Catholic Herald Lauds SSPX?

Edit: I expect he’s going to show his concern over anti-demotion.

They Shouted “Allahu Akbar”: Two Cases

(Paris) The terror of the assault in the supermarket Leclerc in Seyne-sur-Mer is still fresh in people’s memories as happened in France already with the next attack. In both, the motive refers to Islam, but the authorities seem to ignore it.

A 24-year-old Muslim woman, who was already on record with the police for other violent crimes, arrived on Sunday dressed in black robes and entered the supermarket shouting "Allahu Akbar: You are all infidels!" Then she rammed the knife she carried into the breast of a female customer and struck a saleswoman in the eye.

Whether because of the delusion called political correctness or out of complete misunderstanding of Islamic reality, in any case, the competent prosecutor's office immediately put the murder in the category of individual cases by the mentally disturbed. The procedure is familiar. The official requirement seems to be: De-escalation at all costs and no connection with Islam.

On the other hand, however l, the dynamics of the act and the vocabulary used by the assassin speaks. Nothing seems to have been left to chance. The investigation continues meanwhile, because many points of the incident are still "unclear" according to investigators.

Meanwhile, the press agencies had already report the next violence with an Islamic background. The rapid succession of the attacks shows that the individual case thesis is an official and media construct in order not to face the political reality, and more importantly, to prevent the population from drawing the necessary conclusions from it.

A few hours after the attack on the supermarket, a 29-year-old Muslim rose in the night hours yesterday with the same dynamic. At 1.50 am he tried to attack two police officers from Nice. He, too, was armed with a knife, and he also shouted to the victims, "You are unbelievers, I will kill you."

The culprit had been surprised by the two police officers, as he filmed the town hall and some streets and alleys. When he was stopped, he immediately wanted to attack. The officers were able to disarm him and arrest him. He was already known to the police, but according to anti-terrorist units with initial reports he was a blank slate.

Both incidents have many similarities. It therefore seems incomprehensible why the authorities classify them as banal individual acts. The fact is that the French feel less and less safe in their own homes, especially on the streets after dark. There is a growing mix of Muslim violent criminals and common criminals. The extent to which both groups are congruent can at best be foreseen in the absence of corresponding police statistics.

As long as the sense of security of the citizens is suffering because they no longer feel safe on the streets in their own country, politics, the judiciary and the police do not sufficiently fulfill their tasks. The patrolling military in the French cities does not improve security, but only shows false actionism, which blatantly confirms the perceived loss of security. Above all, the French military on France's roads reveals the helplessness of the political decision-makers, who, locked up in a "multi-cultural” tower have shown themselves "without alternative" to shirk the real questions.

Text: Andreas Becker
Image: Corrispondenza Romana
Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG

30 Years of the FSSP — New Website

30 years of the Society of Saint Peter - new website

(Berne) The General House of the FSSP has a new website.

On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of its founding, the Fraternal Society of St. Peter  (FSSP), established in 1988, presents itself on the Internet with a new image. The initiative comes from the General House of the Ecclesia Dei Community, which is located in Friborg, Switzerland. The founding date is July 18, 1988, when twelve priests and seminarians completed the foundation in the Swiss Abbey of Hauterive in the canton of Friborg.

The website provides information about the traditional community, introduces the Superior General and his assistants as well as the various districts.

As a "joint mission" of the Society, the site says:

"This communal mission has a twofold aspect: first, the sanctification and formation of priests in the traditional liturgy commonly called the Extraordinary Form of the Roman rite. Second, the care of souls and the pastoral work of priests in the service of the Church.”

The Superior General is Fr. John Berg. He is assisted by Father José Calvin, Fr. Patrick du Faÿ de Choisinet (at the same time Rector of the Seminary of St. Peter in Wigratzbad) and Fr. Andrzej Komorowski (at the same time General Treasurer), and Fr. John Brancich and Fr. Josef Bisig as counselors. The Office of the Secretary-General currently is exercised by P. Arnaud Evrat. German-speaking district superior is P. Bernhard Gerstle.

The worldwide offices and apostolates of the Brotherhood are listed and should be clearly displayed on an interactive map. The latter does not work, however. With reworks is therefore to be expected

Today, the Brotherhood of St. Peter has 287 priests and 150 seminarians. Its affiliated Confraternity St. Peter  includes almost 6,000 laymen.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: fssp.org (screenshot)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

The Collective Image of the Inquisition is Fake News

(Rome) The historian Anna Foa, former Assistant Professor of Modern History at the Roman University of La Sapienza, recently spoke in the media on the subject of Inquisition, including the essay "Inquisition without a Monster" in the business daily Il Sole 24 Ore. The occasion was a historic conference to open the Vatican Secret Archives 20 years ago.
 
Foa recalled that the latest state of research refutes all "black legends" of the Holy Inquisition. The numerous allegations against the Inquisition have indeed entered into the collective memory, but only in recent times. They have little to do with historical reality.
 
The charges brought against the Church in connection with the Inquisition are genuine "fake news". The collective memory, which obviously has a very clear idea of ​​what the Inquisition was, does not go back to direct knowledge, but is an anti-Catholic construct whose origins date back to the eighteenth century. Many sides have worked on the caricature.
 
The problem, Foa says, is, as with much fake news, that false claims can be "louder" than the truth. This has to do mainly with who controls opinion, but also with the fact that some want to believe the fake news.
 
"Passions and prejudices," Foa said regretfully, "are a myth-factory" that seem to nourish themselves.
So it is in connection with the Inquisition and the Church. The historical facts are now known and researched, but the false stereotypes in people's minds are stronger. The historical reality is so different that it not only is dominated by every form of sensationalism, but suffocates demands for love of truth and intellectual honesty for a fundamental revision of the previous picture of history.
 
According to Foa, it is appropriate and urgent to revise the extent of the charges against the Church and its condemnation. But above all, the actual role of the Inquisition should distinguish between actual and alleged persecution.
 
There is a gigantic abyss between scientific certainty and "popular opinion" lay on the subject of Inquisition. The Internet has so far brought no improvement in the situation. Rather the widespread distorted image is widely disseminated further in the global network. It was daunting to see, says Foa, how truthful many people are against the Fake News Inquisition implanted in their minds. It turns out to be very difficult to break up absolutely baseless, but solidified prejudices. Unfortunately, it is difficult to pave the way for the truth while fake news are always new and rapidly spreading.
 
Anna Foa, graduated in 1968 with distinction at the University La Sapienza, where she later taught herself. She is a great-granddaughter of the anti-Zionist chief rabbi of Turin, Giuseppe Foa (1840-1917) and daughter of a founding father of post-war democratic Italy, the left-wing, atheist party leader and Member of Parliament Vittorio Foa (1910-2008). ¹⁾
 
His daughter Anna Foa returned to her Jewish faith. Most recently, she was a visiting professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
 
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Youtube (screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
 

Argentine National Football Team Has No Time for Pope

(Rome) Pope Francis and the World Cup. On May 21, the Argentine website Doble Amarilla announced that Pope Francis will receive the Argentine national team on 3 June before moving on to Russia for the World Cup.

Yesterday, Vatican spokesman Greg Burke tweeted:

"Pope Francis receives today at 15.30 clock (Roman time) the Argentine football selection in Santa Marta."

