Bishop Fellay echoes Church's Canon against ordaining Homosexuals

As a consequence of the abuse scandals in the Church, the traditionalist Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X (FSSPX) of the deceased opponent of the council Archbishop Marcel Lefebrve demands that homosexuals must be excluded from the priesthood. Bishop Bernard Fellay spoke to the German news magazine Der Spiegel, saying the victims of sexual abuse have been "almost without exception sexually mature teenage boys". Fellay sees that as proof that it isn't celibacy that is a problem in the Church, but that it is instead homosexuality. "If you want to prevent abuse, then you must exclude homosexuals from the priesthood", says Fellay.

This demand is in agreement with the offical position of the Vatican. In 2005, in the first year of Pope Benedicts XVIs pontificate, in the midst of the abuse scandals then current in the USA, the Congregation for Catholic Education issued an instruction that homosexuals may not be ordained to the priesthood; stating literally "the Church, while profoundly respecting the persons in this condition, cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called "gay culture".

Translation by wsxyz, here.

Pentecost on Mount Athos

Going to Mount Athos is probably the closest anyone can come to moving back to the Middle Ages and have a sense of what it might have been like to walk many miles before you sleep and put your exhausted head down on a bed provided by a religious house.

The near absence of careening motorcars and overhead passing jets, the sounds of nature and the occasional howls of wolves brings one to a kind of material solitude that doesn't come easily to the desensitized modern soul.

One simply must "retreat" from the world for a time and re-order the soul, come back into contact with the baptismal child in order to see the true proportion of one's life in the lines of eternity. Mount Athos is a place you can do that.

Please excuse that this link will take you to New Liturgical Movement, enjoy the journey to Sandro Magister's wonderful essay.

Pentecost on Mount Athos

Father Eutener responds to Heretical Jesuit

by Matt C. Abbott

Father James Martin, S.J., sent me an e-mail in response to my May 20 column.

"I read your comments ... and thought I'd send along my response, particularly since I was called 'revolting,' 'dishonest' and, worst of all, seeking to embarrass Pope Benedict," Father Martin said (slightly edited).

"In any event, it's my response to Carl Olson at the Ignatius Press blog, who raised some of the same objections that you did. In short, my reaction to what the pope said had more do with the linking of two things — same-sex marriage and abortion — which, I believe, are simply not equivalent in terms of any detriment to the common good. One is clearly about the taking of life, the other is not. In any event, here is my response, which I would appreciate your posting in some way so as to clarify things and help people understand what I was saying. Please accept my prayers for all the good work you do for the church."

I replied: "Thank you for the response, Father. I guess my only question for you, if I may be blunt, is: Do you assent to the Church's teaching on the intrinsic immorality of homosexual activity?"

No answer as of yet.

Also, Father Tom Euteneuer, whom I quoted in my previous column, has provided me with the following additional response to Father Martin (slightly edited):

"Father Martin writes for the Catholic-challenged Jesuit magazine America, and therefore the double-speak and 'nuance' about strategy that he employs is understandable and predictable. He wants to de-link same sex-marriage and abortion, claiming they are two different issues and our 'credibility' in the public forum is at stake if we talk about them in the same speech, or even the same sentence, as Pope Benedict did. Credibility with whom? — is the real question.

"Pandering to audiences of academics and liberal Catholics (about the only ones who read America any more) is a formula for nullifying the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which the Jesuits have done for decades now. Pope Benedict doesn't do that. Nor do serious, orthodox Catholics. Our credibility is based on our conformity with the truth of Christ, including its expression by the Holy Father, not worldly esteem.

"To say that same sex marriage may be a moral issue but not a life issue is to overlook an obvious fact: Homosexual men have a life expectancy that is on the average 20 years shorter than heterosexual men. Why? Death-dealing, sterile sex. What is the connection to abortion in this? Simply: death-dealing, contraceptive sex that becomes fertile 'by accident' and drives millions into abortion clinics because they have idolized sterile sex and sold procreation down the road. Father Martin may want to do a little research in order to become more 'credible' in his opinions about the optimum culture war strategy."

