Knights of Malta -- The Double Truth About that 30 Million

[Magister] The reply of Eugenio Ajroldi di Robbiate, director of the communications office of the Order of Malta, to what was published on March 23 by Settimo Cielo on “the mystery of those 30 million Swiss francs,” has not been passed over in silence by other knights of the Order, closer to the mental workings of former Grand Master Fra' Matthew Festing, forced to hand in his resignation last January 24 to Pope Francis in person.

This is what is attested to in the following letter, from a person very well-informed on the affairs of the Order, rich in information that in its turn contradicts, corrects, or completes what has been stated by the official spokesman.

*

Dear Magister,

Sometimes even those responsible for the external communications of big organizations make mistaken or imprecise statements. There is no exemption to this rule for the Order of Malta, which recently has generated great confusion, especially on the New Zealand CPVG trust with its Swiss fiduciary, at first denying its existence and then creating a great deal of confusion on the legal circumstances that have led to opposition between the Order and the trust.

A few clarifications need to be made on the latest position statement of the Order, to correct or contradict its contents.

Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager was not removed as an elected member of the Sovereign Council, but because a disciplinary procedure had been initiated against him. The circumstance had determined his suspension as a member of the Order, and therefore his automatic disqualification from the position of Grand Chancellor. The whole procedure had been examined by the Office of the Advocate General, which had confirmed its validity. All the circumstances were reported in a statement on the website of the Order, which was later removed. The Grand Master had attached a copy to a letter sent to numerous personalties connected to the Order on January 14, 2017. Over the last 15 years, two members of the Sovereign Council, both Italian, have resigned from their positions at the request of the Grand Master.

The Prime Minister of Luxembourg is Received in Vatican With "Husband"

[Adalante Te Fe] On March 24, a meeting of Pope Francis held a celebration with 27 leaders of the world on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, in which this "curious" shot  of Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, a well-known pro-sodomy activist, along with his "husband", was taken.

Attentive to this least "strange" event in the Vatican itself, is the leftist Secretary General of Podemos, Pablo Iglesias who has been quick to point it out with a complain about how Cardinal Cañizares is supposed to hate sodomites:

Benedictine Monastery Hosts "Drag Show"

Edit:  we've heard of Benedictine hospitality, but is that extended to the Devil? Given the atmosphere of decadence, malignancy and outright evil, isn't it just possible that Collegeville wouldn't be this open about its depravity? This monastery and school were caught before for attempting to host a naked retreat. The naked retreat was cancelled.

Now a student organization funded by the school is promoting a "drag show". From the school funded website:

By Meredith Jarchow – mgjarchow@csbsju.eduTalented performers, dramatic makeup and high heels will ensure that this Friday isn’t a drag. 

For several years CSB/SJU People Representing the Sexual Minority (PRiSM) has hosted an annual drag show at CSB/SJU. This year’s show will take place on Friday, with the theme “Life is a Drag” which will include student performers as well as professionals. 

This year, the drag show was preceded by a few different events including a drag makeup tutorial and Ally training with the Institute of Women’s Leadership to raise awareness of LGBTQ+ women for Women’s History Month. 

“During this month, oftentimes [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning] (LGBTQ+) women are forgotten or aren’t part of the conversation,”

PRiSM co-president Anna Peichel said via email. “We wanted to just provide information about how to be allies and create safe spaces for LGBTQ+ women and LGBTQ+ folks in general.” 

The PRiSM drag show provides students with an opportunity to try drag in their own style and perform for an audience. 

“Doing drag is really dependent on the person, one person might create a long routine and another might want more crowd interaction,” Peichel said. “We really let the students do whatever they are most comfortable with.”
For CSB senior Paige Maki, this year will be her second performance in the PRiSM drag show. 

“I enjoy truly becoming my persona as Danny Deeper, and being able to dance in a ridiculous fashion but not feel any shame or embarrassment for it,” Maki said via email. “I also love the audience that comes because they are all so encouraging and don’t care if you mess up or aren’t the best performer.” 

In addition to the performances, the drag show will also provide the audience with a 21+ area that includes a cash bar. PRiSM hopes to create a welcoming atmosphere for all audience members, according to Peichel. 

“Drag queens and kings are amazing and great at their jobs, they shouldn’t make you feel uncomfortable in any way,” Peichel said. “They are usually very funny and put on very humorous performances. Be ready to laugh, cheer and have dollar bills ready for your favorite performers.” 

While this is not an experience many students on campus may have ever had, Maki and Peichel hope that those who have never attended a drag show to learn more about it this Friday. 

Maki says this event is important to the CSB/SJU community “to become more open minded, meet us, see that we are here and we aren’t that different from anyone else,” Maki said. “This event raises awareness about a community that not many people know about, and it shows that anyone can do anything they put their mind to.”
The biggest misconception about drag shows? The makeup, according to Maki.
“The makeup isn’t as easy as many would think for both drag queens and drag kings,” Maki said. 