A few hours later he had to correct himself:

"UPDATE: The Pope's audience with the Argentine selection scheduled for today was canceled. We are looking forward to seeing you return with the World Cup! "

Like this?

An earlier visit by the Argentine national team to Pope Francis.

In fact, the Argentine national team, according to the Argentine sports side Olé, had already canceled a visit to Rome at the end of May. The message seems to have been passed in the Sacri Palazzi but not to the Vatican spokesman.

In May, there were concrete negotiations between the Vatican and the football team about a visit to the Pope. The coaches moved away from the idea at the end of the month. A whole training-free day was "too much" for the team. On May 29, Jorge Miadosqui confirmed the cancellation: "We have no time for an audience with the Pope."

The Argentine football team is currently training in Barcelona. Tomorrow it will fly to Israel for a friendly match and finally to Russia for the World Cup on Sunday.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Bild: Twitter/Vatican.va (Screenshots)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Pope Throws Enemy Archbishop in the Street

Archbishop Hector Ruben Aguer at Corpus Christi in his last act

 as ordinary of La Plata

Edit: when they do things like this, as they often have, there is need of retribution.  Bergoglio did the same to Bishop Rogelio Plano, who died not long after.


(Buenos Aires) The retirement of Archbishop Hector Ruben Aguer of La Plata has been closely watched for the past few weeks. Archbishop Aguer has been Bergoglio's leading opponent in Argentina for the past 25 years. When he leaves, the Church's Maximum Leader is letting him feel his displeasure.
 
As previously reported , the Jesuit Bergoglio and the secular priest Aguer, both from Buenos Aires, became Auxiliary Bishops of Buenos Aires at the beginning of the 1990s. At that moment, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who until then had been "exiled" internally, had the better luck between the two. He began his phenomenal rise.
 
With the help of the then Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Antonio Cardinal Quarrancino, Bergoglio and not Aguer became the new Primate of Argentina. Although Aguer was made the archbishop of the second most important diocese in the country by Pope John Paul II. The cardinalatial dignity is connected with Buenos Aires, not with La Plata. Pope Benedict XVI. supported Archbishop Aguer against the Bergoglio-led majority in the Argentine Bishops' Conference , but acted against his successor Francis with too cautious and hesitation, in order to make his intended renewal in the episcopacy really effective.
 
Bergoglio sat in the Conclave in Rome in 2005 and 2013, not Aguer.
 
After Francis became pope, he quickly disassembled the minority led by Aguer, who opposed him as a primate. Only Aguer remained in office, but not a day longer than necessary - which was quite literal.

Victor Manuel Fernandez

On May 24, the archbishop completed his 75th year. According to canon law, he presented his request for resignation to Francis. With a conspicuous haste, Francis accepted it and appointed one of his closest confidants, Titular Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernandez, as his successor. The head of the Church Maximum Leader, thus, not only eliminated the last representative of a traditional understanding of the Church, but also wanted to ensure that the archdiocese was taken by a  Bergoglio team member.
 
What animosities are behind the scenes, illustrates an additional unfriendliness of the Pope to Archbishop Aguer. Francis was not content to emeritize Aguer at the earliest opportunity and immediately appoint a successor, which is also a humiliation for Aguer. Francis did not appoint the archbishop in charge, who is in good health, as diocesan administrator until the inauguration of the successor, as is customary, unless death or health force him to change the bishop. Francis openly expressed his disapproval of Archbishop Aguer. Not a day longer than absolutely necessary, Aguer should have something to say in the archdiocese of La Plata.
 
Francis Monsignor Alberto Bochatey OSA, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of La Plata was appointed diocesan administrator. This was announced by the chargé d'affaires of the Apostolic Nunciature, Msgr. Vincenzo Turturro, on Monday to the Archdiocese.

"Msgr. Bochatay will head the archdiocese of La Plata until the inauguration of Msgr. Victor Fernandez next June 16," said the press service AICA of the Argentine Bishops' Conference.

The appointment of a diocesan administrator for only 14 days when the previous archbishop is in the best health?
 
The Bergoglio related news site Valores Religiosos headlined:

"Aguer confirms that the Holy See wanted a quick change".

Monsignor Aguer had announced last Sunday that the change should be "quick" so that his successor, Fernandez, could already receive the pallium from the Pope's hand on June 29th in Rome.
 
At the same time, the emeritus archbishop expressed his astonishment that the media had already reported exactly for weeks what then became reality in those days: that Francis would immediately emeritize him and would make the papal ghostwriter Fernandez his successor.
 
The Argentine news site CadenaBA wrote critically:

"Pope Francis behaved towards Monser Aguer more after the Old than after the New Testament: according to the motto, "Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth ". He reciprocated with Msgr. Hector Aguer, who had asked him to leave him in office until next September, so that he could celebrate his twenty-year jubilee as Archbishop of La Plata," for which several parishes of the archdiocese were already preparing.

At the end of the Feast of Corpus Christi, which was celebrated in Argentina on June 3, according to Wanderer,  the Syrian Orthodox Archbishop Chrysostom approached the microphone and made his home available to the archbishop," since Monsignor Aguer has no place to go ( his original plan was to move to the Small Seminary of La Plata.)"
 
Behind the scenes, the retirement was obviously far more dramatic than when it became public.
The AICA press release from the Argentine Bishops' Conference said two days later:

"The retired archbishop will live for so long at the archdiocesan curia deems it necessary to find a new home."

In La Plata, not only was an archbishop emeritized and replaced by a towering mediocrity in a demonstratively urgent procedure, but evidently evicted on the spot.
 
Pope Francis' retaliation for revenge has found another victim at La Plata.
 
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: Archdiocese of La Plata / MiL
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
ADMG 

Pope Congratulates Liberation Theologian on 90th Birthday

(Rome) Pope Francis has congratulated the Dominican Gustavo Gutierrez, the "father" of Marxist liberation theology, on his 90th birthday.

The Catholic Church Maximum Leader  sent a letter of congratulation to the Peruvian theologian. It is an award bestowed upon the Liberation Theologian for the first time in his life. The relationship with Rome was for a long time very different.

The papal letter is dated May 28th. Gutierrez was born on June 8, 1928 in Lima. With his book published in 1971 Teología de la liberación ("theology of liberation", German edition 1973) he coined the name for a whole movement, whose currents sought an alliance between Christianity and Marxism and some are still looking for.

The first contact between Gutierrez and Pope Francis during the current pontificate was in the Fall of 2013, at the urging of the then CDF Gerhard Müller.. Peru's primate, Juan Luis Cardinal Cipriani Thorne, said then, "Müller is a good theologian, but a bit naive." The Peruvian cardinal could not understand the sudden courting of Gutierrez and liberation theology by Rome. Cipriani Thorne left no doubt that Liberation Theology, a name coined by Gutierrez, has inflicted "great damage" on the Church. He also did not know if Gutierrez had "corrected himself", the cardinal said.

At that time it was not yet known what kind of sympathy Pope Francis had for leftist and even left-radical movements and parties, especially in Latin America.

