Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony likens Arizona immigration bill to Nazi, Communist practices - latimes.com
The reason Cardinal Mahony doesn't get flack for his own poor treatment of his workers, or his poor handling of sexual predators is that he supports their agenda. They can count on him to support the policies they like, against sound reasoning, good government and even morality.
Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony likens Arizona immigration bill to Nazi, Communist practices - latimes.com
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Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony likens Arizona immigration bill to Nazi, Communist practices - latimes.com
Posted using ShareThis
Bishop Wenski Goes to Miami
This looks like another major hand-picked guy from Pope Benedict.
Lexet Libertas has been following this man and his predecessor in Orlando for years. He's very friendly to the Latin Mass people, active with the Latino Community and trained in Sociology; still, sounds promising. There are four locations now in Orlando that offer the Immemorial Rite. He started out as a very liberal seminarian, according to Wikipedia, but became more attuned to the teachings of the Church as time went on.
Here...
Lexet Libertas has been following this man and his predecessor in Orlando for years. He's very friendly to the Latin Mass people, active with the Latino Community and trained in Sociology; still, sounds promising. There are four locations now in Orlando that offer the Immemorial Rite. He started out as a very liberal seminarian, according to Wikipedia, but became more attuned to the teachings of the Church as time went on.
Here...
Monday, April 19, 2010
Puff Piece in Washington Post for ACLU Shill
He's got an office full of pirated ecclesiastical furnishings and rests behind years of effective if misguided legal activity as one of the ACLUs chief snipers against the influence and presence of religion in the public square, and even in the minds of the public. He meditates. He's some kind of legal Shaolin Monk on a quest defending the "indigent" from the "evils" of the Vatican.
The Washington Post will tell you that Jeffrey says he likes to meditate and practice Zen Buddhism. It's a soft touch to lighten up his image as a predator and attempt to ward off claims that he's a scourge of religion. Actually, many of the men who've conveniently created this liability for him to exploit are also closeted Buddhists and other kinds of closeted and not so closeted things. We're sure that he sees more eye-to-eye with one of his supposed opponents, Abbot Klassen in terms of overall philosophy and politics than either of those men do with the Catholic Church. In many respects, they share a strange and suspicious taboo relationship where one benefits the other. Men like the Abbot provide the field and plant the seeds, while Anderson comes in and harvests what he can. Neither of these men are Catholic, after all, but it's easy to ignore this salient fact when you're trying to whip up the masses to a frenzy of irrational hatred.
The Washington Post also won't tell you that Jeffrey donates large sums of money to Democratic political causes and especially Neo-Marxist political canditates like Keith Ellefson, either.
Forget too about the libelous Milwaukee-Murphy story sent to the New York Times.
Read Washington Post...
The Washington Post will tell you that Jeffrey says he likes to meditate and practice Zen Buddhism. It's a soft touch to lighten up his image as a predator and attempt to ward off claims that he's a scourge of religion. Actually, many of the men who've conveniently created this liability for him to exploit are also closeted Buddhists and other kinds of closeted and not so closeted things. We're sure that he sees more eye-to-eye with one of his supposed opponents, Abbot Klassen in terms of overall philosophy and politics than either of those men do with the Catholic Church. In many respects, they share a strange and suspicious taboo relationship where one benefits the other. Men like the Abbot provide the field and plant the seeds, while Anderson comes in and harvests what he can. Neither of these men are Catholic, after all, but it's easy to ignore this salient fact when you're trying to whip up the masses to a frenzy of irrational hatred.
The Washington Post also won't tell you that Jeffrey donates large sums of money to Democratic political causes and especially Neo-Marxist political canditates like Keith Ellefson, either.
Forget too about the libelous Milwaukee-Murphy story sent to the New York Times.
Read Washington Post...
On HBO, Jesse Ventura Said Catholic Church Should Be Prosecuted Like Mobsters | NewsBusters.org
Like Jeffrey Anderson, another third rate socialistic degenerate who is motivated solely by contempt for the good.
