site, too. When I informed the Bishop's liaison about this, and sent him the text, he called me to tell me, "I feel sick right now." When I said that the paragraph was "misleading and vague," this priest corrected me, and said that it was "wrong," as in factually incorrect. The Cathedral pastor removed the bulletin from the site and apologized for misleading the faithful.
What would help clear this up is the press release we have written announcing that our chapel is formally approved by the Diocese, but our Bishop is recovering from a recent back surgery, and is under doctor's orders to do no work. Some important paperwork for our chapel's approval is therefore held up. Because of all this business, I’m not sure when the approval will be granted and the news made public.
Catholic prudence demands that, in light of present circumstances, I offer some explanations concerning these goings on. I certainly do not want my silence on the issue to give strength to the rumors and suspicions being circulated. Please feel free to pass this information along to those you said were concerned about the rumors they’d heard.
Here, in summary, it what has transpired.
It is not a secret to our local congregation that we have had a series of discussions with officials of the Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire. These discussions have been ongoing since just before the Holy Father promulgated his Motu Proprio, Summorum Pontificum. Our local faithful have been kept generally informed concerning the progress of these conversations. I have put off addressing the matter in writing to our larger network of tertiaries, friends, and benefactors, because I did not want the noise of public discussion, especially online, to prejudice the outcome of our conversations with the Diocese. Such spectacles in the blogosphere and in the “cage-match” environment of online forums are not fruitful, but, rather, dissipating and enervating. Lots of heat and smoke, but no light. My intention all along has been to explain in writing to our supporters at a distance what our locals know. My desire was to do so when there were actual results to report, not just a series of possibilities.
Here are the facts:
1. I, Brother Andre Marie, representing Saint Benedict Center, Richmond (SBC), have been meeting with Manchester Chancery officials for the better part of three years.
2. I was encouraged to initiate this because of the change in atmosphere in the Church begun shortly after Pope Benedict XVI was coronated Supreme Pontiff, especially his initiatives in favor of liturgical tradition and orthodoxy.
3. During those meetings, I made clear to the chancery officials that the MICM and SBC will remain loyal disciples of Father Leonard Feeney, retaining our enthusiastic adherence to, and missionary promotion of, what is often termed the “strict interpretation” of the binding Catholic dogma, extra ecclesiam nulla salus. Further, we will continue to worship according to the traditional Roman Rite of the Mass, as the Holy Father has affirmed is the right of Latin Catholics. The diocese acknowledged our right to both of these things. In short, we will remain what we always were, and that does not present a problem to the diocese. This is an amazing development that would not have been possible until very recently. (What's more, our bishop submits his retirement on August 12. I am given to believe, through sources, that his successor will be a friend of tradition, as many of Pope Benedict's appointments are turning out to be.)
4. The Diocese carried out their meetings with us in consultation with the Holy See. The positive results of our cooperation with the diocese (see #6, below) have already been approved by the Roman officials.
5. The Holy See directed our Brothers and Sisters to make a profession of Catholic Faith before Bishop McCormack. We happily did so according to the formula prescribed by the Church — the Nicene Creed with three additional paragraphs naming and professing the appropriate adherence to the three levels of magisterial teaching. All those who assume office in the Church are required to make this profession. All priests must make it before their ordination. Additionally, we each submitted to the Bishop signed copies of the Athanasian Creed, an ancient Creed of the Church that thrice declares the doctrine we are dedicated to defend.
6. The results of this definitive meeting with Bishop McCormack are the approval of a chaplaincy for SBC, and the canonical approbation of our chapel as a Catholic oratory. (This is presently pending, as the “paperwork” is held up due to the Bishop’s convalescence.)
7. We assured the Diocese that we will treat the Holy Father and the Bishops in communion with him with all the respect due to them as the Vicar of Christ and successors of the Apostles. (As you know, the kind of rancorous criticism of the hierarchy so common in many traditionalist circles has really never been our MO. Brother Francis was certainly not that way.)