Gutierrez has been received by Francis three times since autumn 2013, most recently in January at the Apostolic Nunciature in Lima. The congratulatory letter in the text:

Gustavo Gutierrez

Dear brother:
On the occasion of your 90th birthday, I am writing to congratulate you and assure you of this important moment in your life of prayer.
I join in your thanksgiving for God's grace and thank you also for what you have done for the Church and humanity through your theological service and your love for the poor and the outcast of society. Thank you for all efforts and for your form to address the conscience of each individual, so that no one remains indifferent to the drama of poverty and exclusion.
With these wishes, I ask you to continue with your ministry and prayer, bearing witness to the joy of the gospel.
And, please, I ask you to pray for me.
May Jesus bless you and guard the Blessed Virgin.

brotherly,
Francisco

Tempora mutantur.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Picture: MiL

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Pope’s Liturgist Says Summorum Pontificum is Fascist

The "Liturgist of the Pope", Andrea Grillo, "takes shots at the new Italian family minister Lorenzo Fontana: The No-Go-Maximum Fontana: He opposes abortion, mass immigration, gay marriage, gender ideology and attends Mass traditional rite.

(Rome) There is a bitter ideological struggle in the Catholic Church. It has been brought into the Church for decades by the side that has appeared in the past under the coat of arms of modernism and progressism. The most recent evidence was provided by the Italian lay theologian Andrea Grillo with a radical attack on Summorum Pontificum and the new Italian Family Minister.

Grillo teaches liturgical sciences at the Pontifical Athenaeum Sant'Anselmo of the Benedictine Order in Rome and is known for his harsh attacks against tradition and everything that stands in the way of actual or supposed "modernization" of the Church. His main enemy for years has been the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum of Pope Benedict XVI. His repeatedly voiced fears: Bugnini's liturgical revolution under Paul VI. could be reversed. As a matter of fact, Grillo, who of course knows the actual numbers, tries to crush the delicate plant of tradition. The faster, the better, because: "defend the beginning".

Grillo's attack on Cardinal Sarah

A year ago, Grillo insulted Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Roman Congregation for Worship and the Sacraments, as "incompetent and inappropriate." In such a rage Grillo addressed the epilogue contributed by Benedict XVI. to Cardinal Sarah’s book, "The Power of Silence.” Grille has nothing to fear from his degrading scolding of Cardinal Sarah. It demanded no courage, but was a health dose. He only followed Pope Francis, who has already humiliated the Cardinal publicly several times.

Andrea Grillo

Grillo is a radical proponent of vernacular languages ​​in the liturgy. Among other things, the "decentralization" of the Missal translations, which Pope Francis granted to individual episcopal conferences, goes back to him. Grillo is eagerly involved in new translations, "which are in direct contradiction to Liturgiam Authenticam's instruction from 2001," said Riccardo Cascioli, editor-in-chief of La Nuova Bussola Quotidana.

A harsh wind has been blowing in Rome since the left side of the Church.l now sees its opportunity. Andrea Grillo, neither related nor confused with the comedian Beppe Grillo, whose Five-Star Movement in Italy has just assumed the governmental responsibility, is among those progressives who have radicalized their language under Francis.

Italy's new family minister as a hope

Andrea Grillo's most recent enemy image is the family and disability minister of the new Italian government from the Five Star Movement and Lega. For the political left and Brussels, the new government is a red cape, and the leftist Catholics are no exception.

Lorenzo Fontana, born in 1980, is a deputy federal president of the Lega and has been a Member of the European Parliament since 2008 and deputy mayor of Verona since July 2017. Since the parliamentary elections last March, the member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, which voted him Vice-President. He graduated from the University of Padua with a degree in political science and history. The latter he concluded with a work on the Christian civilization.

Fontana is a bearer of hope for a Europe worthy of the name. He is a staunch life-support and a defender of the family and his own identity. His rejection of abortion, mass immigration, "gay marriage", adoption rights for homosexuals and gender ideology make him a major enemy of their ongoing struggle for cultural hegemony for the political left. She sees this threatened by a profiled opponent, a rarity in the mentally lax bourgeoisie, whose main focus seems to be on economic liberalism.

Family Minister = "Fascist", Summorum Pontificum = “Fascism”

Of course, the frontal attacks against Fontana that have been launched in recent days are of course applicable to the new government. A look at German media, and what has been written about Fontana over the past 48 hours, is enough to see how campaigns work. Fontana is the red cloth that has been chosen as the main point of attack. The goal: To shoot as fast as possible, a minister from the new government. For now, however, there seems to be little chance of success.

Grillo's first Twitter entry

Not only the organized gay lobby and left-wing parties attack Fontana. The liturgist Andrea Grillo also contributes to this politically motivated attack against the new government. Grillo makes it a no less ideologically motivated attack against the church. In his sights he has - not very original - Summorum Pontificum. Minister Lorenzo Fontana visits the Holy Mass in the traditional form of the Roman Rite. For politically motivated progressives in the church a no-go-maximum.

Therefore, the Catholic theologian Grillo tweeted against the Catholic family minister:

"One of the requirements for Fontana's fascism is Summorum Pontificum. Memento ... "

To then explain:

"The legitimacy that Summorum Pontificum gives to a reactionary drift of politics must be demonstrated. Not just in Italy. "

Grillo's second entry

The Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum of Pope Benedict XVI. is denounced as Fascism by a Catholic theologian, Ordinary at a Pontifical College in Rome. This unknowable audacity portrays vividly which forces are currently seeking supremacy in the church or have already gained the upper hand. Such a view can only lead to statements such as those Grillos.

Fontana himself responded to the attacks of those days in a letter to the daily Il Tempo:

"The hatred of the elites does not scare me."

The theologian Andrea Grillo is meant as well. His Twitter posts show how deeply a certain decomposition process was brought into the Church, even if a time-honored monastic order like the Benedictines trained Grillo at their Roman college.

Grillo's reputation in Santa Marta "extremely worrisome"

The incident shows, above all, who is well-liked in the current pontificate in Santa Marta. Andrea Grillo was called by Pope Francis in 2016 in the ominous Liturgy Commission, which was established by the head of the church behind the back of the competent Cardinal Prefect Robert Sarah. 

Katholisches.info wrote on January 12, 2017:

"The task of this commission is not to correct the degeneration of the post-conciliar liturgical reform of 1969/1970, which is a serious nuisance in the form of liturgical abuse, including in German-speaking countries. The task of this commission is rather the exact opposite, "said Magister. It is meant to demolish one of the last walls of resistance against the abuse of post-conciliar liturgists and would-be liturgists. It refers to the instruction Liturgiam authenticam, which was issued in 2001 and defines the criteria according to which the obligatory Latin liturgical texts are to be translated into the vernacular languages. "

In March 2017, Francisco Fernandez de la Cigoña described Francis’ members of the Liturgy Commission as "altogether alarming".

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: Youtube / CTV / Twitter (Screenshots)

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Irish Government Minister is a Witch

Edit: if they voted for Sinn Fein, they’ll vote for anything evil in Ireland.

A “WHITE” witch has saluted the Children’s Minister for her interest in the Wicca tradition. Katherine Zappone, an Independent TD, has studied witchcraft and its power to raise the “psychic energy” of participants and create a more “sustainable and peaceful planet”, the Irish Sun has learned.

Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone has a history with witchcraft.

Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone has a history with witchcraft And Patricia Weston, who has written about spells and magic, says the Independent politician is more understanding and compassionate due to her exploration of the pagan tradition.