Link to Renew America...

Catholic Church in Scotland Celebrates Protestant Revolt

[News.scotsman.com] • Delegates arrive for the opening of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland at New College on the Mound, Edinburgh. Picture: Neil Hanna

The two faiths, historically divided along sectarian lines, have taken what the Kirk has described as "a monumental step in inter-church links" by creating a "joint-liturgy" for the reaffirmation of baptismal vows.

As a result, Scotland has the first Protestant church in the world to form such a bond with the Catholic Church. The two churches will also join together to mark the 450th anniversary of the Reformation later this year.

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The Bitter Pill wouldn't stoop to settling scores, would it?

The worst sexual predators are liturgical and theological revolutionaries.

The Bitter Pill wouldn't stoop to settling scores, would it?

More "News" from the AP: Copernicus

Astronomer Copernicus to be reburied as hero

FROMBORK, Poland — Nicolaus Copernicus, the 16th-century astronomer whose work was condemned by the Catholic Church as heretical, will be reburied by Polish priests as a hero on Saturday, nearly 500 years after he was laid to rest in an unmarked grave.

His burial in a tomb in the cathedral where he once served as a church canon and doctor indicates how far the church has come in making peace with the scientist whose revolutionary theory that the Earth revolves around the Sun helped usher in the modern scientific age.

Copernicus, who lived from 1473 to 1543, died as a little-known astronomer working in what is now Poland, far from Europe's centers of learning. He had spent years laboring in his free time developing his theory, which was later condemned as heretical by the church because it removed Earth and humanity from their central position in the universe.

Link...

Germany and EU to Legalize Pedophilia and with it, Child Pornography as well!

There is some graphic content in the following story, lamentably necessary we feel to demonstrate the depravity of this democratically elected German government.

We'd already posted the story about German Justice Minister, Ms. Rosemary Will, who has advocated child abuse herself, despite attacking the Catholic Church for the same crime.

The following article was way back in 2009:

Booklets from a subsidiary of the German government’s Ministry for Family Affairs encourage parents to sexually massage their children as young as 1 to 3 years of age. Two 40-page booklets entitled “Love, Body and Playing Doctor” by the German Federal Health Education Center (Bundeszentrale für gesundheitliche Aufklärung – BZgA) are aimed at parents – the first addressing children from 1-3 and the other children from 4-6 years of age.

“Fathers do not devote enough attention to the clitoris and vagina of their daughters. Their caresses too seldom pertain to these regions, while this is the only way the girls can develop a sense of pride in their sex,” reads the booklet regarding 1-3 year olds. The authors rationalize, “The child touches all parts of their father’s body, sometimes arousing him. The father should do the same.”

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The article goes on to cite LifeSiteNews with its original article, here, from 2007.

More articles and discussion of the New Totalitarianism by Michael O'Brien, here.

h/t to Rach

Anglican Bishop takes part in Pagan Ceremony

Here is an article that provides some more information about the Native American "smudging" ceremony you will see at the beginning of the liturgy.

In any case, smudging is a ceremony that must be done with care. We are entering into a relationship with the unseen powers of these plants, and with the spirits of the ceremony. As with all good relationships, there has to be respect and honor if the relationship is to work...more

Link to short article and video of the event which includes Anglican Bishop, here.

Moscow Patriarchate Signals New Interest In Unity With Rome

Monday, May 17, 2010
By Paul Goble

A senior Russian hierarch close to Patriarch Kirill said in Rome last week that “the time has come to take decisive steps in the direction of full unity” between Russian Orthodoxy and the Roman Catholic Church, the latest indication that Kirill wants at a minimum far closer ties with the Vatican than did any of his predecessors.