8. The diocesan officials and we discussed the confusion surrounding SBC’s positions on different matters. The local media, certain bloggers, and the publishing arms of ideological progressivists had manufactured a veritable mythology about our little community, characterizing us in a false light as a “hate group.” (You know all about this.) For obvious reasons, the chancery wanted to get at the truth of these issues. We obliged them, and they were satisfied.
9. These arrangements we made with the diocese entail a canonical (legal) normalization of our status in the Church. In no way do they indicate a “conversion” to the Catholic Church, to which our members already belonged as baptized Catholics. I mention this because critics from mutually opposing camps (progressivists, sedes, etc.) may choose to put some heavy "spin" on the fact that we made a profession of Faith.
If I had thought that these arrangements with the ecclesiastical officials would detract from our twofold Crusade to promote the dogma and work for the conversion of America to the true Faith, I would not have moved forward with them. I did so with the trust and confidence of Brother Francis, whom I kept abreast of things. I am of the conviction that we live in a new era in the Church, and many good things are happening that constitute, in broad outline, a reorientation toward tradition. (I am not naive: There is very much to do!) Given this authentic progress toward a more sane era in the Church Militant, I believe it possible and prudent to advance our apostolate within the canonical structures of the Church, thus helping the Church in Her sacred mission of saving souls and giving glory to the Blessed Trinity.
Some traditionalists, who virtually consider any and all dealings with the hierarchy to be formal cooperation with Satan himself, will not understand this. They will take scandal. They will accuse, criticize, deride, label me a traitor and a turncoat, a Judas, a Brother Elias. What can I say? I have to make decisions with a good and correct conscience, based upon the goals of our Crusade, the exigencies of or apostolate, and real life circumstances in the Church and the world — not on some "false clear idea" that folks craft to make the complexities of life easier to explain. Should some friends, benefactors, and tertiaries choose to part company with us over this, I would be saddened, but I will not fume and rant. We've seen friends come and go — and enemies pile up — since we began this work. 'Twas always thus, as Brother Francis would have assured us.
The Church thinks in terms of decades, centuries, millennia, not in the soundbites of the moment. I ask those who care to judge our actions to look at us after a few years at least. Then a clearer picture will emerge of what has happened. When it turns out that, by the grace of God and the intercession of the Immaculate Heart, we remain loyal to our Crusade, then the suspicions of the moment will prove groundless. I do not expect apologies.
God bless, and Mary keep, you and Sue.
Slovenian and Austrian Bishop's Conference Meet to Discuss Sex Abuse
[Vienna] The theme of abuse will be at the center of the discussions of the Austrian Bishops' Conference which will meet at Mariazell Abbey for their summer meeting. On the table there's a comprehensive introductory document which will be discussed, which is the work of around 300 experts [Yikes] which project group is overseen by the Viennese Generalvikar Mosgr Franz Schuster, according to the media representative of the Episcopal Conference, Paul Wuthe. In its highlights the paper establishes clear guildlines for all ecclesiastical workers including orders for the prevention of sexual abuse and violence. "The goal is an Austria-wide standardization of procedures and with that, clarity", said Wuthe.
The proposals will include the establishment of a Church Ombundman and a reinforced collaboration of all ecclesiastical and state organizations with sexual abuse and violence.
A chief role in connection with the last months of well known cases of violence and abuse is played by the Independent Victim's Attorney Waltrud Klasnic and the Independent Victim's Defense Commission. From this basis Waltrud Klasnic will report on the developments in this area, according to Wuthe.
It is also the first time that the Bishops' Conference of Slovenia will meet with that of Austria. Cardinal Schoenborn and Archbishop Anton Stres (Laibach) are meeting on the 23rd of June at 1:00pm in the Abbot's Council at the Abbey of Mariazell, in order to hold a press conference. Shortly before there will be a photo oprrotunity for all participating Bishops in front of the Basilica.
Archbishop Anton Stres of Laibach, Slovenia, will preside over the Mass and preach the sermon.
Link to original...