 The Irish Sun tracked down a copy of her book The Hope of Wholeness: A Spirituality of Feminism, written by Zappone and first published in 1991.

https://www.thesun.ie/news/2669449/childrens-minister-katherine-zappone-praised-by-top-white-witch-for-her-interest-in-the-wicca-tradition-and-studying-witchcraft/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

AMDG

Pope Promises no “Uniatism” in Relationship to Orthodox Churches

Francis in address to delegation led by Moscow Foreign Minister Archbishop Hilarion: The way of unity is the "only way" - No mission among non-Catholic Christians

Vatican City (kath.net/KAP) Unusually, Pope Francis has reaffirmed his commitment to ecumenism with the Russian Orthodox Church and its Patriarch Kyrill. The path of unity is "the only way that promises us something certain, the path of division will only bring us war and destruction," the Pope said in a short speech to a Russian Orthodox delegation whose text the Vatican published on Saturday.

"The only patriarch in Moscow, in Russia, is yours," Francis assured the delegation. This was under the direction of Metropolitan Hilarion, the foreign chief of the Moscow Patriarchate, who visited Italy from Monday to Wednesday. Shortly before returning to Russia, the group had been received by the Pope.

In his address, Francis gave a clear rejection to any Uniatism, that is, the mission among non-Catholic Christians. If "some Catholic believers - whether lay people, priests or bishops" propagate this, he says: "That does not work anymore, that's over." Of course, the existing Eastern churches unified with Rome, which have arisen in past centuries, must be respected. Today, however, this is no longer a way to unity, according to the Pope.

However, Francis also urged the Russian Orthodox Church to take concrete steps in ecumenism. As examples Francis called for prayer, charitable commitment or pilgrimages. Although one must continue to discuss the theological divergences, one should not wait until at some point, for agreement to exist in all teaching differences.

As a further clear assurance to the Orthodox side, the Pope said: "The Catholic Churches in Russia must not interfere in the internal affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as in politics." This is his attitude and that of the Holy See, the Pope said. Finally, he called on Orthodox and Catholic believers for mutual prayer for each other. This brings the sisters and brothers of both churches closer together.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG

Marx Sounds Displeased With Vatican Ruling on Sacrilegious Communions

Congregation of faith writes DBK boss Marx that the document to the Eucharistic approval of Protestant spouses is not ready for publication - UPDATE: kath.net documented original letter copy! - Cardinal Marx is "surprised"

Vatican (kath.net) After the conversation of Cardinal Marx and Cardinal Woelki and some other German bishops in Rome, the controversial document of the German Bishops' Conference for the common Eucharistic reception in confessional marriages. This was announced by the Prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Luis F. Ladaria, DBK Chairman Reinhard Cardinal Marx, in an official letter (in German). The letter is dated May 25th. Archbishop Ladaria explains to Marx that he spoke to Pope Francis on both May 11 and May 24. After the talks, he wants to bring with the "explicit consent" of the Pope a few points to consideration..

First, that "the manifold ecumenical efforts of the German Bishops' Conference" are honored. However, according to the letter, the conversation on 3 May 2018 showed that the text of the Guidance raises a number of issues of major importance. "The Holy Father has therefore come to the conclusion that the document is not ready for publication." Ladaria refers to the document "Going with Christ - On the track of unity. Confessional marriages and joint participation in the Eucharist. A Pastoral Assistance of the German Bishops' Conference ".

The Prefect of the Congregation of the Faith mentions three "essential reasons" for rejection in the letter. The question of the admission to Communion of Protestant Christians in inter-confessional marriages is a topic that touches the faith of the Church and is of relevance to the world Church. In addition, the question has "impact on ecumenical relations with other churches and ecclesial communities", which should not be underestimated. Literally, item 3 is quoted as follows: "The theme concerns the law of the church, especially the interpretation of can. 844 CIC. Because there are unanswered questions in some parts of the Church, the competent dicastery of the Holy See has already been commissioned to clarify these issues promptly at the universal Church level. In particular, it seems appropriate to leave the verdict on the existence of an "urgent and serious emergency" to the diocesan bishop.”

Ladaria expressly pointed out that it was a great concern of the Holy Father "that in the German Bishops' Conference the spirit of episcopal collegiality remains alive".

UPDATE 18.30: Marx reacts!

Cardinal Reinhard Marx is obviously not pleased with the letter from Rome. He informed his spokesman on Monday evening: "The letter of the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of May 25, 2018 has reached the President of the German Bishops' Conference, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, this evening (June 4, 2018) On 3 May 2018 in Rome, the participating bishops were told that they should find 'as unanimous a rule as possible' in the spirit of ecclesial communion, and the President is therefore surprised that this letter from Rome has arrived even before finding such a unanimous settlement. The President also sees further need for discussion within the German Bishops' Conference, especially in the Permanent Council and the Autumn Assembly, but also with the corresponding Roman Dicasteries and the Holy Father himself. "

UPDATE 17:45: Since now various translations of the letter are circulating, kath.net documents the letter of Archbishop Ladaria / Congregation of the Faith, to the DBK Chairman Cardinal Marx for DBK handout in dt. Original language.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Italian Family Minister: “The Family is Under Attack. They Want to Dominate Us and Cancel Our People”

Edit; we were sent this link by a twitter follower. Here is a google translate with some editing. We don’t think that Corriere Della Sera is too happy with this heroic Catholic’s point of view.

"The natural family is under attack. They want to dominate us and cancel our people." The new minister for the Family and Disability, Lorenzo Fontana declared this in 2016, as stated on his website.

[Corriere Della Sera] At the conference of the Pro Vita Onlus association held in Verona, he explained that "on the one hand the weakening of the family and the fight for gay marriage and the teaching of gender theory in schools, on the other the mass immigration that we undergo and the simultaneous emigration of our young people abroad. These are all related and interdependent issues, because these factors aim to erase our community and our traditions. The risk is the cancellation of our people.” The example to follow is Russia: "If thirty years ago Russia, under the Communist, materialistic and internationalist yoke, was the farthest imaginable from the ideas of identity and defense of the family and tradition, but today it is the model for those who believe in an identity model of society.”

The 38-year-old minister of the new government of the League and Movement 5 Stars, former vice-secretary of the Northern League who describes himself as "Veronese and Catholic" on Twitter, in March 2017 defined "the order of the Court of Appeal of Trento on double paternity (a law which recognizes that a child can have two fathers), a defeat for society ».

At the end of May he participated in the March for the Life of Rome to support the abrogation of the law 194 on abortion with the cry of "abortion is the leading cause of femicide in the world".