On HBO, Jesse Ventura Said Catholic Church Should Be Prosecuted Like Mobsters | NewsBusters.org
On HBO, Jesse Ventura Said Catholic Church Should Be Prosecuted Like Mobsters | NewsBusters.org
Modernist Abbot Tries to Coopt Father Marx's Legacy
Matt C. Abbott at Renew America has reproduced a letter from one of the late Father Marx's companions at arms, Mr. Andrew Scholberg. Mr. Scholberg attended the funeral of Father Marx and took issue with some of the points Abbot Klassen made in his homily at the funeral Mass. Unfortunately, Abbot Klassen's overenthusiasm for Cardinal Bernardin and the Seamless Garment was pointed out, indeed Father Klassen was at some pains to make it clear that the Community at St. John's Abbey doesn't share Father Marx's views on the value of human life. Indeed, if past history and the school are any indication, many of the students are completely ignorant of the Catholic religion, indeed, most matriculants at St. John's University and Preparatory School are, in the words of Father Virgil Michel, moral parasites, as they feed off of the inversion and depravity of the surrounding world.
Mr. Scholberg writes:
You mentioned Cardinal Bernardin's Fordham University speech about the Seamless Garment. You implied or suggested this is what Fr. Marx stood for and fought for. Actually, Fr. Marx totally opposed Cardinal Bernardin's Seamless Garment rationale. He considered it a disaster for the anti-abortion movement for at least two reasons:
Despite a great number of fawning and enthusiastic comments about the campus and the execrable St. John's "Bible", Mr. Scholberg makes a salient observation about the typical Johnny in a revealing story which could have been written by anyone who'd experienced the place who had a conscience:
What will come of this very even-handed and fair response? Most likely, there will be silence, but if there is a response, we'd expect it to be very uncritical with a barely concealed and narcissistic counter stroke about Cardinal Bernardine's alleged concern for the poor and downtrodden and how there is a broad penumbra of values under which we can all find a home in big tent Catholicism. It's the squaring of the circle.
Read entire article...
Mr. Scholberg writes:
You mentioned Cardinal Bernardin's Fordham University speech about the Seamless Garment. You implied or suggested this is what Fr. Marx stood for and fought for. Actually, Fr. Marx totally opposed Cardinal Bernardin's Seamless Garment rationale. He considered it a disaster for the anti-abortion movement for at least two reasons:
1.The Seamless Garment gives Catholics an excuse to vote for pro-abortion politicians on the specious theory that these politicians are, on balance, more pro-life than their anti-abortion opponents because they have good positions on some other issues that impact life. For example, I recall one Seamless Garment evaluation of politicians that rated Senator Ted Kennedy as much more "pro-life" than Senator Jesse Helms! (Kennedy consistently voted for abortion and for public funding of abortion, and Helms was probably the Senate's most stalwart opponent of abortion.)
2. The Seamless Garment dilutes the anti-abortion movement by melding it with marginally related issues, some of which are debatable. For example, one debatable issue is whether a particular war meets the Church's criteria for a just war. Another is whether capital punishment is justified in a particular case. Melding abortion with a basketful of debatable issues takes the focus away from the monstrous injustice of abortion.
Despite a great number of fawning and enthusiastic comments about the campus and the execrable St. John's "Bible", Mr. Scholberg makes a salient observation about the typical Johnny in a revealing story which could have been written by anyone who'd experienced the place who had a conscience:
Regarding my point that the truth exists and doesn't change, let me tell you about my encounter with a confused young man at St. John's. When I was working at St. John's, a student came to see me in my office. He was boiling with rage over something I had written against abortion. I invited him to sit down. With steam coming out of his ears, he said, "In your opinion, abortion kills a baby, but others feel it isn't a baby. Who are you to say that abortion is wrong?" I kept my cool, pulled out a blank sheet of paper, and drew a circle. Pointing to the circle, I said, "What would you say if I were to tell you that I feel this is a square?" He replied, "Then for you it would be a square." Upon his reply, I politely told him that further dialogue was impossible, and he left. I was genuinely shocked to encounter such an extreme form of relativism and subjectivism and such a blatant denial of plain truth. I still shake my head when I think about that.