Speaking to a meeting of Orthodox and Catholic hierarchs and activists, Metropolitan Filaret of Minsk and Slutsk, the Patriarchal exarch of Belarus, said that the “commonality of views” of the two churches “on many questions” means that “the time has come to take decisive steps toward full unity.”

Filaret’s words were reported by the Vatican and reproduced in the Russian-language “Sibirskaya Katolicheskaya gazeta” which focused on his call for taking “joint steps toward unity” and reported as well that he hopes Patriarch Kirill and Pope Benedict XVI will meet soon (sibcatholic.ru/2010/05/07/nastalo-vremya-predprinyat-sovmestnye-shagi-k-edinstvu/).

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Bulgarian Prime Minister coming to Vatican

From May 21 till May 24, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov will make an official visit to Rome and the Vatican.

During the first day of his visit in Rome, Borisov will have a working lunch with his Italian counterpart Silvio Berlusconi returning the visit as Berlusconi was in Sofia in the fall of 2009 becoming the first foreign leader to visit Bulgaria after the Borisov government took office in the summer.

Friday afternoon, the Bulgarian PM is taking part in the ceremony for the opening of the monument of Bulgarian writer and poet Ivan Vazov in Rome.

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Polish Priest to be Beatified: Martyred by Soviets in 1984

Polish Father Jerzy Popieluszko, who was murdered by communist police agents in 1984, will be beatified in Warsaw June 6. About 400,000 people attended his funeral, and his murder was widely credited with helping discredit and undermine communist rule. (CNS file)

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SSPX Superior in France criticizes French Bishops

On Thursday, March 4, 2010, Fr. Régis de Cacqueray, Superior of the Society of St. Pius X’s district of France, published an letter entitled: “The Bishops: Guardians of the Faith or Proselytes Protecting Other Cults?”

Fr. de Cacqueray reflects on the role of the bishop, guardian of the flock and preacher of the faith, “successor of the Apostles and martyrs”. Doubtless there have always been good and bad bishops, “there have been heroic bishops and there have been weak bishops. There have been Hilaries of Poitier and Bossuets. There have been Cauchons and Talleyrands. But never before has a nation, formerly so Christian, seen such a confusion touching so closely the Faith. Today, our bishops stand by silent while Christ is attacked. They keep the churches closed to us. And at the very same time they open mosques. They concelebrate with Protestant pastors. They grant diplomas to imams and invite rabbis to preach in their cathedrals. In a word, they comfort souls in their remoteness from Christ and from the Church He founded.

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Another Insight: Liberals use Abuse Scandal to highlight their Agenda

Politics Daily backs down on Papal Nuncio: throws victim in bad light

We said that Archbishop Sambi had been Nuncio in England. This is inaccurate. Archbishop Sambi has worked all over the world in some very interesting and sensitive posts:

He was transferred to the Apostolic Nunciature in Jerusalem on July 19, 1971, and subsequently to the Apostolic Nunciatures in Cuba in 1974, in Algeria in 1978, in Nicaragua in 1979, in Belgium in 1981, and then in India in May, 1984 with the rank of Counselor.

Archbishop Sambi was consecrated as Bishop and made Titular Archbishop of Belcastro on November 9, 1985.

He was nominated Pro-Apostolic Nuncio in Burundi on October 10, 1985, Pro-Apostolic Nuncio in Indonesia on November 28, 1991, and Apostolic Nuncio in Israel and Cyprus, and Apostolic Delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine on June 6, 1998.

It should incline you to believe the truth of the report from the Daily more now than before. They don't give much of a rationale for thinking that besides the fact that they had misgivings. Unfortunately, they insist on overshadowing Mr. Wojnowski's claims with slurs on his mental health, suggesting perhaps, that he is being ungrateful in spurning the offers of counseling. It's a dirty, smarmy article.

Look, he's a man who'd give most Holy Communion to a public sinner and phony Catholic like John Kerry is either a coward or a fool.