A graduate in Political Science, he particularly cares about the demographic theme: "Politics must take care of the family, we can not waste any more time. Children are the investment of the future. Every year it is as if we lost a city the size of Padua, the demographic decline is comparable to that caused between 1918 and 1920 by Spanish fever,” he said in an interview. In January, again on the same subject, the former prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni, commented: "For the outgoing Council President, the aging Europe needs migrants; for us, aging Europe needs to generate new children".

https://www.corriere.it/politica/18_giugno_01/unioni-gay-quando-ministro-famiglia-fontana-diceva-vogliono-dominarci-cancellare-nostro-popolo-f12308cc-656c-11e8-b063-cd4146153181_amp.html?__twitter_impression=true

AMDG

Cardinal Woelki on the Eucharist, “This is about life and death”

The Cologne Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki has defended the Holy Eucharist at the Corpus Christi Festival with dramatic words - In Essen Bishop Overbeck wanted to "sell" the giving of the Eucharist to Protestants with a psychological trick

Cologne (kath.net) The Cologne Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki defended the Holy Eucharist with dramatic words on Thursday following the pontifical ministry on Corpus Christi, and also addressed the debate on Protestant spouses receiving Communion. Woelki said, "This is about life and death, it's about death and resurrection, it's about eternal life, it's about Christ, it's about His Church and it's all about what's in it. Therefore, we must fight for it and seek the right way, not some way, but the way of the Lord which He shows us, and He alone is the way, the truth, and the life." The Cologne Cardinal again rejected allegations that he had sent the letter to Rome behind the back of Cardinal Marx: "I say with the Holy Scriptures: I have appeared openly and freely and have written this and meant what was written and I would say it once again: we in Germany do not live on an island of the blessed, we are not a national church.” At the end of his speech, Woelki received great applause from the faithful in Cologne Cathedral.

In Essen, however, the local bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck had subtly pleaded for the release of the Eucharist to Protestants. Thus, the bishop claimed without proof, that Pope John Paul II had suggested a limited opening of Communion. According to Overbeck, there is currently no general admission of Protestant Christians to Communion. But then the bishop of Essen tried to verbally sell the release with a psychological trick. So he said that the common communion is possible, if in a marriage "salvation is at stake". But he wants a "theologically responsible solution.”  Interesting in the context of the German Eucharist dispute is the language of its own press office, which spoke of "inferior bishops" in connection with the 7 bishops who turned to Rome.

Trans: Tamcred Vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Pope Appoints Kissing Bishop to La Plata

The following was reported by Religion Digital.  It's hardly surprising, but one can't help but be dismayed that Bergoglio's ghost writer and the author of a book on kissing is going to be given one of the most important sees in Argentina. He continues to stack the deck with his evil cronies. In the old days, maybe the black nobility would have intervened by now and disposed of him somehow, now that he's apparently raising Bishops with concubines to the cardinalatial purple.

The Pope has accepted the resignation of his enemy, Monsignor Héctor Aguer. He turned 75 years old about 10 days ago according to journalist and art historian, La Cigüeña de la Torre, who will be replaced by Victor Manuel Fernández, about whom he says:

"The most famous kiss was given by a bishop like you, Judas"

Ferández is 55 years old, and currently holds the titular archdiocese of Tiburnia.  He is sure to be around for many years to persecute the Church from within and with impunity.
 
The information was unveiled this morning simultaneously in Rome and Buenos Aires. Here was the charge of business of the apostolic nunciature, Monsignor Vincenzo Turturro, through the agency AICA.
 
Monsignor Víctor Fernández will be the eighth archbishop of La Plata and the tenth diocesan of the Episcopal see of La Plata.
 
Biographical information of Mons. Dr. Víctor Manuel Fernández

He was born on July 18, 1962 in Alcira Gigena, a town in the department of Río Cuarto, province of Córdoba, and was ordained a priest in his hometown, diocese of Villa de la Concepcion del Río Cuarto, on August 15, 1986.

He graduated in Theology with a biblical specialization from the Pontifical Gregorian University, in Rome, in 1988, and a doctorate in Theology from the Faculty of Theology of the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina Santa Maria de los Buenos Aires (UCA) in 1990.

H/T: Canon212

AMDG 

#Procesja Connects Millions of Poles for Corpus Christi on Social Media

Polish Catholic Bishops' Conference: "Let's get a picture in the social media of how we are experiencing the Feast of Corpus Christi in our countries"

Poland (kath.net) "Let's make a picture of how we experience the Corpus Christi feast in our countries in social media. Share pictures and films that we tag with the hashtag #Procession." The speaker of the Polish Bishops' Conference, Rev. Pavel Rytel-Andrianik, said Friday. Last year, this initiative brought together 5 million Poles. "I hope that this will be the case again," said. Rytel-Andrianik. "If you want to see how the processions in Poland present themselves, please state #Procesja (Procession)." John Paul II said that faith will be strengthened if it is passed on  "- recalls the bishop's spokesman sharing the experience of faith on Facebook and Twitter. "Corpus Christi is a public testimony of our faith, and we can do that on social media as well, by sharing images and movies with the #procession hashtag, and we get a picture speaking to how we experience this festival in our country," stressed Rev. Pavel Rytel-Andrianik.

The spokesman of the Polish Bishops' Conference says that Corpus Christi is the moment in which Catholics come in processions on streets of the cities to worship Jesus and meditate on the mystery of the presence of Jesus in the Holy of Holies. "This is not a demonstration, but the great prayer of the whole Church that unites many people who come to the community to worship Jesus and invite him to their daily lives. After all, the processions pass by our living, working and entertainment places. So we can say that the feast of Corpus Christi should emphasize the presence of God in all our affairs. We can also share this experience on social media by releasing images and films with the hashtag #Procession during Corpus Christi and the Octave of this celebration "- emphasizes Rev. Rytel-Andrianik.

He added that previous initiatives of this kind have been very popular on the social media and have shown that there is a need among their users to share the experience of the faith. "One very important aspect of such initiatives is the fact that we are able to participate in important religious events by publishing pictures or films, such as those taken by smartphone. Moreover, those who for various reasons can not participate in processions in person, can connect spiritually"- says the bishop's spokesman.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG

Battle Over Strollers Erupts on Bus

Several families wanted to board the bus with a total of five baby strollers. When the driver refused, he was verbally abused. Finally, the police had to move in.

[Bz-Berlin] Potsdam, it came at the weekend to a dispute between passengers, as several families of African descent wanted to ride with five strollers. The bus driver of the line 689 declined Saturday night to take all of the prams. Only one person is allowed, said the bus driver, exceptionally two.

Then the driver was berated by the families as a racist. The bus driver became enraged about it.

Passengers beat and spit 

Now, a young woman (20) intervened and scolded the families with the five strollers. She was spat on by a man (32). This eventually led to the two kicking each other.

The arriving police were able to calm the situation and filed criminal charges for insult and assault.

https://www.bz-berlin.de/berlin/umland/kinderwagen-streit-in-potsdamer-bus-eskaliert

Trans:Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG 

Families Engage in Mass Melee

Trigger was after first investigations, a dispute between two families. This dispute escalated into a mass brawl involving iron bars, knives, and fence posts. Three young men suffered stab wounds.

 

[Rundblick] Corpus Christi afternoon (May 31), North Dortmund: Around 3:50 pm patrolmen were approached on Bornstraße. Two men described a brawl nearby.

"In the area Missundestraße / Schleswiger place, the officials then encountered a large group of people (about 250 people). The group was deeply inflamed and in part equipped with larger objects and fence posts,” says police spokesman Gunnar Wortmann.

With strong support staff, the police officials locked the site and prevented further aggression. A 23-year-old from Dortmund had been stabbed by a knife, bleeding heavily.

The police provided first aid until the arrival of the alerted rescue workers. According to current knowledge, there is no danger to life for the young man.

Two other young men, 16 and 21, were injured by punctures or by blows from a metal rod. Ambulances took him to a hospital.

The police secured two knives and several iron bars.