There is no cost to attend the drag show, which will begin at 8 p.m. on Friday in Gorecki 204.

http://csbsjurecord.com/2017/03/prism-hosts-life-is-a-drag-annual-drag-show/

AMDG

Program of Contrasts: Francis in Milan -- Benedict's Prayerful Dialog in Rome

(Rome) The pictures of the last 25th March, the Feast of the Annunciation, which show Pope Francis before the Most Blessed Sacrament exposed for him in the Winter Choir (Coro Jemale) of the Cathedral of Milan, sitting without taking off his Pileolus, without prayer, have caused Catholics to show disappointment and horror.

Eucharistic worship is the highest expression of the awesome glorification of God. It happens in every Holy Mass. The Church is also aware of the solemn exposition of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. At the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus' Friday, June 11, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI ended his Year of the Priest. On the evening before, a prayer vigil with Eucharistic worship took place on St. Peter's Square. Benedict XVI had dedicated the entire year to the priesthood, presented the priest of Ars, John Maria Vianney, as a model to every priest. The Pope also introduced the Eucharistic Adoration and the promotion of the Eucharistic Adoration with the spiritual reflections of the French priest. The central aspect of faith is reverence of the saint, in a very special way before the Most Blessed Sacrament.

The images of 10 June 2010 form a contrasting program for believing people. The worshiping dialogue between the Pope and the Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar.

AMDG

Milan Priest From the Margins Makes "Mano Cornuta" Before Mass

(Rome) An AFP photographer, Giuseppe Cacace, immortalized a bizarre scene on the outskirts of the Pope's visit to Milan: a priest making the mano cornuta. The "horned hand" is considered a rather vulgar gesture in Italy to offend someone else, but it has even wider meanings right down to Satanism.

The "weirdly dressed guy with a colorful newsboy hat" (Corriere della Sera), who presented the Mano cornuta before the beginning of the Holy Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in Milan, is not a satanist who had become part of the priesthood but a priest and is known as Don Luca Raimondi. Don Raimondi, who by his conspicuous attitude "decidedly fell out of the circle of the priests present" (Corriere), is pastor in the diocese of Monza (church province of Milan).

The significance of the disparaging gesture can have numerous meanings. In Italy s a way to tell the other person that his wife / girlfriend is unfaithful to him, put on horns (adultery). The gesture also occurs in the case of a surprise, as a defense against a misfortune or a misfortune.

But the hand gesture is also seen as a satanist greeting, as a gesture of invocation or confession to Satan. Just as common, the Mano cornuta is a scene-typical pose in the hardrock subculture, known there as Devil horns or Metalhand.

Buddhism also knows it in the form of a mudra (hand gesture). This "persecution or deflection gesture" (Karana) has also flowed into yoga. "With the horns of a wild yak, the adept is going against the demon or opponent." This is an intensified "threat gesture" (Tarjana), which is directed against a demon or an opponent only with a raised index finger.

Don Luca Raimondi is considered to be a "priest at the margins". He attends to four parishes of a pastoral unit, which includes three places in Brianza.

Through the publication of the picture with the unusual gesture and the following storm of indignation, he saw himself forced to make an explanation. Yesterday the priest justified it to his faithful during Holy Mass with a story so unbelievable that he would have better saved it.

The short version: It was an hour before the beginning of the Mass. There was a cheerful, cheerful mood. It happened  in the priest's block. Then, on the cell phone, a woman called to him, who from a distance reserved for the faithful, motioned to him, joked with him about his newsboy hat, and said she wanted to have it. He had said no, and that with the raised index finger. When the woman insisted, he had then raised his pinky finger to say no. "These are the risks of communication," Don Raimondi said. Whoever believes it. Even if the story were accurate, the question would remain unanswered, as a priest loosely and without any connection, forms a hand to Mano cornuta.

"More importantly, I brought 200 people to Milan," said Don Luca. He had only raised the sleeves of  chasuble beforehand because of the "heat". A "cheerful, open mood," was ruling over the place, the priest said. It was just a "joking gesture." The AFP photo, however, does not seem to confirm this.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Corriere.it (Screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG

Pope Francis Before the Most Blessed Sacrament: "He did not kneel, remove his pileolus, and assume an attitude of prayer"

Pope Francis sat in the crypt of Milan Cathedral before the Most Blessed Sacrament:
"He did not kneel, sat, not once did he remove his pileolous and assume an attitude of prayer"

(Milan) In the context of his visit to Milan today and the meeting with the clergy of the Archdiocese in the Cathedral of Milan, Pope Franziskus spent some time before the Blessed Sacrament. "He does not kneel, but sits down on a beautiful chair surrounded by other prelates who stand ..." Thus,  Antonio Socci criticized the scene, which provoked criticism from different sides.

The traditional page Messa in latino added some comments. Its author criticized Francis' attitude before the Blessed Sacrament, as had not yet been voiced by him in the four years of this pontificate.

"The Pope did not visit the Blessed Sacrament on the main altar (which would have been a good and proper opportunity to provide visibility to the worthy worship of God, the climax of the liturgy and the cult), but in the crypt, almost as if it were a private act that is made in secret and in a hurry.
A prie dieu was not even provided. That is, the master of ceremonies of the cathedral had instructions not to set him one up at all. The pope does not want to use the prie dieu and apparently does not even have one on hand.

Francis did not even remove the white pileolus on his head before the Blessed Sacrament. It was once named Soli Deo because it is only removed for God in the Sacrament.