But what of Archbishop Sambi? Well, this offers an opportunity to criticize ++Sambi and throw a spotlight on some of his other acts which show him to be the kind of man who's willing to do his homework, but perhaps has a different agenda when it comes to episcopal appointments. You might ask, what does +Sambi's all-too-professional acts as Nuncio have to do with treating an alleged sex abuse victim with contempt? What does it have to do with the accusations that he made those insulting and contemptible comments in the first place? As Nuncio, he is responsible for selecting good men for the Episcopate. He provides the Holy Father with three candidates, but the Holy Father may choose someone else, as he most certainly did when he chose Father Wagner of Linz to the chagrin of the Austrian Bishop's Conference. Well anyway, we're concerned with a bully Archbishop because there's a certain type and set behaviors with churchmen, and human beings in general, when they're confronted by something they can't control but throws light on what they truly are -- wolves. How many times have laymen come to Bishops asking for bread and they've gotten snakes and contemptuous officialese sneers?

Archbishop Sambi's appointments in the past do not inspire much faith in report from Politics Daily, that he is "charitable". What kind of a man would preside over such deplorable appointments as these? He gave us Archbishop Wuerl, but he also presided over the appointment of Bishop Frank Dewane of Venice, who contemned women's foot washing and yoga. He also gave us Bishop Pates of Des Moines, whose church wreckovation is legendary with definitive contacts to homosexual activists with the Call to Action and James Moudry. And he gave us another very bad Bishop Frederick Campbell, Ph.D. whose heretical opinions against evangelizing the Jews and the Jewish question are as legendary as they are condescending. Did he give more of an ear of compassion to delators who reported on the bad behavior and un-Catholic acts of the men he chooses to appoint? Well, Arcbishop Sambi has done un-Catholic things himself, so who can fault him?

Of course, he's no ++Jadot who gave us such poor performers as +Gumbleton, +O'Brien, +Maida and +Hubbard, but the American Episcopacy still suffers from the poor harvests of seminarians in the 70s and 80s.

From the look of his non-clerical attire, his many poor episcopal appointments, we expect a man on parade who's incapable of treating a angry Pole with some equanimity and respect. Condescending to offer him the services of a psychologist is just what we'd expect from such a man, such an administration, so faultlessly showing a face of sleek conformity and kindness to the world and snarling like a ravening wolf when there seem to be no repercussions.

Politics Daily expresses regret, removes article incriminating US apostolic nuncio :: EWTN News

No future for Europe without return to Christian roots, says Cardinal Kasper :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Vatican City, May 20, 2010 / 10:12 am (CNA/EWTN News).- During a recent symposium in Rome on the Orthodox and Catholic Churches of Europe, the no-nonsense president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Cardinal Walter Kasper, reflected briefly on the future of Europe. With his characteristic frankness, he said, "If Europe wants to have a future again, it must first and foremost renew its Christian roots."

The symposium “Orthodox and Catholics in Europe today. The Christian roots and the common cultural heritage of the East and West” took place Wednesday afternoon at the Rome's Russian Orthodox parish of St. Catherine of Alexandria. It one of a number of events during the "Days of Russian Culture and Spirituality in the Vatican," running from May 19-20.

Speaking of ecumenism and the goal of achieving full communion between Christians, Cardinal Kasper noted the necessity of using dialogue in efforts and not force or submission, according to SIR news.

No future for Europe without return to Christian roots, says Cardinal Kasper :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Holy Father entrusts Clergy to Our Lady

Immaculate Mother, in this place of grace, called together by the love of your Son Jesus the Eternal High Priest, we, sons in the Son and His priests, consecrate ourselves to your maternal Heart, in order to carry out faithfully the Father’s Will.

We are mindful that, without Jesus, we can do nothing good (cf. Jn 15:5) and that only through Him, with Him and in Him, will we be instruments of salvation for the world.