"After the initial investigation, a dispute between two Romanian families was the trigger of the dispute," concludes police spokesman Wortmann on the report. At our request, he confirmed that most of the participants are Romanian citizens. The three injured are Romanians.

Accurate backgrounds are currently under investigation.

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Muslims Attacking Dogs With Knives a Growing Phenomenon

Edit: David Berger is a former instructor of Scholastic Theology in the Archdiocese of Cologne and the Academy of Saint Thomas in Rome. He was among those who helped bring down the best religion website in Europe, if not the world. Kreuz.net was legendary, and it also exposed Berger. Since then, however, Berger has been trying to use his journalistic and philosophical powers for good and make up for his past. He was once a frequent lecturer on the traditionalist circuit at various “castles and crypts.”  

Berger’s bio: 

David Berger (born 1968) was a PhD (Dr. phil.) and habilitated (Dr. theol.) Professor for many years in the Vatican. 2010 Outing: It happened on the publication of the book “Die Heilige Schein” about his work in the Vatican as a homosexual man. [He tried to make traditionalists look bad, and this characterization isn’t quite accurate. Kreuznet published his Facebook and dating site activity. That’s what really happened.] Then he worked for two years chief editor of a gay magazine, he was expelled for being too openly critical of Islam.  Since 2016 he has been a blogger at (philosophia-perennis) and freelance journalist (inter-alia for Die Zeit, Junge Freiheit, The European). His bibliography of academic writings comprise about 1,000 titles. July 24, 2017

Muslims hate dogs.

(David Berger) In the small Dutch village of Schiedam near Rotterdam, there has been a kind of knife attack, which are so far rare in Europe, but could soon spread in the context of Islamization.

When police officers entered the apartment of a 26-year-old Syrian with the police dog, he - armed with a large knife and an ax - immediately started stabbing the dog. He repeatedly shouted "Allahu Akbar".

Since the police could not stop the escalation by other means, they shot the man. He was injured and taken to hospital. The dog succumbed to his injuries.

On the hatred of dogs motivated by Islam:

"Unclean": Brutal attacks on dogs and dog owners now also in Europe (the article follows this story)

Yesterday there was an incident in Germany with a knife man, the day before yesterday, a fanatical Muslim in Liege, Belgium, killed two policemen and a pedestrian. The "Islamic State" committed itself to the act and praised the murderers as "Soldiers of the Caliphate".

An ex-policeman and specialist in Islamist terror when asked about the extreme uptick of the already numerous knife attacks in recent days, shrugged to PP: "What do you want? It's Ramadan! "

https://philosophia-perennis.com/2018/05/31/ramadan-in-rotterdam-mann-ruft-allahu-akbar-und-sticht-auf-hund-ein/

“Unclean”

(David Berger) From Pakistan (see video at the end of the text) and other countries dominated by Islam, brutal cruelty to animals has been known to us for a long time, especially when it comes to dogs, even though the major media in this country are largely silent.

In the process, the fatwa, according to which only black dogs are to be killed, was exceeded on a regular basis - and extended to all dogs.

More and more frequently in Europe there are Islamic motivated acts of violence against dogs and their owners.

So reports - in addition to the newspaper Kronen Zeitung- the Austrian magazine "Wochenblick" recently:

"A 54-year-old dog owner in Vienna was knocked down in front of her garden gate by a Muslim Somali woman. The Viennese’s dog had approached her.

Ingrid T. now has a complicated knee fracture and gets implants. "The animals are impure," said the Somali woman according to media reports.

The incident occurred in a completely harmless situation: The Viennese, Ingrid T. - according to   Wochenschau - "was gossiping with a neighbor at the garden gate. One of her dogs sat next to her, the other marched towards her parents' house. When a young woman approached with a veil, she wanted to get her dog back.

“She knew that Muslims do not like dogs. But immediately the Viennese woman was attacked. Three men had to tear the Somali woman away from the Viennese woman. The husband of the attacker is said to have said:

"We do not want dogs that are dirty".

In fact, there are clear rules for dog ownership in Islam. For example, dogs in the house and contact with the dog's saliva are completely taboo. Muslims who go to prayer and come into contact with a dog must repeat the ritual washing. Incidentally, there are about 60,000 officially registered dogs in Vienna.

The number of those unreported is likely to be higher. Conflicts are therefore inevitable. In cities in many countries with a high Muslim populations, there are more and more similar and other incidents.”

JouWatch reported a few weeks ago about an action in Manchester: "’This area is home to a large Muslim community. Show respect for us and our children and limit the presence of dogs in public,’ said the Muslim public-health campaign group, which distributed leaflets in the English city of Manchester calling for a public ban on dogs.”

***

Read on to the Muslim attacks on dogs and dog owners in the UK, USA, Canada and Spain

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Academy of Saint Thomas

Marxist University in Nicaragua Mortared

Edit: the Sandinistas have been accused lately of trying to fan discontent with the standing government by firing at crowds. Perhaps the Sandinistas are mortaring their fellow traveler friends?

[America] Since protests directed at the Sandinista government in Nicaragua began in April, the Jesuit-run University of Central America has been a hub of student activism and, as a result, a target of violence. On Sunday, Father Jose Alberto Idiaquez, S.J., the rector of U.C.A., condemned the latest attack on his university as government-sponsored.

In a statement addressed to the Nicaraguan people, Father Idiaquez announced that U.C.A.’s campus in Nicaragua’s capital city of Managua was attacked on May 27 at 12:45 a.m. by a group of masked men in vans. The attackers shot a mortar at two campus guards.

Since protests directed at the Sandinista government in Nicaragua began in April, the Jesuit-run University of Central America has been a a target of violence.

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“Although they did not manage to hurt or kill our watchmen, this was their intent, based on the charge of gunpowder used and the nearness of the shot,” Father Idiaquez said in his statement.

https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2018/05/29/masked-men-attack-jesuit-university-nicaragua?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletters&utm_content=3+-+READ+MORE+gtgtgt&utm_campaign=Newsletter&source=Newsletter

AMDG

Victory of Euroskeptic Parties in Italy a Defeat for Santa Marta

(Rome) The Vatican media are undergoing a massive transformation. In June 2015, Pope Francis set up the Secretariat of Communications, a central communications ministry that brought together all the Vatican media under one central management. The transformation is also reflected in political valuations, also with regard to the struggles for the formation of a government overshadowing everything on the Apennine peninsula.
 
On October 1, 2016, the new dicastery became fully active when its statutes came into force. Francis appointed priest and communications expert Dario Edoardo Viganò as prefect. In September 2017, a cooperation agreement was concluded with the Jesuit Order, which gave the Pope's Order - invisible to the outside - a not insignificant position.
 
However, Prefect Viganò already crashed last March with the manipulative handling of a letter from Benedict XVI. which Viganò published at the expense of Benedict as a special flattery to honor the fifth anniversary of the election of Pope Francis, but ended in his forced resignation instead.
 
 It is the case that the criticism falls both upon Viganò and Pope Francis, which the international media directed at Viganòs' journalistic professional ethics and d his demanded his resignation, which Francis makes clear to the present day by two gestures. Viganò had to go as prefect, but was promptly equipped by Francis with a consultancy, and just for the Communications Secretariat. A minister who has to resign because of wrongdoing, but immediately becomes the chief adviser again for the same ministry, is a rather unorthodox method.
 