Expression and body language, the folded hands, indicate that the pope is not taking a prayerful disposition before the Lord in prayer and worship, but just as if he were in a program and had to make an intermediate stop in the crypt which had annoyed him. The look seems apathetic as if he did not see God in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

Francis before the Most Blessed Sacrament: "Apathetic look, no disposition of prayer"

Pope Francis does not seem to have the intention of wishing to foster acts of worshiping God, as they are only due to God. He does not kneel down, as is known (he suffers, it is said, but not officially). But he sits instead of not taking the pileolus off and not to fold his hands? No, I believe he does not believe in the real presence!

On Holy Thursday we will see it.

It is pointless: I am told that I must love and respect this pope. I just do not succeed in loving him. It is hard for me to respect him.

He is Pope by right, but he does not sanctify and teach it in his office. Perhaps he is pope only in government (Therewith, to place the Franciscans of the Immaculate under provisional administration and to dismiss bishops, to protect homosexual priests, and to promote worker priests).

Christian Caritas is merited when it comes out of love for Christ. Without Christ, it is only atheistic social aid."

Text / translation: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Vatican.va (screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Priestly Society of St. John of Ciudad del Este Abolished -- Legacy of Bishop Livieres Dismantled

Ciudad del Este: Dissolution of the Society of Saint John (CSSJ) by Bishop
Steckling

(Asuncion) On March 16, the Priestly Society of St. John (CSSJ) has been abolished by Bishop Wilhelm Steckling of Ciudad del Este in Paraguay. The abolition is connected with the removal of Bishop Rogelio Livieres Plano, who was deposed in 2014 by Pope Francis. Both interventions have something in common: they were done without official naming of reasons, were accompanied by dirty media speculations and are part of a hard factional debate on the understanding of the Church. 

Vocations crisis is no natural phenomenon

When Bishop Rogelio Livieres was deposed by Pope Francis in the late summer of 2014, the Holy See gave no reasons for the radical intervention. Officially, it was never disclosed what the bishop who died in 2015 during an operation had been accused of doing. This provided more space for speculation. From the Pope's decree, however, it was clear that Bishop Livieres had disturbed the "concord" in the Episcopal Conference. In Paraguay, which strongly progressive and liberation theological, lay the crux of the matter.

Bishop Rogelio Livieres (1945-2015)

Bishop Livieres belonged to Opus Dei . He was appointed by Pope John Paul II, and took over a diocese on ropes, which had hardly any priests. Until then, the seminarians of all the dioceses of the country were trained in a central national seminary in Asuncion, whose mind was formed on liberation theology. Bishop Livieres withdrew his seminarians and founded his own seminary. The education was oriented to the teachings of the Church, the sacramental priesthood was emphasized and the reverence for the sacrament of the altar was lived. In the parishes, the bishop intensified the religious instruction by founding Bible study groups and the formation of catechists. In addition, Eucharistic worship and the celebration of Holy Mass were promoted in the traditional Rite.

Archbishop-Coadjutor of Guam Demands an End to Liturgical Abuse -- Deadline: Two Weeks

Michael Byrnes, new Archbishop of Hagatna on Guam

(Hagatna) The Archbishop-Coadjutor of Hagatna at Guam, headed by Michael Byrnes, who had been in office since 30 November 2016, formerly Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit, has criticized the liturgical abuse on the South Sea island, which is a non-incorporated territory of the USA.

Archbishop-Coadjutor Byrnes, in fact, heads the Archdiocese as the official in charge of an ecclesiastical process against Archbishop Anthony Apuron. Monsignor Byrnes has urged all parts of his archdiocese to comply with liturgical regulations for the celebration of Holy Mass. Specifically, his reservations are directed against the Neocatechumenal Way. The charismatic group, counted among the "New Communities," was asked by the Archbishop to suspend the formation of new groups for a year and to celebrate the Mass according to the General Instructions.

Celebration of the Neocatechumenal Way on the Island of Guam.

According to Monsignor Byrnes, Holy Mass is to be celebrated on Sunday (after the First Vespers) and not systematically on Saturday, on a consecrated altar in a parish church or approved chapel, and that Holy Communion would be immediately consumed after the reception.

Criticism is concerned with the special liturgical forms of the Neocatechumenal Way, with a judaizing, actually a pseudo-Jewish, character. The groups of the Neocatechumenal Way celebrate Holy Mass on Saturday (Sabbath) in their own rooms outside the churches and as a closed group. Holy Communion is not immediately taken at the reception, but taken back to one's place.

The Coadjutor also criticized the separation of this community, which is isolated from the parishes and leads a special life in the Church. Bishop Byrnes says that his concern is to restore the Archdiocese. The Neocatechumenal Way was recently accused of splitting the diocese.

On 15 March, Monsignor Byrnes presented his concerns and his demands in a pastoral letter addressed to the Archdiocese. This calls for the suspension of the establishment of new groups of the Neocatechumenal Way for a year. The Archbishop-Coadjutor announced the appointment of a delegate with the task of visiting all the communities of the Neocatechumenal Way next year to ensure the correct celebration of Holy Mass and to examine the catechists of this community for their preparation and suitability.

The bishop granted a period of two weeks to cease liturgical abuse.

The pastoral letter was published by the Pacific Daily News.

The Neocatechumenal Way is known as a lifelong "Way" (itinerarium) of the faith instruction. It includes more than 40,000 groups worldwide with more than one million members.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Church Militant (Screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Has Pope Francis Finally Addressed the "Dubia"? -- "No to Communion for Remarried Divorced and Abortion Politicians"

Chile's Bishops report concerning their visit to Rome that Pope Francis declared a "clear no"
to Communion for the remarried divorced and for politicians who promote abortion.  Has the Pope changed his disposition? The President, Msgr. Santiago Silva and General Secretary, Auxilliary Bishop Fernando Ramos (Right)

(Rome) As it appears, Pope Francis has no longer any "doubts", according to the reports of the Chilean bishops who recently made their ad limina visit to Rome. The papal statements reported by them are a radical turn-around. "Since it is unacceptable that the President of the Chilean Episcopal Conference and his Secretary General have invented the words of the Pope, the news is of the utmost importance," said the Spanish columnist, Francisco Fernandez de la Cigoña. "As Fernandez de la Cigoña says," some of the statements sound as if Cardinal Burke had spoken. "What happened?

The allusion to the "doubts" refers to the "Dubia" (doubt), which gave the four cardinals addressed to the pope against controversial parts of the Post-Synodal letter Amoris laetitia to the Pope. For more than five months, the head of the Catholic Church has refused to respond to the five questions on central themes of the faith and morality. Shortly before Christmas, one of the four signatories, Cardinal Burke, spoke of a reprimand in camera caritatis. If this did not come to anything, the Pope would be subject to a public reprimand.

Now, the leaders of the Chilean Episcopal Conference reported that Pope Francis had explained the doctrine of the Church with "clear words".

"The Pope!" says Fernandez de la Cigoña.

Cancellation of situational ethics - Only voluntary celibacy not on the papal agenda

The Chilean daily El Mercurio conducted a joint interview with the President and Secretary General of the Chilean Bishops' Conference. One focus was the ad limina visit to Rome and the question of the remarried and divorced. Both confirmed that  Pope Francis instilled to them a clear "no to the Communion for remarried divorced persons and for politicians who pronounce for abortion."

The Secretary-General, Monsignor Fernando Ramos, also disagreed with the statement that Pope Francis had spoken in an interview with the weekly newspaper Die Zeit for the abolition of priestly celibacy. The Pope has made it clear "that a more voluntary celibacy is not in his agenda".

On the question of the Communion for remarried and divorced, Francis had rejected a "situational ethic" and told an anecdote from his family to clarify the matter.

"What happened?"

The distinct "no" to the communion for remarried divorced persons told to the Chilean bishops upon their visit to Rome led Fernandez de la Cigoña to the question:

"What happened? I dont know. Something has happened, for what Francis has told the Chilean bishops is not what can be read out from Amoris laetitia and read out by two cretins on Malta and most of the German bishops, and certainly not what Francis told  the Argentine bishops in a letter. 

So what happened? 

I dont know. But it may be that Francis saw the situation in which he had ridden the Church, but he did not want to enter into history causing a schism with incalculable consequences. His popularity among those who really count in the Church has declined sharply. Not a few have sussed out the not infrequently meaningless verbal chaos and have convinced themselves of the arguments of their opponents. 

Perhaps he himself has realized that the arguments of his opponents have a great weight, for if all the popes before him have taught something else, it seems quite obvious that  all the others may not have been wrong, but he is wrong. Everyone who wants to hear what he wants to hear is applauded in the short term, but in the medium term the voice of the pope falls into disrepute because different interpretations, which can be called upon, devalue his voice. 

Now it is time to wait to see if the statements of the Chilean bishops or the contrary are confirmed. Everything is possible. Their statements are excellent, including the personal anecdote about his niece, who is married to a divorced man. The divorced, a Catholic, goes to the confessional and says to the confessor: "I know you can not absolve me, but bless me." The married nephew is clearly aware of his situation. And apparently this also applies to the papal uncle. 

I think these are very important statements about which we can look forward. All Catholic. I know, of course, that it is still difficult to assess its real significance and scope in comparison to other statements to the contrary: What will tomorrow bring?"

Also important is the papal "no" to the communion for politicians who pronounce in favor of or use abortion. How does this attitude fit in with the latest testimony of the pope confidant Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo? Sorondo had explained in an interview with Jan Bentz for Arrangements that he talks to the abortion promoters because that will "do more". Specifically, he addressed "more" in the fight against the "new slavery" to the UN agenda. At the same time, Sanchez Sorondo frontally attacked the Pro-Life movement and accused them of "achieving nothing".

Text. Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Infocatolica / Vatican.va (screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Vatican Official Confirms Agreement with SSPX

Edit: it's comical to see Lawler embrace ideas he's always been resistant to. Some day I'd love to see him kiss Bishop Fellay's ring.

March 20, 2017

[Catholic Culture] The secretary of the Ecclesia Dei commission has confirmed that the Vatican is close to an agreement with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) that would regularize the status of the traditionalist group.

Archbishop Guido Pozzo told the German newspaper Die Tagespost that the Vatican will ask the SSPX to endorse a formal declaration, resolving some remaining doctrinal issues. However, confirming what SSPX leaders have said, the Archbishop Pozzo acknowledged that the SSPX would be allowed to continue raising questions about some teachings of Vatican II. Over the years, the archbishop observed, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has answered a number of questions about conciliar documents, and “I do not see why this work of clarification and answers to doubts and reservations... could not be carried forward.”

Archbishop Pozzo said that, in interpreting the documents of Vatican II, one clear principle would be continuity: that if an understanding of the Council’s message involves a break with the constant teaching of the Church, “this intepretation must be rejected as false or inadequate.”

The archbishop suggested that the cause of reconciliation for the SSPX should be confided to the care of Our Lady of Fatima, as the Church approaches the 100th anniversary of the apparitions.

http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=31058

AMDG

Dialog With the Lutheran World Federation at the Cost of Catholic Identity

Pope Francis with Munip Jounan, President of the Lutheran World
Federation on 31 October, 2016 in Lund.

With "Joint Declaration" of Lund, Pope Francis has signed a protestant document on 31 October 2016. In this way he brought the Protestants an ecumenical gift for the Lutheran Jubilee which he put in place of essential dimensions of  Catholic Church identity.

A guest contribution by Hubert Hecker.

October 31, 2016 is certainly considered the eve of the Protestant Reformation Jubilee. On that date Pope Francis traveled to the Swedish city of Lund. The Lutheran World Federation had been founded in 1947.  There are 145 Lutheran communities with 70 million Protestants are members included in this umbrella organization. In Lund, Pope Francis signed a "Joint Declaration" for the Catholic Church and Munip Jounan for the Lutheran World Federation.

Two texts in contradiction

In the introduction,

• That "we begin with the memorial of 500 years of Reformation."
• Furthermore, "we deplore before Christ that Lutherans and Catholics have wounded the visible unity of the Church . ...
• Many members of our communities yearn to receive the Eucharist in a meal as a concrete expression of full unity . ...
• If we commit ourselves to move from conflict to fellowship, we do this as part of the one body of Christ , into which we have all been incorporated through baptism. ... "

According to the Catholic catechism, believers are introduced into the Church through the sacrament of baptism as members of the body of Christ. According to the dogmatic Council document, Lumen Gentium No. 8 , the "Church" and "Body of Christ" are to be understood as follows: Jesus Christ wrote "His holy Church ... here on earth as a visible structure, and bears it as such unceasingly. ... The only complex reality - the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church ... " is the society equipped with hierarchical organs and the mysterious body of Christ, the visible assembly and  spiritual community. This Church is realized in the Catholic Church, led by the successor of Peter and the bishops in communion with him. This does not exclude that there are various elements of sanctification and truth outside their structure. "This is particularly true of the separate sister churches of Orthodoxy and the ecclesial" communities" of Protestantism.

The Ecumenism decree also states that only the Catholic Church has the full abundance of the means of salvation which the Lord has entrusted to Peter and the apostleship to constitute the Church as "the one Christian body on earth, to which all are fully incorporated who are already in some way a part of the people of God" (Unitatis redintegratio, No. 3).

The Pope signed a Protestant statement

Already, on the first close reading of the two published document excerpts, the impression appeared that they were contradictory in essential points. More precisely, the Joint Declaration reflects the Protestant church image, which is contrary to the Catholic understanding of the Church in the Council. It is precisely in the understanding of the Church that the "most serious dogmatic contrast" exists between Lutherans and Catholics, according to Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller in his lecture at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The differences in questions concerning the Church, office, and sacraments should not be reduced to "striking formulas."

This is exactly what the Joint Declaration of 31 October is.  It seems to be the least common denominator in Church doctrine. However, a Lutheran-style church understanding has emerged. This means a weakening, if not a departure from the Catholic ecclesiology. Accordingly, the Pope has signed a Protestant statement. He brings an ecumenical guest gift to the Protestants at the Lutheran Jubilee, by displacing essential dimensions of the Catholic Church identity.

The EKD emphasizes the ecclesiastical identity of the Protestants ...

The EKD [Evangelische Kirche Deutschland] President Heinrich Bedford-Strohm warned at his Vatican visit in early February: "There should be" no homogenization, which eats one's own. We want to restrain Church dividing identity." (FAZ 7. 2. 2017). The Protestants emphasize their ecclesiastical identity - in contrast to Catholic doctrine. In the Lunder Declaration they have introduced their self-understanding of church. This is not to blame them. But the Pope and his advisers are accused of not having anchored the Catholic, "Church dividing identity" in the Joint Declaration. In so far as the pope signs the Lutheran image of the Church as a common denominator, the pope has permitted the "character" of the Catholic Church to be swallowed down in the supposedly "common," but actually Protestant decline.

... the Pope wants ecumenical dialogue at all costs - even his own identity.

This is shown in the individual statements of the Joint Declaration:

What is with the pope as the head of the Catholic Church commemorating the Reformation in the "We" modality? Luther wanted to replace the "devilish" Pope's Church at least in the "German nation" by his new-believing church. The result was the division and separation of his community from the Church.