Bride of the Holy Spirit, obtain for us the inestimable gift of transformation in Christ. Through the same power of the Spirit that overshadowed you, making you the Mother of the Saviour, help us to bring Christ your Son to birth in ourselves too. May the Church be thus renewed by priests who are holy, priests transfigured by the grace of Him who makes all things new.

Holy Father entrusts Clergy to Our Lady

Bishop Hubbard's Albany Diocese priest admits abusing 2 boys | boys, albany - Local News - WRGB CBS 6 Albany

When Bishop Hubbard and his priests aren't promoting needle exchange, promoting liberation theology or covering up sex abuse crimes by forcing affidavits from whistle-blower priests, and generally being one of the worst Catholic Dicoese in the world, they're doing this stuff:

ALBANY -- An Albany Diocese priest who previously served in Capital District churches has admitted to abusing two young boys in Delaware County.

The Middletown Town Court said 64-year-old James McDevitt pleaded guilty last week to two misdemeanor counts of forcible touching in connection with the abuse of two boys who were around 11 years old at the time.

McDevitt will face six years of probation when he is sentenced July 8.

Albany Diocese priest admits abusing 2 boys | boys, albany - Local News - WRGB CBS 6 Albany

Pagan Altar prooves Modernism is as Old as the Pyramids

The discovery of this pagan altar should give cause to the Israel Antiquities Authority's claim that the graves recently exhumed at Ashkelon were indeed pagan. Here is their press release: Israel Antiquities Authority: The find further corroborates the assertion that this place is a pagan cemetery The development work for the construction of a fortified emergency room at [...]

http://biblicalpaths.wordpress.com/

Cypriot Orthodox Archbishop says those who criticize Pope outside Church

It's just a matter of time before the fruition of these efforts come about. The Cypriots have had a long history of collaboration with the Latin West.

12:46 pm / VATICAN CITY, May 20, 2010 (CNA/EWTN News).- Wrapping up a two-day initiative for the promotion of Russian culture and spirituality at the Holy See, a concert featuring Russian and Italian music will be offered for the Pope. The event marks the culmination of events which have exhibited an increased warmth of relations between the Russian Orthodox and Catholic Churches and could lead to an encounter between their leaders.

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In a stern warning, the Orthodox Archbishop in Cyprus, Chrysostomos II, has said that critics of the Pope’s visit to the island in June are placing themselves outside the Church. There appears to be some very real problems there:

A group, calling itself the ‘Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Motherland Traditions’, has been circulating a booklet entitled Pope: The Cause Of Evil. “Unfortunately there are in Cyprus too, the mindless who go against the decisions of the official Church,” Archbishop Chrysostomos II said. He warned that these people were placing themselves outside the Church.

The Archbishop said the Pontiff had been officially invited to Cyprus by the government with the Church’s agreement and “as the official Church we will welcome him with love and respect.” Chrysostomos II said there will not be any talks between the Church and Pope. “We will exchange views and I believe his visit will be positive and beneficial for our country and our people,” Chrysostomos II said.

He urged those who opposed the visit to “come round” and listen to the official church…

Link to Biblical Paths blog, here.

Link to original story...

Archbishop meets With Cuba's President

Cuban president meets with church leader

By ANDREA RODRIGUEZ (AP)

HAVANA — President Raul Castro has held a rare sit-down with Cuba's Roman Catholic cardinal and another top cleric, discussing many issues including a recent crackdown against dissidents that ended only after the mediation of the church.

The meeting with Cardinal Jaime Ortega and Archbishop Dionisio Garcia was a sign of the church's growing influence on the island. The talks went on for more than four hours, Garcia told The Associated Press on Thursday. Garcia, the archbishop of Santiago, is also leader of the Conference of Bishops of Cuba.

It was the first time the head of the Conference of Bishops has met with the country's leader in five years, when Fidel Castro was still in charge. Fidel stepped down formally in 2008, turning leadership over to his brother.

Link to original...