Orthodox Church in Bulgaria Opposes Homosexual Parade: British Ambassador Praises It
[Sofia]British ambassador to Bulgaria Steve Williams has sent a message of goodwill to participants ahead of the forthcoming Sofia gay pride festival on Saturday June 26, the third of its kind in Bulgaria.
"I wish to send a message of support to all those who will be celebrating diversity on that day. Respect for human rights is one of the core democratic values on which the European Union is based. Those human rights apply equally to all people, regardless of their race, gender, ethnicity, belief, or sexual orientation. Many excuses - such as respect for religious doctrine or traditional values - are given to justify homophobia. Let us be clear: in today's European Union there can be no excuse and no justification for homophobia, on any grounds," said ambassador Williams.
The full text of his goodwill message is available on the British embassy's website here.
Ambassador Williams was also one of the first ambassadors to endorse last year's parade. On that occasion he was criticised by Boyan Rasate, leader of the far-right Bulgarian National Union, who told reporters that "he (Williams) has no right to tell Bulgarians how to live in Bulgaria."
Last year, the head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Maxim, also called on Sofia authorities to stop the parade and denounced homosexuality as the "fruits of darkness".
Read original at sofiaecho...
Bulgaria's 2008 parade, the first of its kind in Sofia, was marred by violence after more than 60 people, mostly identified as far-right protesters, tried to attack and harass marchers. A demonstrator also threw a Molotov cocktail at the crowd.
"I wish to send a message of support to all those who will be celebrating diversity on that day. Respect for human rights is one of the core democratic values on which the European Union is based. Those human rights apply equally to all people, regardless of their race, gender, ethnicity, belief, or sexual orientation. Many excuses - such as respect for religious doctrine or traditional values - are given to justify homophobia. Let us be clear: in today's European Union there can be no excuse and no justification for homophobia, on any grounds," said ambassador Williams.
The full text of his goodwill message is available on the British embassy's website here.
Ambassador Williams was also one of the first ambassadors to endorse last year's parade. On that occasion he was criticised by Boyan Rasate, leader of the far-right Bulgarian National Union, who told reporters that "he (Williams) has no right to tell Bulgarians how to live in Bulgaria."
Last year, the head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Maxim, also called on Sofia authorities to stop the parade and denounced homosexuality as the "fruits of darkness".
Read original at sofiaecho...
Bulgaria's 2008 parade, the first of its kind in Sofia, was marred by violence after more than 60 people, mostly identified as far-right protesters, tried to attack and harass marchers. A demonstrator also threw a Molotov cocktail at the crowd.
Cardinal Sepe Denies Corruption Allegations
A senior cardinal caught up in a corruption probe connected to his work for the Vatican has denied any wrong doing.
Crescenzio Sepe, who is also the archbishop of Naples, is accused of taking kickbacks when he headed the Propaganda Fide – that’s the body which handles the Vatican’s vast property porfolio which funds much of the Catholic Church’s missionary work.
Sepe says he will cooperate fully with the investigation which has pulled in former government ministers..its alleged Sepe sold a building at a quarter of its market value to a one time infrastructure minister.
Sepe asserts that during his time as head of the department until 2006, the Vatican always approved all the balance sheets and he was even congratulated on his management skills.
The Vatican has said its confident the cardinal will be found blameless in this matter.
Copyright © 2010 euronews
Link to original...
Most definitely connected to the phone tapping, here.
Kazak Bishop Recalls Soviet Persecution, Questions Communion in the Hand
[Catholic Culture] In an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, the General Secretary of the Bishops' Conference of Kazakhstan recounted the persecution Catholics endured in the Soviet Union under the regime of Leonid Brezhnev. Between 1971 and 1973, when he was a child of ten to twelve, Bishop Athansius Schneider and his family would travel by train to the nearest church, which was 60 miles away.