Francis went even further, and he hasn't appointed a successor to Viganò to this day. The place of the prefect is vacant. This brings Francis to Viganò, manipulation at the expense of Benedict XVI. or not, an almost unqualified expression of his unbroken esteem. Ultimately, Viganò is still the actual boss in the communications secretariat, despite being in the background. It is also confirmed by this example that Francis does not let go of people in whom he places his trust, but bolsters them.

The Giro d'Italia and the subtle political message

So the current topic.
 

Premature cancellation of Giro d'Italia

The Osservatore Romano was the last medium that was transferred to the new ministry. Strangely enough, the pope's daily newspaper yesterday reported on the Giro d'Italia , the world's most famous cycling race after the Tour de France.
 
The internationally watched and popular stage race ended with the last stage in Rome, which was stopped after one third and the winner was called prematurely without completing the race. Reason was according to the race management the bad road conditions in the Italian capital.
 
So far so harmless, but the Osservatore Romano usually does not report on such sophisticated events. A look at Italy's leading secular media provides the explanation. The premature end of the Giro d'Italia became an indictment of the Roman city government, which has been run since June 2016 by the Movimento Cinque Stelle. Since then, the mayor has been the lawyer Virginia Raggi. In concrete terms, the political movement founded by political comedian Beppe Grillo was portrayed as incompetent in a supposedly unpolitical context.
 
In parallel to the Giro deal, one of the most dramatic political tug-of-wars in recent Italian history took place in Rome. The Five-Star Movement has been by far the country's largest party since last March's parliamentary elections, claiming the formation of a government. However, this is decidedly rejected by the ruling left-wing Democrats (PD), to whom President Sergio Mattarella belongs, as well as by EU leaders in Brussels.

President undermines government formation

For 72 days, Mattarella delayed the task of forming a government of the strongest party. It was only on May 20 that the five-star movement and Lega appointed the nominee professor of law and non-partisan Giuseppe Conte, after it had long been established that the two parties had agreed on the joint formation of government and have an absolute majority in both houses of parliament.
 
As the parliamentary majority seeks a course change in the EU and on immigration - the recovery of state sovereignty, an end to mass immigration, the exit from the euro, the return to the lira, and thus self-responsible monetary and economic policies, and the dismantling of the EU to one common economic space, but without a common currency and without political centralism in Brussels - let Mattarella burst the formation of a government. The dispute erupted around the financier and economist Paolo Savona, who was to become economics minister. Obviously, nobody in Italy can become a minister anymore, whom Brussels does not want. The theoretical government majority therefore speaks of a grave contempt for the will of the voters, in that the outgoing left-wing Democrats (with only no more than 18 percent of the vote) and the EU, despite parliamentary elections in Italy, want to impose on them a pleasant government.
 
This leaves new elections in the air with an uncertain outcome. Vote until the result fits? It seems unlikely, however, that the left can recover. The center-right parties, especially Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, hope to win in new elections, the three percent who lack the legal alliance with Lega since the parliamentary elections to form a government without Five-Star Movement.

Five-Stars and Lega: currently 94 percent of constituencies available

 

If they collaborate, Five-Star and Lega could win 94 percent of the constituencies.

But it could also be that the Italians have taken pleasure in a completely new way and confirm or even strengthen the majority of the Five-Star Movement and Lega . According to a recent survey by the renowned left-wing Istituto Cattaneo, the two parties could even win 94 percent of all electoral districts in a joint campaign. Then even President Mattarella could no longer prevent the formation of a government.
 
Until then, however, much can still happen, including an intervention by the "deep state", as the more recent Italian past teaches. Without Great Britain and Italy, only the Berlin-Paris axis would remain of the EU big ones.
 
The indictment of the street conditions in Rome is easily recognized in the EU-friendly, large media of the country as part of the psychological warfare against an unwanted formation of government by Five-Star Movement and Lega . Until June 2016, Rome was ruled for 25 years from the left, and five years (2008-2013) from the right.

Pope Francis, the Left Democrats and the EU

It is noteworthy that the Osservatore Romano joined in this chorus, albeit in a more restrained tone. It is no secret that the Neanderthal Pact, as the Five-Star Movement / Lega alliance is disparaged by its opponents, is rejected by Santa Marta. The dislike of the current leadership in the Vatican is earned especially by Lega. The recommendation of the Italian bishops, which they gave before the parliamentary elections at the direction of the Vatican, was directed precisely against the two victorious parties. The magic word of criticism was "populism." Voters were not told who to vote for but who they should not vote for: no "populist parties." The accusation of populism applies to the opponents of a multicultural and multi-religious reconstruction of Europe through the reduction of sovereignty and mass immigration. Similar episcopal announcements were made before the federal elections in September 2017 in Germany as well.
 
Above all, the Lega loudly contradicts Pope Francis' demand for unlimited immigration. This is a request to which the former Italian Senate President and personal friend of Benedict XVI, Marcello Pera found harsh words for in the summer of 2017. Francis's most closely related bishops have repeatedly lobbied with the Lega in the recent past. Where the Lega resisted the suppression of Christian symbols and customs in public, were not only opoposed by representatives of the political left, but, surprisingly, church representatives, too. Since the contradiction of Cardinal Marx against the Bavarian cross-decree, shows a comparable clerical schizophrenia which is also known in German lands.
 
Not to forget: The result of the parliamentary elections can also be read as a clear electoral defeat for Pope Francis, who of course did not run for office himself. So it was interpreted by attentive political observers as well. It is well known, however, that the cards are not reshuffled until after election night, and there the Vatican does not seem to be inactive in order to iron out the Pope's electoral defeat.
 
Behind the scenes, in the current struggle for the formation of governments in Italy, economic issues, especially in the context of the EU and the euro, play an even more central role than mass immigration. Finally, the parliamentary majority challenges the Treaty of Amsterdam, which created the EU. Both topics, however, are inextricably linked in the current orientation of Brussels. The Italian parties know that, and Italian voters seem to have understood that too - and chose the Five-Star Movement and the Lega.
 
Text: Andreas Becker
Image: Mil / photomontage (party logos) / Corriere della Sera (screenshots)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG 

Franciscans of the Immaculate Win Important Legal Battle

Franciscan of Immaculate marching for life. New points for victory, but without a rethinking in the Vatican there seem no end to the torments in sight.

(Rome) The Franciscans of the Immaculate, oppressed by the Congregation of Religious with the approval of Pope Francis, have achieved another victory, at least a moral victory, which should more than ever be the occasion of a process of reflection in the Vatican. There aren’t any indications so far.

Despite its young age, the Order, which was not established until the early nineties, stood out for the great number of religious and priestly vocations, even in Europe, where most of the orders are moaning because of a lack of vocations.

Old Rite and missionary - and a thorn in the eye

The secret: As large parts of the Church and also many members of the Order, especially during and after the Council, were enthusiastic about "cutting off old braids" and introducing all sorts of innovations in the name of new "freedoms," from the setting aside of the Order's name to the abandonment of the Order's habit, from the convenient expansion of the cells while at the same time reducing the communal prayer of the hours, two friars minor went the opposite way. They asked to leave the company of their "progressive" confreres and retire to an abandoned monastery and revive it. There, they did not seek to subject their religious rule to an "aggiornamento" but to build on the first Franciscan rule of the order and deepen Marian spirituality.