Back in the late 1970s, that confused young man was probably the exception rather than the rule. But things have gotten worse since then — much worse. Today, that young man's relativist confusion is the rule rather than the exception!
The Knights of Columbus commissioned a poll of young Catholics between the ages of 18 and 29. The poll found that 82 percent agree that morals are relative and that there's no definite right or wrong for everybody. In other words, eight out of 10 students entering St. John's reject the Ten Commandments and instead embrace moral relativism! No wonder so many Catholics are having abortions. Moral relativism is in the very air we breathe. It's part of the zeitgeist. I hope and pray that the faculty and community of St. John's can do something to influence the students to reject this specious, seductive, and deadly error and to embrace the fullness of truth about faith and morals. This is a big task and a tough challenge.
What will come of this very even-handed and fair response? Most likely, there will be silence, but if there is a response, we'd expect it to be very uncritical with a barely concealed and narcissistic counter stroke about Cardinal Bernardine's alleged concern for the poor and downtrodden and how there is a broad penumbra of values under which we can all find a home in big tent Catholicism. It's the squaring of the circle.
Read entire article...
Homosexual Priest Conference in St. Petersburg, Florida
Fr. Bryan Hehir keynoting conference with “gay priests” advocate: Part 2
April 18, 2010 by Francis Marion
Today we review more of the story on Fr. Bryan Hehir’s next speaking gig coming up April 30 at the Diocese of St. Petersburg’s “Living Eucharist” conference in Florida. For new readers, here’s Part 1, where we shared how one keynote speaker alongside Boston Archdiocesan Secretary for Social Services, Fr. Bryan Hehir, is the non-collar-wearing Fr. Timothy Radcliffe, O.P. who advocates publicly for gay priests and tells his audiences they should be reading gay novels and watching gay movies like Brokeback Mountain. Hehir as a senior archdiocesan cabinet official and most influential advisor to Cardinal Sean O’Malley apparently feels just fine sharing the main podium with Fr. Timothy. So here we look at the other keynoter Fr. J. Glenn Murray and then next at Bishop Lynch’s leadership of the Diocese of St. Petersburg where the talk is taking place.
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April 18, 2010 by Francis Marion
Today we review more of the story on Fr. Bryan Hehir’s next speaking gig coming up April 30 at the Diocese of St. Petersburg’s “Living Eucharist” conference in Florida. For new readers, here’s Part 1, where we shared how one keynote speaker alongside Boston Archdiocesan Secretary for Social Services, Fr. Bryan Hehir, is the non-collar-wearing Fr. Timothy Radcliffe, O.P. who advocates publicly for gay priests and tells his audiences they should be reading gay novels and watching gay movies like Brokeback Mountain. Hehir as a senior archdiocesan cabinet official and most influential advisor to Cardinal Sean O’Malley apparently feels just fine sharing the main podium with Fr. Timothy. So here we look at the other keynoter Fr. J. Glenn Murray and then next at Bishop Lynch’s leadership of the Diocese of St. Petersburg where the talk is taking place.
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An Evangelical Bishop For Papal Primacy
Already in the year 2001 the National Primate Friederich encouraged the protestants, to consider a limited recognition of the Pope as "ecumenically accepted speaker for world Christianity in the service of unity".
Wittenberg (kath.net/KNA/red) An unusual proposal for an Evangelical Churchman: The Bishop of the Evangelical National Church in Baden, Ulrich Fischer, has pronounced on the Primacy of Honor of the Pope even above Evangelical Bishops. In a Celebration of the 450th Anniversary of the Reformer Philipp Melanchthon, he reminded those assembled that even Melanchthon had declared that "the papal Primacy above the Bishops would be recognized by human law." This brought much anger upon the Reformer for his part.
"The recognition of the Primacy of the Pope is, by the way, till today, the most urgent, for the further progress of ecumenical thought," said the advisory member of the Council of the Lutheran Church in Germany (EKD). 15 years before, Pope John Paul II. brought the proposal of the Primacy of the Papacy anew into the ecumenical debate. "Doing an injustice", said Fischer, as the proposal had hardly a positive reaction on the Evangelical side.
Baden's Bishops, Ulrich Fischer is also the head of the Union of Evangelical Churches (UEK), the governing body of the United and Reformed National Churches in the EKD. The Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) is a coalition of 22 further independent Lutheran, Reformed and United National Churches in Germany. In the UEK, whose head is Fischer, represents 13 of the 22 National Churches.
In 2001 the Bavarian National Bishop Johannes Friedrich had presided over critical discussions, which had encouraged the Protestants, to consider making a limited recognition of the Papal Office as "ecumenically accepted speaker of world Christianity in the service of unity". This speaker, as Friedrich said then, may, however have neither doctrinal nor juridical competence for a Non-Catholic. Friederich is also the leading Bishop of the United Evangelical Church of Germany (VELKD) within the EKD. Eight National Churches belong to VELKD.
"Primacy" designates the particular legal position, which the Pope as a Bishop of Rome has in the Roman Catholic Church. The highest legislative authority over the entire Church and every believer belongs to it.
Link to original....
Wittenberg (kath.net/KNA/red) An unusual proposal for an Evangelical Churchman: The Bishop of the Evangelical National Church in Baden, Ulrich Fischer, has pronounced on the Primacy of Honor of the Pope even above Evangelical Bishops. In a Celebration of the 450th Anniversary of the Reformer Philipp Melanchthon, he reminded those assembled that even Melanchthon had declared that "the papal Primacy above the Bishops would be recognized by human law." This brought much anger upon the Reformer for his part.
"The recognition of the Primacy of the Pope is, by the way, till today, the most urgent, for the further progress of ecumenical thought," said the advisory member of the Council of the Lutheran Church in Germany (EKD). 15 years before, Pope John Paul II. brought the proposal of the Primacy of the Papacy anew into the ecumenical debate. "Doing an injustice", said Fischer, as the proposal had hardly a positive reaction on the Evangelical side.
Baden's Bishops, Ulrich Fischer is also the head of the Union of Evangelical Churches (UEK), the governing body of the United and Reformed National Churches in the EKD. The Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) is a coalition of 22 further independent Lutheran, Reformed and United National Churches in Germany. In the UEK, whose head is Fischer, represents 13 of the 22 National Churches.
In 2001 the Bavarian National Bishop Johannes Friedrich had presided over critical discussions, which had encouraged the Protestants, to consider making a limited recognition of the Papal Office as "ecumenically accepted speaker of world Christianity in the service of unity". This speaker, as Friedrich said then, may, however have neither doctrinal nor juridical competence for a Non-Catholic. Friederich is also the leading Bishop of the United Evangelical Church of Germany (VELKD) within the EKD. Eight National Churches belong to VELKD.
"Primacy" designates the particular legal position, which the Pope as a Bishop of Rome has in the Roman Catholic Church. The highest legislative authority over the entire Church and every believer belongs to it.
Link to original....
New Groups Rise to Support Thai Monarchy
After weeks of anti-government protests in Thailand, new groups are rising in support of the government. These new, so-called "no color" protests reflect growing unease among Bangkok residents over the rising political tensions and fears of bloodshed.
To the sound of patriotic music and song thousands of pro-government supporters rallied in central Bangkok Sunday calling for a peaceful resolution to six weeks of anti-government protests.
Under a monument marking Thailand's past wars, demonstrators displayed large posters of King Bhumipol Adulyadej and waved flags.
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To the sound of patriotic music and song thousands of pro-government supporters rallied in central Bangkok Sunday calling for a peaceful resolution to six weeks of anti-government protests.
Under a monument marking Thailand's past wars, demonstrators displayed large posters of King Bhumipol Adulyadej and waved flags.
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Pope Calls Church Wounded Sinner
(Reuters) - Pope Benedict marked five years as leader of the world's 1.1 billion Roman Catholics on Monday, calling his church a "wounded sinner" torn between the persecutions of the world and the consolation of God.
World
The German-born pontiff, who turned 83 last Friday, struck the reflective tone while thanking 46 cardinals at a private lunch in the Vatican for their support in a difficult time, the official newspaper L'Osservatore Romano reported.
Benedict attended the lunch after a weekend visit to Malta, where he met eight men sexually abused by priests in his latest step to counter the scandal that has rocked the church.
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World
The German-born pontiff, who turned 83 last Friday, struck the reflective tone while thanking 46 cardinals at a private lunch in the Vatican for their support in a difficult time, the official newspaper L'Osservatore Romano reported.
Benedict attended the lunch after a weekend visit to Malta, where he met eight men sexually abused by priests in his latest step to counter the scandal that has rocked the church.
Read further...
Ordination Class of 2010 Completed College, Held Jobs
Ordination Class of 2010 Completed College, Held Jobs, Participated in Parish Ministry Before Entering Seminary
WASHINGTON—The vast majority (92 percent) of men being ordained to the priesthood report some kind of full-time work experience prior to entering the seminary, most often in education. Three in five (60 percent) ordinands completed college before pursuing the priesthood, with one in five (20 percent) also receiving a graduate degree. One in three (34 percent) entered the seminary while in college.
The median age of ordinands is 33. The youngest member of the Class of 2010 is 25; 11 men are being ordained at the age of 65 or older. On average, men were 18 when they first considered their vocation.
This analysis is part of The Class of 2010: Survey of Ordinands to the Priesthood, an annual national survey of men being ordained priests, conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), a Georgetown University-based research center. The entire report can be found at www.usccb.org/vocations/classof2010, as well as on the new www.ForYourVocation.org which is set to launch on April 25, Good Shepherd Sunday and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The survey was commissioned by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
Link to original...
WASHINGTON—The vast majority (92 percent) of men being ordained to the priesthood report some kind of full-time work experience prior to entering the seminary, most often in education. Three in five (60 percent) ordinands completed college before pursuing the priesthood, with one in five (20 percent) also receiving a graduate degree. One in three (34 percent) entered the seminary while in college.
The median age of ordinands is 33. The youngest member of the Class of 2010 is 25; 11 men are being ordained at the age of 65 or older. On average, men were 18 when they first considered their vocation.
This analysis is part of The Class of 2010: Survey of Ordinands to the Priesthood, an annual national survey of men being ordained priests, conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), a Georgetown University-based research center. The entire report can be found at www.usccb.org/vocations/classof2010, as well as on the new www.ForYourVocation.org which is set to launch on April 25, Good Shepherd Sunday and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The survey was commissioned by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
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Bishops Take Action against Religious who Opposed them in Healthcare Battle
The sisters are "saddened" that the Bishops are "shocked" that they are dissidents. Can't they be retired to a nice quiet monastery somewhere?
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WASHINGTON (CNS) — At least two U.S. bishops have taken actions to indicate their disapproval of the support some women’s religious communities and the Catholic Health Association gave to the final version of health care reform legislation.
Bishop Lawrence E. Brandt of Greensburg, Pa., has directed diocesan offices, parishes and the diocesan newspaper not to promote the “vocation awareness program of any religious community” that was a signatory to a letter urging members of the House of Representatives to pass the health reform bill.
In Providence, R.I., Bishop Thomas J. Tobin asked the Catholic Health Association to remove the diocesan-sponsored St. Joseph Health Services of Rhode Island from its membership rolls, saying that CHA leadership had “misled the public and caused serious scandal” by supporting health reform legislation that the bishops opposed.
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Pope Greeted by Enthusiastic Maltese
His visit even encouraged some to return to Mass after many years away. He harrangues the people against modern secularism.
John Allen writes,
Link to original...
John Allen writes,
Rome -- For much of Pope Benedict XVI's April 17-18 visit to Malta, it was unclear whether the plumes of volcanic ash currently disrupting air travel in Europe would allow the pontiff to return to Rome as scheduled Sunday evening. In the end, however, the weather cooperated, and Benedict made it safely home.
Metaphorically, too, Malta seemed to offer a break in the storms raging around Benedict's papacy for the last month, in the form of mounting criticism of his handling of the sexual abuse crisis.
"The pope arrived in Malta with the church under a cloud," the Times of Malta opined in its wrap-up coverage, "and he must have left here satisfied that his visit had gone a long way to lifting it."
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America's Father James Martin SJ calls for Penance
The heretical editor of America Magazine is calling for penance. No, really, he advocates centering prayer. Isn't his interest in revivifying penance a lot like a cat burglar calling for stiffer penalties for breaking and entering? If we had stricter penance, we'd also have stricter disciplinary norms for dissident Jesuits as well. But this isn't something Pope Benedict just started talking about last week, it's part of an extensive consideration that the man has had throughout his Career as a Cardinal and as Pope.
If Jesuits hadn't collectively been working against the notion of penance, and sin as a real and pervasive evil whose author is a real angelic person i.e., the Devil, perhaps it wouldn't have to be as much of a point of discussion. The Irish Bishops were prepared to make a penitential act this Lent.
If real penance is called for, perhaps it should start with the Jesuits willingly offering a joint resignation in the dissolution of their Order, or at least make an admission that you and your bretheren were a big part of the problem.
Link to original...
If Jesuits hadn't collectively been working against the notion of penance, and sin as a real and pervasive evil whose author is a real angelic person i.e., the Devil, perhaps it wouldn't have to be as much of a point of discussion. The Irish Bishops were prepared to make a penitential act this Lent.
If real penance is called for, perhaps it should start with the Jesuits willingly offering a joint resignation in the dissolution of their Order, or at least make an admission that you and your bretheren were a big part of the problem.
One of the many deeply disturbing aspects of the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church has been the lack of discussion about penance. While public apologies from bishops who protected abusive priests are becoming more common, doing penance to atone for individual sins is still too rare.[No thanks to Jesuits like yourself who deny scriptural inerrancy and infallibility] This is even more confounding given that when confronting sin, the church has as an obvious model as a resource: the sacrament of reconciliation -- known by most people as "confession."
Every Catholic knows that forgiveness in the confessional demands penance. Reconciliation in the church requires the same thing.
This is why Pope Benedict XVI's remarks last week might be an important starting point. "[W]e Christians, even in recent times," he said, "have often avoided the word 'penance,' which seemed too harsh to us. Now [...] we see that being able to do penance is a grace and we see how it is necessary to do penance, that is, to recognize what is mistaken in our life, to open oneself to forgiveness, to prepare oneself for forgiveness, to allow oneself to be transformed. The pain of penance, that is to say of purification and of transformation, this pain is grace, because it is renewal, and it is the work of Divine Mercy."
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Why the Bishops hate Latin
I know it may sound strange to begin my second post with such a title, but a little squabble recently with a seminarian has proven to me (again) that, contrary to the express admonitions of the current Code of Canon Law, most bishops do not want their priests to know Latin. But first let us consider what the Church specifically dictates regarding the matter:
Can. 249 - Institutionis sacerdotalis Ratione provideatur ut alumni non tantum accurate linguam patriam edoceantur, sed etiam linguam Latinam bene calleant necnon congruam habeant cognitionem alienarum linguarum, quarum scientia ad eorum formationem aut ad ministerium pastorale exercendum necessaria aut utilis videatur.
My translation: In the program of priestly formation let provision be made that the students [i.e. seminarians] not only be carefully and thoroughly taught their native language, but also know well and by experience the Latin language; let them also have a suitable knowledge of those foreign languages, knowledge of which seems necessary or useful for their formation or for carrying out the pastoral ministry.
A few remarks regarding the precise wording of this canon are in order. The first thing to notice is that the Holy See envisions three kinds of language studies for seminarians: their native language, Latin, and other foreign languages necessary or useful for the priestly ministry. Because any language might theoretically be deemed “useful or necessary” for priests, there really is no limit to what a seminarian (or priest) might ask to study. More importantly, we can reasonably understand the Church to be stressing language study in a particular order. The top priority for future priests is their native language, then Latin, and then other foreign languages.
Now let us consider how universally ignored this canon is by the empowered. Do priests in the U.S. even know their native tongue? Given the low quality of sermons in most places with which one is regularly bombarded, we can tend towards the negative. Who learns the proper use of who and whom anymore? Dare I even mention the classical distinction between will and shall? Does anyone realize that the expression It’s me is grammatically incorrect? Perhaps the clergy should be more pitied than berated in this regard, for the translations of the Missal, Breviary, and Bible forced upon them for the past forty years have done nothing but vulgarize the speech of us all.
Returning to the details of Canon 249, we must note that seminaries ought to lay greater stress on Latin than on any other foreign language in the intellectual formation of seminarians. We now encounter the real lunacy of the post-conciliar Church, for who can imagine a bishop in the twenty-first century actually expecting his English speaking priests to know Latin better than any other foreign language, including Spanish? Not even the Jesuits know Latin that well anymore. (Pro dolor!) The chasm between the letter of the law and our daily lives widens when we consider the verb used to describe the sort of attention seminarians owe to the language that built Western civilization, callere. The verb originally meant to be callused with something and then came to mean to be skillful or versed in that something. By using this word, Canon 249 should give us the mental image of nineteen and twenty year old adolescent men in cassocks and Roman collars callusing their knees by genuflecting on massive tombs of Cicero while doing long-term damage to their eyes as they try to read the fine print of Lewis and Short under insufficient candlelight. Alas! As the current liturgical crisis has all too well taught us, said Canon takes 249th place on every bishop’s list of 100 things to do.
But why have things gotten to be as they are? The most obvious and superficial reason is that the priests of the Roman Rite no longer need Latin to go about their daily routine. If the Church never forces them to use an ancient and (mostly) non-spoken language, why should they bother learning it? Or rather, how could they when every opportunity has been denied them? At a deeper and more insidious level, however, is the grim reality that bishops do not want their priests to know Latin. In fact, the majority of bishops appointed before April 2005 probably hate it. This deep-seated desire to keep their priests ignorant has a two-fold cause to be discussed below:
A) “No Latin, no Latin Mass:” This one should be fairly straightforward. Young priests will not bring the traditional liturgy back into parishes if they cannot read and understand the text.
B) “Know Latin, Know too Much:” This is the real heart of the matter. Priests who have gone through the toil (Latin: labor) to make the Church’s language their own usually emerge with a thoroughly sharpened mind that enables them to read between the lines of the constant dribble of post-conciliar blah-blah-blah and episcobabble and reject it. Not only does a thorough knowledge of Latin predispose priests to reject what most of the bishops are saying now, it makes them impenetrable to claims and fallacies based on the “sprit of Vatican II” (not the Spirit of God), for they can actually read for themselves the texts of the Council. Make no mistake about it, those who can read the Council for themselves in its original language know it better, hands down, than anyone who can read it solely in translation. And that’s not all they know. They also have first hand access to a majority of the texts that have formed the Church’s magisterium for two millennia, and they know that those texts cannot be easily reconciled with the doctrinal novelties of the Council, especially those of Dignitatis Humanae. “Indeed,” assert our enemies behind closed doors, “keep them ignorant of Latin and they will have no choice but to believe that the Council means whatever we tell them.”
Of course, we must judge our shepherds mercifully. Why, after all, would they want classically trained presbyterates regularly spewing off quotations from Cicero and Pope Innocent III to the consternation and incomprehension of post-modern, pro-choice, we-just-want-to-sing-a-new-church-into-being, blah-blah-blah-loving Americanist congregations running around in Catholic drag? Can you imagine the toil and calluses to be suffered by a bishop in a diocese staffed by 150 Fr. Zuhlsdorfs? What about 150 Fr. Reginald Fosters? The solution, clearly, is to ordain only easily controllable men to the priesthood who know next to nothing and think they have some vague idea of the as yet unspecified, unculturally conditioned, post-modern meaning of O Salutaris Hostia from seminary Latin class. Let’s just hope that these men will one day learn enough Latin to mumble the Words of Consecration in more than just gibberish.
15 Year Old Christian Convert Subjected to Acid Attack
The Assyrian International News Agency (www.aina.org), is reporting the shocking news that Dina el-Gowhary, a 15-year-old Egyptian Muslim-born girl who converted to Christianity, has been subjected to an acid attack, the latest in a string of failed attempts by Muslim fanatics against her and her father, 57-year-old Peter Athanasius (Maher el-Gowhary), who converted to Christianity 35 years ago, reports Dan Wooding, founder of ASSIST Ministries.
In a story written by Mary Abdelmassih for AINA, several Fatwa's were issued calling for the “spilling of his blood,” which makes their lives in constant danger in the face of the reactionaries and advocates for the enforcement of Islamic apostasy laws, which call for the death of a convert.
According to Abdelmassih, Dina said that three weeks ago, as she ventured out from their hiding place in Alexandria with her father to get some bottled water, her jacket was set on fire due to acid being thrown at her.
Link to original...
In a story written by Mary Abdelmassih for AINA, several Fatwa's were issued calling for the “spilling of his blood,” which makes their lives in constant danger in the face of the reactionaries and advocates for the enforcement of Islamic apostasy laws, which call for the death of a convert.
According to Abdelmassih, Dina said that three weeks ago, as she ventured out from their hiding place in Alexandria with her father to get some bottled water, her jacket was set on fire due to acid being thrown at her.
Link to original...
Bomb at Cathedral in Philippines
Several dead after militants bomb cathedral in Philippines
Abu Sayyaf militants conducted a bombing assault on Isabela City in the Philippines on Tuesday morning, killing several people and severely damaging the Cathedral of St. Isabel. The local bishop said the cathedral was “totally” damaged, reports Catholic News Agency.
At least 25 militants with the Al Qaeda-linked group, dressed in police and camouflaged military uniforms, set off two bombs that blew up a van and damaged the 40-year-old cathedral. A third bomb placed near a judge’s house and a bus terminal was safely detonated by soldiers.
It was the worst attack by the group in months, Agence France Presse reports. The attacks started gun battles around the city as militants targeted helpless civilians.
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Abu Sayyaf militants conducted a bombing assault on Isabela City in the Philippines on Tuesday morning, killing several people and severely damaging the Cathedral of St. Isabel. The local bishop said the cathedral was “totally” damaged, reports Catholic News Agency.
At least 25 militants with the Al Qaeda-linked group, dressed in police and camouflaged military uniforms, set off two bombs that blew up a van and damaged the 40-year-old cathedral. A third bomb placed near a judge’s house and a bus terminal was safely detonated by soldiers.
It was the worst attack by the group in months, Agence France Presse reports. The attacks started gun battles around the city as militants targeted helpless civilians.
Read further...
Republican Officials Attacked and Injured in New Orleans: Che Alert
The Royalist Marseillaise warns the people of what the Revolution will bring and gives us a historical reminder of the revolutionary's sanguinary and inexhaustible appetite. The title of this article is not without irony.
Republican Officials Attacked and Injured in New Orleans
h/t: pewsitter
After Fidel Castro and Che Guevara imposed their Stalinist regime at Soviet gunpoint, Cuban women tripled their suicide rate. Indeed, they became the most suicidal women on earth. This according to a 1998 study by scholar Maida Donate-Armada, which uses some of the Cuban regime's own figures.
During the '60s (when Che was second in Cuban command), 35,150 Cuban women were jailed for political crimes, a totalitarian horror utterly unknown not only in Cuba, but in the Western Hemisphere, at least until the Castro regime.
Prison conditions were described by former political prisoner Maritza Lugo as such: "The punishment cells measure 3 feet wide by 6 feet long. The toilet consists of an 8 inch hole in the ground through which cockroaches and rats enter, especially in cool temperatures the rat come inside to seek the warmth of our bodies and we were often bitten. The suicide rate among women prisoners was very high."
Thousands upon thousands of Cuban women have drowned, died of thirst, or have been eaten alive by sharks attempting to flee the regime co-founded by Che Guevara.
Republican Officials Attacked and Injured in New Orleans
h/t: pewsitter
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