“The Communist government forbade children from participating in the Holy Mass,” he recalls. “Only adults were allowed to go, but we were four children and therefore my parents chose to take the first train in the morning when it was still dark so we wouldn’t be visible to others to see us… And then we would return with the last train in the evening …The Sundays, we spent with our parish priest who had a little room only-- not a house, but just a little room; it was his kitchen, sleeping room, and library in this one room. We spent our time because we were the family who travelled from afar. There I made my first Confession and first Communion with this holy priest who was also imprisoned in Karaganda earlier.”
Read further... Catholic Culture.
“The Communist government forbade children from participating in the Holy Mass,” he recalls. “Only adults were allowed to go, but we were four children and therefore my parents chose to take the first train in the morning when it was still dark so we wouldn’t be visible to others to see us… And then we would return with the last train in the evening …The Sundays, we spent with our parish priest who had a little room only-- not a house, but just a little room; it was his kitchen, sleeping room, and library in this one room. We spent our time because we were the family who travelled from afar. There I made my first Confession and first Communion with this holy priest who was also imprisoned in Karaganda earlier.”
Read further... Catholic Culture.
Riga Gets a New Archbishop
The Catholics in Latvia are getting a new Archbishop. The Vatican reported this on Saturday. Zbignev Stankevics will be the new Archbishop of Riga. He was previously a spiritual director of seminarians and Director of the Science of Religion Institute in Riga. The Vatican received at the same time the resignation of Archbishop Cardinal Janis Pujats (79).
Link to original...Radio Vatikan.
Link to original...Radio Vatikan.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Ave Maria University Gets Accreditation
Tom Monaghan is ahead of the game and eager to feed at the government trough. He announced this weekend at an unofficial alumni gathering that he was fairly certain that the AVE Maria would receive accreditation from SACS. Accreditation is important because it means that the school's credits will transfer and be recognized by employers like the US Government; it also means that Ave Maria will get access to America's tax money.
There is currently not any evidence that a school's accreditation was refused due to concerns of the school not having up-to-date hiring policies, such as those that include all "qualified" individuals regardless of sexual preference. We've seen Catholic institutions have their funding threatened with that scourge before and the question isn't so much, will the Government remove funding because Ave Maria refuses to hire homosexual or pro-abort faculty, but when Tom Monahan and Dr. Nicholas Healy will cave in to these requirements because they want a professional sports program and a "world class" (modernist) university.
It's no wonder that Ave Maria is happy at this news because they've been worried about getting accreditation and federal funds. Having semi-professional athletes on campus is a big priority, after all, almost as much of a priority as having high-profile Pro-Abort Politicians visit and leave significant amounts of money behind, like Tom Golisano. Is a visit from Obama out of the question? The accreditation has long been a concern at least since 2007 when the school was put on candidacy for full recognition.
Perhaps this will be a wink and a nod from the powers and principalities since Ave Maria is willing to play ball with Pro-Abort politicians and host Frankenstein scientists as well. As Ave Watch website reports, the Pizza King and his pentecostal minions are willing to bend the rules in more than one situation and the facility is going to work on a new male pill.
It's no secret that the Wanderer's readership has been declining like all print media companies, so one wonders if some of that $4 million Tom Golisano gave to Ave Maria will find its way into Al Matt's depleted coffers?
Ave Maria has been eager to sacrifice Catholicism in the past when it fired Father Fessio from his campus ministry slot, the theologically impoverished Healy administration with its academic professionalism and pentecostal proclivities no doubt had something to do with that.
It reminds us of The Perelandra Series by CS Lewis where the University elites are the bad guys, who belong to a Satanic cabal.
Can you really trust someone from the Harvard smart set who's refused to repudiate the false ideas promoted by that institution, but rather revels in them and seeks to replicate them in an educational swamp in Naples Florida?
There is currently not any evidence that a school's accreditation was refused due to concerns of the school not having up-to-date hiring policies, such as those that include all "qualified" individuals regardless of sexual preference. We've seen Catholic institutions have their funding threatened with that scourge before and the question isn't so much, will the Government remove funding because Ave Maria refuses to hire homosexual or pro-abort faculty, but when Tom Monahan and Dr. Nicholas Healy will cave in to these requirements because they want a professional sports program and a "world class" (modernist) university.
It's no wonder that Ave Maria is happy at this news because they've been worried about getting accreditation and federal funds. Having semi-professional athletes on campus is a big priority, after all, almost as much of a priority as having high-profile Pro-Abort Politicians visit and leave significant amounts of money behind, like Tom Golisano. Is a visit from Obama out of the question? The accreditation has long been a concern at least since 2007 when the school was put on candidacy for full recognition.
Perhaps this will be a wink and a nod from the powers and principalities since Ave Maria is willing to play ball with Pro-Abort politicians and host Frankenstein scientists as well. As Ave Watch website reports, the Pizza King and his pentecostal minions are willing to bend the rules in more than one situation and the facility is going to work on a new male pill.
It's no secret that the Wanderer's readership has been declining like all print media companies, so one wonders if some of that $4 million Tom Golisano gave to Ave Maria will find its way into Al Matt's depleted coffers?
Ave Maria has been eager to sacrifice Catholicism in the past when it fired Father Fessio from his campus ministry slot, the theologically impoverished Healy administration with its academic professionalism and pentecostal proclivities no doubt had something to do with that.
It reminds us of The Perelandra Series by CS Lewis where the University elites are the bad guys, who belong to a Satanic cabal.
Can you really trust someone from the Harvard smart set who's refused to repudiate the false ideas promoted by that institution, but rather revels in them and seeks to replicate them in an educational swamp in Naples Florida?
The Anglican Church is Dying: An Exchange
From Datechguy:
Read further at Datechguy...
I got an e-mail from Smitty today that linked to this post at Samizdata. The meat of the story:
Bishop Spong is the “Save the bible from fundamentalism” person (a favourite of certain liberal people I know in York) – and by “fundamentalist” he really means this word in its original sense, i.e. the “fundamentals” of Christianity such as the empty tomb (although, of course, he would be happy if innocent minded people just thought he meant stupid-southern-redneck-preacher by “fundamentalist”, which is the impression the media love to give). In any case Bishop Spong assumes that, being a social gospel person like himself, Rowen Williams also does not believe in the basic doctrines of Christianity (i.e. that, like Bishop Spong himself, he is using religion as a cover for the service of the collectivist cause).
So Bishop Spong was rather taken aback by Rowen Williams teaching the doctrine of the empty tomb, so shocked that he stated that of course Williams can not really believe in such doctrines (he must just be pretending in order to get along with the ignorant scum who make up most church goers) – but it is Rowen Williams’ reply that interests me.
Archbishop Williams replies that he is not pretending to believe in things in order to get along with ordinary people – he actually does believe in these doctrines, “I do not know how to convince him [Spong] that I do, but I do”.
Read further at Datechguy...
Telegraph Makes Unfounded Accusation Against Bishop Mixa
The UK Newspaper joins attacks on Bishop Mixa of Augsburg. Although the news story contains no new information, it claims that there is a new round of accusations against him while he waits at his mansion for the decision on his resignation.
What is becoming increasingly clear is that Archbishop Zollitsch and Bishop Marx have stepped out of their way to feed him to the wolves. One thing this story is really showing up is how things are shaping up in the Church as Liberal Prelates become increasingly aggressive against Catholic Prelates, using the press corp as an effective bludgeon to destroy the credibility of the Church and the ongoing reform.
Meanwhile, the Vatican has agreed to cooperate with Italian authorities regarding the charges of corruption against one of its Cardinals. Sounds like this was the reason behind the Carabineri (Italian Federal Police) evesdropping "accidentally" on the Pope's phone conversations as reported earlier this Month. Speaking of scandal, wasn't it Damian Thompson who said the other day that we needed an outside to clean up the Italian dominated curia? The cleanup may well go on without the Australian Cardinal Pell who was said by various sources last week to have been bypassed for promotion to the powerful Congregation of Bishops owing to a smear campaign against him.
Link to Telegraph...
What is becoming increasingly clear is that Archbishop Zollitsch and Bishop Marx have stepped out of their way to feed him to the wolves. One thing this story is really showing up is how things are shaping up in the Church as Liberal Prelates become increasingly aggressive against Catholic Prelates, using the press corp as an effective bludgeon to destroy the credibility of the Church and the ongoing reform.
Meanwhile, the Vatican has agreed to cooperate with Italian authorities regarding the charges of corruption against one of its Cardinals. Sounds like this was the reason behind the Carabineri (Italian Federal Police) evesdropping "accidentally" on the Pope's phone conversations as reported earlier this Month. Speaking of scandal, wasn't it Damian Thompson who said the other day that we needed an outside to clean up the Italian dominated curia? The cleanup may well go on without the Australian Cardinal Pell who was said by various sources last week to have been bypassed for promotion to the powerful Congregation of Bishops owing to a smear campaign against him.
Link to Telegraph...
Military and Media mostly Clueless about Suicide Epidemic in the MIlitary
In a characteristically humanist approach, the NPR fails to address what is really a spiritual problem. The Army has an inkling that the problem is a spiritual one. They encourage soldiers to be religious, knowning that somehow the taboos against self-slaughter encouraged by the Catholic Church are beneficial. Unfortunately, the prevailing society, the law, our government are hostile to that spiritual reality. If there's an epidemic of suicide in the military, it's a spiritual problem.
Listen to the story on NPR, here.
Listen to the story on NPR, here.
Top Senate Republican Leaves Door Open to Potential Elena Kagan Filibuster
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The leading Republican in the Senate left the door open for a potential filibuster of pro-abortion Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan. In a weekend interview with "Fox News Sunday" Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said the initial information on Kagan has been "quite troubling."
In April, McConnell, a pro-life senator from Kentucky, said a filibuster of the then-unknown nominee would be "highly unlikely, however, unless the nominee is an extraordinary individual outside the mainstream with really bizarre views."
Top Senate Republican Leaves Door Open to Potential Elena Kagan Filibuster
In April, McConnell, a pro-life senator from Kentucky, said a filibuster of the then-unknown nominee would be "highly unlikely, however, unless the nominee is an extraordinary individual outside the mainstream with really bizarre views."
Top Senate Republican Leaves Door Open to Potential Elena Kagan Filibuster
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Ban on Gay Blood Donors in Canada Under Attack
OTTAWA, June 18 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A court battle brewing between the Canadian agency in charge of collecting blood donations and an active homosexual could result in a ruling that removes the ban on homosexuals giving blood.
Canada Blood Services (CBS), which collects, screens and ensures the safety of the blood supply, sued homosexual Kyle Freeman last fall after he admitted to lying in the pre-donation screening process and giving blood despite the lifetime ban on men who have sex with men (MSM) giving blood.
The ban was put in place in 1985 after the Canadian Red Cross, in charge of the blood supply at the time, failed to properly screen donors. The result was that thousands of Canadians were infected with HIV and hepatitis C from contaminated blood.
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/jun/10061801.html
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Canada Blood Services (CBS), which collects, screens and ensures the safety of the blood supply, sued homosexual Kyle Freeman last fall after he admitted to lying in the pre-donation screening process and giving blood despite the lifetime ban on men who have sex with men (MSM) giving blood.
The ban was put in place in 1985 after the Canadian Red Cross, in charge of the blood supply at the time, failed to properly screen donors. The result was that thousands of Canadians were infected with HIV and hepatitis C from contaminated blood.
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/jun/10061801.html
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Mammal Hair Found in 100 Million-Year-Old Amber
Palaeontologists have discovered two mammal hairs encased in 100 million-year-old amber.
While older 2D fossilised hairs are known, those preserved in the amber are the oldest 3D specimens known. The hairs, found alongside a fly pupa in amber uncovered in southwest France, are remarkably similar to hair found on modern mammals.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8734000/8734883.stm
H/t: kreuz.net
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Bishop Mixa's Second Resignation, "under duress"
It's not the enemy liberal media, or some of the backstabbing colleagues, but the Pope himself who has Bishop Mixa under pressure. This, at least is something some would have us believe.
According to the anti-Catholic 'Focus', Pope Benedict charged, through his nuncio to Germany Mons, Jean-Claude Perisset, on the end of April, to give Bishop Mixa a "time out". The Bishop is said by 'focus' not to have reacted because of the "time out".
April 28th the conspirators Archbishop Zollitsch and Bishop Marx had an audience with Benedict XVI where they gave him the useless information that Bishop Mixa is supposed to be a homosexual and a child abuser. In the heated atmosphere, the Pope was forced to contend with this information. According to 'focus', the Pope then personally sent the conspirator Bishops to discuss with Bishop Mixa at Basel and have him clarify his first resignation of April 21st on the same misleading accusations of sexual abuse as before.
Bishop Mixa has, in his own words, issued a second resignation, "under duress".
http://www.kreuz.net/article.11377.html
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
According to the anti-Catholic 'Focus', Pope Benedict charged, through his nuncio to Germany Mons, Jean-Claude Perisset, on the end of April, to give Bishop Mixa a "time out". The Bishop is said by 'focus' not to have reacted because of the "time out".
April 28th the conspirators Archbishop Zollitsch and Bishop Marx had an audience with Benedict XVI where they gave him the useless information that Bishop Mixa is supposed to be a homosexual and a child abuser. In the heated atmosphere, the Pope was forced to contend with this information. According to 'focus', the Pope then personally sent the conspirator Bishops to discuss with Bishop Mixa at Basel and have him clarify his first resignation of April 21st on the same misleading accusations of sexual abuse as before.
Bishop Mixa has, in his own words, issued a second resignation, "under duress".
http://www.kreuz.net/article.11377.html
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Pope Benedict to Venerate Relics of Celestine V
[Kathnet, Italy] Pope Benedict XVI will visit the central Italian city of Sulmona on the 800th birthday of one of its Saints, Celestine V.
Pope Benedict will visit on the 4th of July the central Italian city of Sulmona. The reason is the 800ths birthday of Pope Celestine V, who has been an inhabitant of the Abruzzian city for many years.
The Vatican has reported that Benedict XVI will pray before the reliquary of the Saint int the Cathedral crypt.
Celestine was elected against his will to the Papacy in 1294 to be head of the Church. The hermit was 80 years old at this point and had a reputation for holiness. In a moment unprecedented in Church history, he gave up his Papal office in a few months.
The central event of the 19th inner-Italian papal trip is the morning Mass in the open air under the open sky in the inner-city of Sulmona.
After a meal with the bishops of the region he will meet in the afternoon with the youth of the program. In the evening, Benedict XVI will fly back to Rome on a helicopter.
The Saint has for Pope Benedict a special significance. Already in April 2009 the current Pope laid an stole of honor, a so-called pallium, upon the shrine in the Abruzzian capital, L'Aquila.
(C) kathnet 2010
http://www.kath.net/detail.php?id=27074
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
Pope Benedict will visit on the 4th of July the central Italian city of Sulmona. The reason is the 800ths birthday of Pope Celestine V, who has been an inhabitant of the Abruzzian city for many years.
The Vatican has reported that Benedict XVI will pray before the reliquary of the Saint int the Cathedral crypt.
Celestine was elected against his will to the Papacy in 1294 to be head of the Church. The hermit was 80 years old at this point and had a reputation for holiness. In a moment unprecedented in Church history, he gave up his Papal office in a few months.
The central event of the 19th inner-Italian papal trip is the morning Mass in the open air under the open sky in the inner-city of Sulmona.
After a meal with the bishops of the region he will meet in the afternoon with the youth of the program. In the evening, Benedict XVI will fly back to Rome on a helicopter.
The Saint has for Pope Benedict a special significance. Already in April 2009 the current Pope laid an stole of honor, a so-called pallium, upon the shrine in the Abruzzian capital, L'Aquila.
(C) kathnet 2010
http://www.kath.net/detail.php?id=27074
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry
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