Luther wanted to abolish the Catholic Church "as a visible structure" and replace it with an invisible church of the faithful assembled. Luther's contemporary, the humanist Gerhard Lorich from Hadamar, criticizes the reformer as a demolitionist of the Church. The complaint that "Lutherans and Catholics" had equally "wounded the visible unity of the Church" is wrong on both sides: Luther alone and his followers destroyed the visible church in their sphere of influence by separating themselves with their new ecclesial community. On the other hand, the Pope's self-condemnation is absurd that Catholics have "wounded the visible unity of the Church".

According to the doctrine of the Council, the Church founded by Jesus Christ is realized in the Catholic Church with Its sacramental hierarchical character. Luther and his followers did not want a Church in the classical sense but a non-sacramental, new-believing community. But there can be no second apart from the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. That is why the 145 members of the Lutheran World Federation are called and are merely "ecclesial communities".

The Joint Statement speaks of "members of our communities ...". Grammatically, the Catholic Church is also meant.  As a signatory, the Pope thus demoted the Church into one of the many ecclesiastical communities and thereby denied this. If, however, only the Protestant communities which desire a common eucharistic meal are meant, the sentence is a twofold presumption. In the case of their rejection of the Sacrifice of the Mass, the Consecration, and the Transubstantiation, the Lutherans want to receive Communion, and see it as an "expression of full unity."

It is a doctrine particular to the Lutherans that all the baptized members of the Protestant communities belong to the Body of Christ. According to apostolic-Catholic doctrine, the baptized are part of the people of God. But they do not constitute the Church in its visible and invisible-spiritual form of the mystical body of Christ. They are outside the Church, into which they should be incorporated for their salvation - according to the Council Decree Unitatis redintegratio .

The Pope and his advisers have the sacred duty of studying the doctrine of the Catholic Church, to take it to heart, and to explain it. This would prevent them from signing questionable new doctrines of the Protestants.

Text: Hubert Hecker
Photo: MiL
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches...
AMDG

Pope Francis: The Mission of the Exorcist is "Irreplaceable"

Francis: Exorcists must be chosen "very carefully and with a great deal of prudence" - 

VIDEOS: Pope directs a ceremony of repentance, he confesses himself and hears confession

Vatican City (kath.net/KAP) Pope Francis has looked with generosity from the confessional chair and has suggests an exorcist on a case-by-case basis. The Catholic penitential practice must be "a credible mirror of the mercy of God," he said on Friday to those in attendance at a course on the Vatican Court of Grace, the so-called Penitentiary. It is necessary to avoid rigor and lack of understanding. A confessor who reflects his activity in prayer knows well "that he himself is the first sinner, and the first to be forgiven."

Francis continued to admonish confessors to ask for "the gift of humility." It should be clear that forgiveness is a free gift of God. Priests played only the role of "simple but necessary administrators" according to the will of Jesus, according to the Pope. "He will certainly be pleased if we make generous use of his mercy," he added.

The use of exorcists remains indispensable even today, said the Pope. Sometimes those with "spiritual disturbances" appear at Confession. Unless, as in most cases, they have psychological causes, pastors are not "reluctant to turn to those who are entrusted with this sensitive and necessary ministry in the diocese," the exorcists, said Francis to those attending a Course on Confession this Friday in the Vatican.

The Pope stressed that priests should consult psychologists and physicians for the assessment of supposed "spiritual disorders". It is also necessary to consider the "existential, ecclesiastical, natural and supernatural circumstances." The pope did not mention concrete examples. With a view to the exorcists, Francis said they had to be chosen "very carefully and with a great deal of prudence."

The Apostolic Penitentiary is one of the three highest courts of the Catholic Church. Among other things, it is responsible for the discharge and the lifting of penalties.

Pope Francis confesses in St. Peter's and then hears the confession himself Fasting 2017:

Sexual Abuse Claims Shake the Anglican Church in Australia

(Brisbane) The Anglican Church of Australia is overloaded with accusations of sexual child abuse. A total of 1084 charges have so far been received. According to media reports, 75 percent of the victims are eleven-year-old boys.

The cases take place in the period 1980-2015. The data emerge from the report by the Royal Commission on Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which was established by the State in 2013.

569 alleged perpetrators are identified. 247 of these are pastors, 285 laymen, and 37 are lacking a precise classification. 94 percent of the perpetrators are men.

The Anglican Archbishop, Philip Freier, expressed his "consternation" about the revelations of the commission of inquiry. "We are deeply ashamed," says Freier.

In recent years the Catholic Church in Australia had been shaken by sexual abuse.

"The scandal in the Anglican Church is no cause for schadenfreude because it has caught others this time. The case, however, confirms that sexual abuse of children is not a specific feature of the Catholic Church, as some have shown. Not to mention sports clubs and certain secular children's and youth groups," said Francisco Fernandez de la Cigoña.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Photo: ANN (Screenshot)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

Link to Katholisches...

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Lutheran Youth Group Distributes Condoms for Reformation Anniversary

Evangelical Church Youth Düsseldorf distributed condoms to young people, for example with the Luther quote: "Here I stand and can not do otherwise".

Düsseldorf (kath.net) The Evangelical Church in the Rhineland has stopped an action by the youth church of Düsseldorf. The youth church had distributed condoms with misapplied  quotations from Martin Luther. The SWR and the "Bild" reported. On the packaging of the condoms were Luther quotes, for example, "Here I stand and can not do otherwise."

The church youth wanted to draw attention to the reformation jubilee with the action. The Landeskircheamt, meanwhile, in a letter denounced the action as fundamentally unsuitable for youth work.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
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A Jesuit Heretic's Heresy Disected by Benedictine

[HughOSB] As part of our Lenten penance, we are listening to James Martin SJ’s Jesus: A Pilgrimage in the refectory at lunch. It has been not too bad, the bits I have heard; until today. So many blasts from the past: Jesus “discovering” his “call”, “embracing his vocation” as at the wedding feast at Cana. It was the same old tired Christology-from-below (to put it at its best) that triumphed in the 70s and 80s. Truly, there is nothing new under the sun.

But then it turned a great deal worse, in one brief phrase: Martin referred to Jesus as “a fully human person”. It is a sad indictment of the last 50 years or more of deficient catechetics that any will not see the problem. Jesus is a man, isn’t he?

Indeed Jesus is human. However, he is not a human person. He is a divine person with a human nature. The heresy of Nestorius(†450) was a rational attempt to reconcile the humanity of Christ with the awesomeness of his divinity. His sticking point was Mary; he objected to her being called Mother of God, because God, by definition eternal and the first principle of existence—the uncreated Creator— could obviously have no mother. So he decided that Jesus must be a union of two persons, one divine and one human. Mary was mother of the human person, but not of the divine. So she could be called Mother of Christ, but not Mother of God.

https://hughosb.com/2017/03/16/there-is-nothing-new-under-the-sun-james-martin-sj-and-christology-101/#more-11225

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Hungary's Foreign Minister: "How Many Churches Celebrate Ad Orientem?"

The Church of the Sacred Heart Surrounded by Scaffolding

(Rome) On March 8, Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto visited the earthquake-hit city of Tolentino. The minister was personally informed about the efforts of Hungarian aid. At the same time, he also inspected the progress of the reconstruction work of art goods and the work on the masonry of the severely damaged Church of the Sacred Heart. The security work on the church is financed by the Hungarian government. The contacts were brought about by Prior Andrea Corradori with the Brotherhood of the Sacred Heart of Jesus which is based at the parish.

Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto (center) in Tolentino

"It was touching to see the young minister who entered the church which was closed because of the danger of collapse and genuflected to the Blessed Sacrament which was in the tabernacle, as was the case on the days of the earthquakes from the 26th to the 30th of August," Corradori said.

The minister asked the Prior of the Brotherhood of the Sacred Heart: "How many churches in Italy celebrate ad orientem?"

After the church visit,  the minister said in a local TV-interview:

"Hungary can face the challenges of the future if it is not removed from its Christian roots. For this reason, we are particularly responsible for helping the Christian communities in the world. So we did not think twice when the request came from Tolentino: We had to help!"

The Bishop of Macerata, Monsignor Nazzareno Marconi, also attended the meeting with the minister.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Photo: Youtube (Screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholishes..
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Cross Procession in Saint Petersburg -- October Revolution and the Return of Religion

(Moscow) Pictures of the cross procession in Saint Petersburg from September 12th. The procession led from the Kazan Cathedral over the famous Nevsky Prospect to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery.

Icon of Alexander Nevski

The Rurikid Alexander Newski, Prince of Novgorod (from 1249 Grand Prince of Kiev), brought the advance of the Swedes into Russian territory to a halt at the Battle of the Neva in 1240, and in 1242 in the Battle of Peipus also that of the Teutonic Order. He has been officially honored by the Russian Orthodox Church since 1547 as a saint. The Nevsky Prospekt, a 300-year-old grand boulevard of 4.5 kilometers, connects the Tsar's winter palace to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery at the other end. In the monastery, the bones of the Saint Prince Rurikid are buried.

Along the boulevard you will also find the Kazan Cathedral, erected more than 200 years ago. It was built with St. Peter's in Rome as a model. The cathedral was built over an older predecessor, the Church of the Virgin Mary. It is named after an icon of the Mother of Kazan who is venerated in the cathedral.

Kazan Cathedral

The church is considered a memorial church for the victorious defense against Napoleon's campaign of 1812. In it, Field Marshal Michail Kutusov is buried, who as the Russian commander-in-chief, directed the defense. The Field Marshal had prayed before the fighting in the just finished church and asked the Mother of God for help.

After the Communist October Revolution, the cathedral was plundered and devastated. In 1918 the Archpriest of the Church, the philosopher Ornatsky, suffered martyrdom together with his two sons. Ornatsky had celebrated a requiem for the victims of the Communists. Shortly after, he and his two sons were then arrested. He was allowed to say a prayer for those condemned to death on a cliff above the Finnish Gulf, then he, his sons and 30 other men were shot and their bodies thrown over the cliffs into the sea.

Cross-process through the Nevsky Prospect 2016

In 1922 all the valuables, liturgical implements, and icons were confiscated by the Soviet government, and the cathedral was transformed into a museum of atheism in 1932.

In November 1990, the Sacred Liturgy was celebrated for the first time in consultation with the Museum Directorate - the museum has renamed the Museum of Religious History after the end of the Soviets. In 1999 the evacuation of the museum and the return of the cathedral to the Russian Orthodox Church was agreed. The transfer was completed in 2001. In 2002 the icon of the Mother of Kazan was returned to the church. Since 2017, the cathedral has once again been the seat of the metropolitan of Novgorod and Saint Petersburg.

After more than 90 years, the first cross-procession took place in 2013, which commemorates the transfer of the relics of the Rurikid Prince Nevsky to the monastery named after him at the end of the Nevsky Prospect. The video shows recordings of the fourth cross procession since its revival (September 2016).

Archbishop Forte Lashes Out at Cardinals: "The Dubia Cast Doubt on Those Who Raised Them"

Symposium on Amoris laetitia, 9 March, 2017, San Salvatore in Lauro
(Msgr. Forte, 2nd from the left, Alberto Melloni, 2nd from the right.)

(Rome) Archbishop Bruno Forte, Pope-Servant during the two episcopal synods over the family, has attacked the four cardinals: Brandmüller, Burke, Caffarra and Meisner because of the Dubia (Doubts) they have submitted to the pope for the disputed post-synodal letter Amoris laetitia.

The Archbishop of Chieti-Vasto had been appointed by the Pope as the Special Secretary of the Synod. As such he played the little praiseworthy role in the preparation of the individual reports. In the first bishop's synod in the autumn of 2014, the controversial passages on homosexuality came from his pen in the interim report. At the beginning of May 2016 he revealed that he had received a special commission from Pope Francis for the preparation of the final report of the second bishop's synod in autumn 2015. The mission was to obscure the aims of the Pope with the Synod. For this reason, Forte would not mention the remarried divorced in the final report because it could arouse strong resistance. According to the papal commission, the resistance should remain as low as possible. He, the Pope, would then set the course for the remarried divorced.

On May 2, 2016, Forte, in the town theater of Vasto, explained  Pope Francis' order as follows:

"If we expressly speak of Communion for remarried divorced couples, who knows what kind of a casino [a whirlwind] this will make for us. We therefore do not talk directly about it. Make it so if the premises are given, I will draw the conclusions."

Forte was enthusiastic about the papal tactics. This is "typical of a Jesuit," commented Forte, jokingly, his revelation, praising the "wisdom" of Pope Francis, who had allowed us to reach Amoris Laetitia.

The Symposium on Amoris laetitia was in the Church of San Salvatore in Lauro

The Symposium was entitled, "The power of love in a society of indifference." This took place on Thursday in the Roman church of San Salvatore in Lauro, opposite the Castel Sant'Angelo. One of the speakers was Archbishop Bruno Forte, in his capacity as Special Secretary of the Bishops' Synod, whose "accomplishment" is the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris laetitia. Another speaker was the historian Alberto Melloni, head of the progressive "Bologna School."

Forte used his allotted time to attack the four reputable cardinals who expressed doubts (Dubia) and gave the Pope five questions on September 19, 2016, which the latter has refused to answer. According to Romasette, the online diocesan blog of the diocese of Rome, Archbishop Forte declared that the criticism of Amoris laetitia, "has no right to exist". Romasette reported:

A faithful interpreter of Amoris laetitia, who had experienced it at the Synod at close quarters, from which the apostolic letter came, namely, Monsignor Forte said: "The doubts raised (Dubia) raise doubts about those who raised them because they were present and experienced the collegial spirit for themselves. Amoris laetitia focuses on the crisis of the real family. The message is that despite the wounds and the failure, it is worthwhile support the family. So what is to be done? Love as God does. And how shall this attention be expressed for the wounded? With forgiveness, which is the great power of love."  Then Forte presented the proposals of apostolic writing: accept, accompany, discern and integrate. "The way of accompanyment has its summit in the Communion for the remarried divorced, which is a sign of obedience toward the mercy of God."

Archbishop Forte no longer knows in 2017 what he said in May 2016 

According to Archbishop Forte, Pope Francis implicitly did not have to answer the questions of the four cardinals because their concerns had "no right of existence". The failure to answer the questions and the lack of response to the concerns of the four cardinals was justified by Forte, because they had been synodalists, and had witnessed the "collegial spirit" of the Synod. The whole was garnished by Forte with polemical wordplay.

On the basis of the revelations of May 2, 2016, made by himself, Forte knew that the Synod had not made a statement with which the controversial passages of Amoris laetitia can be justified. The "collegial spirit" of the Synod is, therefore, unrelated to Amoris laetitia, and certainly not with the Dubia, which consists of five questions, which were asked to be answered by Pope Francis in order to end the ensuing confusion. "Only a blind man can deny that because of Amoris laetitia there is great confusion in the Church," said Cardinal Carlo Caffarra, one of the four signatories of Dubia.

Archbishop Forte obviously does not belong to the blind. On March 9, 2017, he does not even know anymore what he proudly proclaimed on May 2, 2016.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Photo: Romasette (Screenshot) in the Church of San Salvatore in Lauro
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
Link to Katholisches..
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