The two Minorites, Fr. Stefano Maria Manelli and Fr. Gabriele Pellettieri, were joined by others, and they became the founders of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, a Marian and traditional order. As Pope Benedict XVI. freed the Immemorial Rite with the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum and procured a home in the church, the young religious community did not hesitate to follow him in it. The Franciscans of the Immaculate became the first and so far only new religious order, which has returned to the traditional rite, but remained pastoral and bi-ritual. The special charisma that has distinguished the Order from other altruistic communities was its missionary zeal.

Benedict XVI. held his protective hand over the Order, which seemed to become as unique and interesting a model as it was to young members of other orders.

The Commissar 

Then there was the unexpected resignation Benedict XVI. and election of Pope Francis. In the Order, a tiny minority of five disgruntled, liberal brothers had complained because of the change to the Immemorial Rite in the Vatican. Under Benedict XVI. the Congregation of the Religious did not dare to take action. Under Francis, it immediately received the tiny minority's complaint as an opportunity to crack down on the unloved model - and radically.

Order's founder, Father Manelli

Manelli was deposed as Superior General and placed under house arrest. The order's leadership was removed from office, the priests were forbidden to celebrate the Immemorial Rite, and an apostolic commissar was appointed. In contradiction to Summorum Pontificum, each priest had to individually apply for a special permission to celebrate in the forma extraordinaria.

In order to exorcise the Order's charisma, monasteries were closed, its seminary closed and evictions were carried out. The conversion into an Ecclesia Dei community was prohibited as well as the founding of a new order. Bishops were threatened if they accepted Franciscans of the Immaculate who left the Order.

In that summer of 2013, a veritable destructive campaign was kindled. The consequences did not remain: the first was the drying up of the vocations.

No reason

The Summit: To date, the Vatican has not given any reasons for this radical interference, let alone any charges. So far there was no possibility for the Franciscans of Immaculate to defend themselves against the oppressive measures of the papacy or at least to defend themselves. The requests and queries of Fr. Manelli to be received and heard by the Pope were not answered by Francis.

As Commissar, the Congregation of Religious used the Capuchin, Father Fidenzio Volpi. A man who was possessed of no sympathy for the tradition or the Immemorial Rite. Accordingly, he raged against the Order. Unofficially, let it be cryptically hinted that the order was being cleaned up because of "Lefebvrian deviationism." Later, he even claimed that the Order had been put under temporary administration four months after the election of Pope Francis, because it wanted to "overthrow" the Pope. That tradition and the Immemorial Rite is the real enemy became more and more clear, if there was any need for further proof.

In May 2013, founder Manelli celebrated his 80th birthday (see Father Stefano Maria Manelli is 80 - success story of the Franciscans of the Immaculate: Old Rite and Missionary), unaware of what a storm would soon rage over his work. Meanwhile, Fr. Manelli is 85 years old and has been under house arrest for nearly five years, as ordered by the Vatican.

The Book of Slander

By contrast, Commissioner Volpi has been long dead. Today, the second Commissar, who is a bit more reserved than his predecessor, is in office today. Volpi died in the midst of a civil and criminal dispute before Italian courts. The way in front of state courts is at least open to Father Manelli and representatives of the lay organizations affiliated to the Order because the Vatican has no access to it.

The book by Loredana Volpi

Volpi had been condemned by the Italian court for defamation, to payment of damages, the execution of which was prevented by his death.

Loredana Volpi, a niece of the deceased commissar, saw the reputation of her uncle damaged. Together with Mario Castellano, she wrote the book "Truth and Justice for Father Fidenzio Volpi. A dark matter in the pontificate of Pope Francis" (Verità e giustizia per padre Fidenzio Volpi, Una oscura vicenda nel Pontificato di Papa Francesco). Now, she has admitted to accusing the Order of unproven things and writing slander against those in charge of the lay religious organizations.

"While the Acting Administration of the Franciscans of the Immaculate continues in its sixth (!) year, without for the time being, foreseeing a possible solution to this unusual affair, which together with other actions bordering on arbitrariness (see the Order of Malta) like a blemish on this pontificate, has been a important manner of procedure in the indictment and slander-construct that has poisoned this story," said Vatican Marco Tosatti.

Mario Castellano, the co-author with Loredana Volpi, was a consultant to Commissar Volpi. Numerous hints, tips and "recommendations" from Fr. Alfonso Bruno, the main opponent of Fr. Manelli, who became the main beneficiary of the provisional administration of the Order, were probably included in the book.

In each country there are keywords that function as ciphers. If you want to slander someone, it is sufficient to incorporate these keywords and to drop some allusions in the subjunctive. Castellano and Volpi in their book brought the Order and lay organizations into contact with the Camorra, the Neapolitan mafia. The mafia is good for slander in Italy.

Loredana Volpi was received in audience, apparently for merit in the struggle against the Franciscans of the Immaculate, even by Pope Francis, to whom she presented a copy of her book.

The Apology

The founders Manelli and Pellettieri

The two authors, however, made a mistake. In their references in the book, they named the leading lay representatives by name. These filed a criminal complaint for defamation. This was to prove the truth, which was obviously not possible. To escape prosecution, Loredana Volpi decided to come to an out of court settlement with the plaintiffs. She undertook to write a letter of apology to be published in the leading daily newspaper of Southern Italy, in Il Mattino, and in the national daily La Repubblica. The left-liberal Repubblica was not the only newspaper to participate in the campaign against the Franciscans of the Immaculate. The ruling may have fallen on it because it is the only newspaper that Pope Francis reads daily, according to his own statement.

However, in order for the message to arrive at the governing pope, who bears the responsibility for the whole case, Volpi must, as she had handed him a book, also make her apologies directly.

Tosatti published excerpts from the letter of apology:

"It is absolutely certain that the statements employed are [...] not justified, being untrue, and for that reason they must be considered absolutely baseless and unjustified. In that sense, I renew to you my formal apology for the unfortunate and unjustified conduct towards you, and I inform you that the present letter will be published in the following ... media organizations and also on the Internet so that it may be widely used to redress the damage caused."

In return, those affected withdrew their ad.

The one most principally responsible is Pope Francis

The incident proves "once more," according to Tosatti, that the whole affair, which brought a most extraordinary, flourishing, young order to the brink of annihilation, is based on a construct of unproven allegations, rumors, baseless allusions, numerous verbal aggressions, and unbelievable slander. In short: it is an intrigue. The intriguers, that's for sure, seem partly personal, but partly ideologically motivated.

The ultimate responsibility for this lies not only with Pope Francis, because he endorsed the interventions of the Congregation of Religious, but above all because he has put both the male and the female branch, which was also placed under provisional administration at a later time, with two separate actions he refused to appeal to the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signatura against the measures of the Congregation of Religious. Thus, he decided by virtue of his powers as an absolute monarch. Why so much emphasis on an Order with which he had never had direct contact? The ordinary legal process would have clarified the legality and validity of the measures of the  Congregation of Religious and above all revealed what it is all about. That was (and is) precisely, obviously not desired.

Loredana Volpi's apology, according to Marco Tosatti, "casts a heavy shadow on the credibility of the Fronde [faction] of adversaries," arrayed against Father Manelli and his Order.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Image: MiL / Chiesa e postconcilio / Corrispondenza Romana
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG