Monday, September 5, 2022
Sunday, September 4, 2022
10 Killed In Indian Massacre in Canada
Wednesday, August 31, 2022
Cardinal Says Consistories are “Completely Useless”
Brandmüller misses the lack of exchange of arguments in consistories
Rome (kath.net/KAP) The retired German Curial Cardinal Walter Brandmüller was critical of the recent Cardinal Assembly in Rome. The consistories in their current form are an "obviously completely useless procedure," he wrote in an article published by Vatican journalist Sandro Magister (Wednesday). Brandmüller wanted to express the criticism during the consultations with the Pope in the past few days, but he was forbidden to do so, it said.
While there used to be open discussion on such occasions, there has been a "strange silence" at the cardinal meetings for years, says Brandmüller. "There was never a debate, an exchange of arguments on any particular subject." Suggested changes on his part were rejected. "In short: For at least eight years, the consistories have ended without any form of dialogue," the 93-year-old summed up.
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
Bergoglio's Contradictory Models for Cardinals
(Rome) Pope Francis created 19 new cardinals during an extraordinary consistory on Saturday 27 August. For the first time in recent Church history, a cardinal uprising took place in midsummer. Francis suggested role models for the new wearers of the purple.
Three months ago, the head of the Church had unexpectedly announced a renewed expansion of the College of Cardinals, although the electoral body had not yet needed to be filled up. The maximum number of papal electors was expanded by Paul VI., but at the same time fixed at 120 cardinals. This number is now significantly exceeded.
More unusual was that Francis scheduled the consistory for the creation of cardinals in midsummer, fueling two kinds of speculation: his possible resignation or plans for renewed corona restrictions in the winter half-year (or concerns about such) that would make it difficult, if not impossible, for the College of Cardinals to meet.
All the cardinals-elect were present in Rome on Saturday, including Msgr Richard Kuuia Baawobr, the unknown bishop of Wa in Ghana. It was still possible for him to get there, but then he suffered a fainting spell, "something with the heart," said Francis, which is why his creation will only take place soon. A date for this has not yet been given.
In his homily, Francis named two deceased confreres as role models for the cardinals to aspire to - two quite contrasting churchmen: Cardinal Secretary of State Agostino Casaroli (1914-1998) and Cardinal François Xavier Nguyên Van Thuân (1928-2002), Archbishop of Saigon in Vietnam.
Cardinal Casaroli, as the Vatican's top diplomat, was responsible for the controversial "Ostpolitik" towards the communist dictatorships. According to the official interpretation, the Holy See thereby eased the fate of the persecuted Church behind the Iron Curtain. However, this had its price: the Church remained silent on Marxism and its real-socialist derivatives. In fact, since John XXIII. a current in the Church, some of which openly sympathized with socialism and strived for the unification of socialism and Christianity.
Cardinal Nguyên Van Thuân, on the other hand, was a victim of communism and was considered one of the "living martyrs". He had to spend thirteen years in a real-socialist prison belonging to his tormentors, from 1975 to 1988, when his release was obtained through diplomatic channels on condition that he go into exile. John Paul II called him to the Roman Curia and made him head of a dicastery.
In his homily, Francis, in connection with Cardinal Casaroli, had Pope John XXIII. mentioned, while in the official text version of the website of the Holy See John Paul II appears. A Freudian slip of the tongue, as some Vaticanists thought with a smile?
How do two such contradictory moments in recent Church history fit together? This question was heard repeatedly over the past weekend. Pope Francis did not ask them, because the relationship to socialism that shaped both figures was not an issue. Cardinal Casaroli was mentioned by Francis because he frequently visited a prison for juvenile delinquents in Rome; Cardinal Nguyên Van Thuân for praying for his jailers. Both cases had pastoral aspects. The reasons and background why Nguyên Van Thuân had "jailer" remained hidden.
"A cardinal loves the Church, always with the same spiritual fire, whether he is concerned with big or small issues, whether he is meeting the great of this world - he must do that, very often - or the little ones who are great before God. I am thinking, for example, of Cardinal Casaroli, justly famous for his open-mindedness, with which he accompanied the new possibilities of Europe after the Cold War with an intelligent and patient dialogue - and God forbid that human short-sightedness should close horizons from him again! But in God's eyes the visits he made regularly to the young inmates of a juvenile prison in Rome, where he was called "Don Agostino," are equally valuable. He practiced great diplomacy - the martyrdom of patience, such was his life - and at the same time he visited the youth of Casal del Marmo weekly. And how many such examples could be cited! I remember Cardinal Van Thuân, who in another significant historical context of the 20th century was called to shepherd the people of God and at the same time inspired by the fire of Christ's love to care for the soul of the jailer who guarded his cell door. These people were not afraid of the "big", of the "maximum", but they also got involved with the everyday "small". After a meeting where Cardinal Casaroli reported to John Paul II on his last mission - I don't know, whether in Slovakia or in the Czech Republic, one of these countries, it was a question of high politics – the Pope called him on leaving and said: “Ah, monsignor, one more thing: do you keep going to these young prisoners?” – “Yes ’ – ‘Never leave them!’. The great diplomacy and the small pastoral matter. That is the heart of a priest, the heart of a cardinal.”
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image : Vatican.va (screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
Monday, August 29, 2022
Did Bergoglio Rehabilitate Real-Estate Scam Cardinal Becciu? — Becciu Thinks So!
Pope Francis with Cardinal Angelo Becciu: in the papal favor.
(Rome) The rehabilitation of Cardinal Angelo Becciu continues. Or not? Italian media are currently competing: while some report the reinstatement of the Sardinian wearer of the purple in his rights as a cardinal, others deny the rehabilitation of the former head of the dicastery. But wasn't everything originally quite different anyway?
Vatican diplomat Angelo Becciu rose to the top ranks of the Roman Curia after serving as apostolic nuncio in Africa and Cuba. He was Deputy Secretary of State from 2011 to 2018 and Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints from 2018 to 2020. At the same time, Pope Francis created him a cardinal.
Then suddenly it was said that the cardinal was no longer allowed to leave the Papal States, which suggested criminal investigations against him. But the Vatican did not confirm. In early autumn 2020, the bomb finally burst. It became known that Becciu was being investigated because of speculation about luxury real estate in London, which had cost the Vatican a sum in the hundreds of millions. As a substitute, he managed various funds, including the Peterspence. These are donations from the faithful for the support of the Pope and the Curia and the charitable works of the Pope. The announcement of the investigation led to a loss of confidence and a sharp drop in the Peterspence.
Cardinal Becciu denied all allegations, but resigned from all offices on September 24, 2020, declaring his renunciation of all cardinal rights and privileges but retaining the cardinal dignity. At that time, Katholisches.info pointed out that such a construction does not legally exist. Either someone resigns the cardinalship or is dismissed by the pope or continues to be a cardinal with all rights and duties. No one could then prevent Becciu from attending a conclave - or a consistory. Such a meeting was convened by Francis for the coming Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.
The result was a confusion that is not new to the current pontificate. Wikipedia reported Beccius' removal from the list of cardinals, as did Catholic Hierarchy. The online encyclopedia, citing Vatican media, still claims a "resignation" from "the rights associated with the cardinalate," which doesn't even exist. At best, Becciu could, if he took the initiative, decide for himself and voluntarily on a case-by-case basis whether to attend a cardinal's assembly or stay at home, whether to use cardinal privileges or not. No one but the Pope can remove him from the list of papal electors.
The strange construction quickly led to speculation as to whether Becciu really fell out of favor with the pope, his patron, as the Bergoglian media had emphatically claimed, in order to reflect the damage to the image of the pope and to keep the Church out of the spotlight. The speculation received new fuel when Francis visited Becciu on Maundy Thursday 2021.
The fact is that the main proceedings against Becciu before the Vatican Court opened on July 27, 2021 and have been pending there ever since. The judges have to clarify the allegations of embezzlement and abuse of office. It is also about clarifying where and how much money has flowed to take advantage. In addition to Cardinal Becciu, a number of other people have been charged.
On July 27, 2021, the trial against Cardinal Becciu et al. opened.
The Pope's phone call
The Sardinian daily L'Unione Sarda reported yesterday that Pope Francis called Cardinal Becciu and asked him: "Come to the consistory". From this the newspaper concluded that the Sardinian cardinal would be reinstated in his functions. The source? Cardinal Becciu himself.
The purple wearer announced the Pope's phone call on Sunday at a private Mass in Golfo Aranci, Sardinia, where he is currently spending a few days' vacation. It is the Pope's wish that Becciu "be reintegrated into his role as cardinal" with the extraordinary consistory convened for Saturday, according to L'Unione Sarda, who quoted verbatim what the cardinal had said on Sunday:
“On Saturday, the Pope called me to say that I was reinstated as cardinal and to ask me to attend a meeting with all the cardinals that will be held in Rome in the next few days, which is why I cannot attend mass next Sunday as I am busy in Rome.”
If this account of the cardinal is correct, that which was circulated in autumn 2020 would not be correct. Either Becciu "renounced" his privileges of his own free will, in which case no one needs to reinstate his rights, or he was "suspended" as a cardinal by Pope Francis. A suspension from the cardinalate does not exist, but in the Church, in which the supreme legislator and judge are united in the person of the pope, the creation of ad hoc provisions would not be excluded.
In any case, Cardinal Becciu was deeply moved by the media:
"I am very touched by this gesture by the Pope," reported the Italian press agency ANSA. "I thank him from the bottom of my heart and confirm my full attachment to him."
But then something unusual happened: Vatican News denied the claim that Francis had rehabilitated Cardinal Becciu - citing anonymous Vatican sources. One marvels.
The catch is to be found in the representation chosen by Becciu. The cardinal adhered exactly to the official language rule, which has been in circulation since 2020. And yet everything was wrong?
Vatican News countered that Becciu had “waived” the rights associated with the cardinal dignity of his own free will. To put it plainly: no one took this away from him, which is why no one “reinstates” him. Even more clearly: Francis does not want to be associated – once again – with anything, neither with having demanded the “renunciation” from Becciu in September 2020, nor with now “restoring” him to his rights.
There is no doubt that Cardinal Becciu was indeed called by Francis last Saturday and asked to attend the upcoming Consistory. That's one thing. It's Another thing entirely to be publicly associated with it. It's a matter of image. Vatican News therefore writes rather awkwardly:
“The sources of the Holy See recall that the rights of the Cardinalate do not relate to participation in the life of the Church; Christians are called to participate according to their status: in the case of cardinals, this may involve an invitation, sometimes in person, to attend some meetings reserved for them.
In understandable language: "If the Pope is already inviting you, why don't you shut up and just come?"
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image: VaticanMedia (Screenshots)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
Saturday, August 27, 2022
On the Death of Rodney Stark, "Defender of History Against Centuries of anti-Catholic Lies"
The sociologist of religion Rodney Stark became one of the strongest and most unconventional defenders of the Church, and thus of the history of the West, against a large number of anti-Catholic falsifications of history that were deliberately disseminated.
The American sociologist of religion and outstanding apologist for the role of the Catholic Church in Western history passed away a month ago, shortly after his 88th birthday. On this occasion, we publish an interview with him that he granted to the Italian monthly Tempi in 2016 for the publication of his book "Bearing False Witness" ("Bearing False Witness "), the accusation of "non-Catholics" against the "illustrious fanatics," who pass off certain lies about the Church as history. Here is the post from 2016:
This is how Rodney Stark defended the Church against historical falsification
Paradoxically, the man who is perhaps the most effective living apologist for the role of the Roman Church in Western history is not even a Catholic. On the contrary, as he himself explains in his most recent book, he “grew up in the splendor of the Reformation” and “like all Lutherans” was “enlightened about the perversion of Catholics” every Sunday in the service. If Rodney Stark chose to write Bearing False Witness: Debunking Centuries of Anti-Catholic History, it was not out of a partisan impulse to fly a flag defend that was never his.
"I wrote this book to defend history."
The Crusades in a New Light
The sociologist of religion and professor at Baylor University, a Baptist university in Texas, where he directs the Department of Religious Studies, is the author of dozens of titles that are successful in many countries around the world [only a few of which have been translated into German: Der Sieg des Abendlandes. Christianity and Capitalist Freedom and God's Warriors. The Crusades in a New Light ], is highly praised and dedicated to the "neglected history" that shows how it was despised Christianity that brought about the liberty, progress, and prosperity of our civilization. In Bearing False Witness' he has collected the ten 'anti-Catholic myths' that he has encountered most frequently in the course of his countless studies. Ten lies and false accusations which, according to Stark, "had and have too far-reaching consequences in popular thought to be left to isolated refutation."
- --Anti-Semitism, theologically motivated by the charge of deicide;
- --the existence of "enlightened" gospels hushed up and falsified by narrow-minded clergy;
- --the extermination of the pagans after the Christian "conquest" of Rome;
- --the "dark ages" of the Middle Ages, finally broken through by the rational revolution of the Enlightenment;
- --the Crusades as the first bloody act of European colonialism;
- --the crimes of the Spanish Inquisition and the witch hunts;
- --the case of Galileo as proof of the Church's anti-science;
- the justification of slavery;
- --the support of dictatorships against democracy;
- --the social and civilized superiority of the Protestant Reformation.
By naming names and quoting dozens of times, Stark in the book dissects in turn what he calls "illustrious fanatics" and fellow scholars who, rather than behaving as such, "eagerly" embraced anti-Catholic shenanigans, being "so convinced of the depravity and stupidity of the Roman Catholic Church that they need seek no further confirmation," let alone evidence, although some of them must have recognized that so many of these stories came "out of nowhere."
See e.g., there is the legend that Christopher Columbus discovered America while trying to prove by seafaring that the earth is round and not flat, as the Spanish cardinals who opposed his project supposedly “still” believed. A pure fairy tale invented in 1828 by writer Washington Irving, best known for inventing the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow. Nonetheless, it "remained in textbooks and popular culture for decades, even after scientists uncovered its fraudulent origins" (in Austria and West Germany it could still be heard in schools in 2009).
The Pope who is no longer supposed to be Catholic
The animosity of the “illustrious fanatics” towards the Church, according to Stark, goes back a long way.
“The Reformation and the religious wars that followed produced bitter hatreds and false accusations that have persisted through the centuries. Too much of this remains in the collective memory of Protestant countries. In contrast, I am not aware of any comparable vicious anti-Protestant myths in Catholic countries.
And if in ancient Rome, according to E. Mary Smallwood's thesis taken up in the book, the alleged "exclusivity" of Jews and Christians led to unpopularity and persecution, in past centuries "the antagonism of polytheism to monotheism, which anti-Semitism and anti-Christianity has been replaced by a secular antagonism against all religions, which contain traditional teachings and a claim to truth". Hence the demand that the Pope should stop being Catholic in every respect.
According to Stark, "Voltaire and his colleagues invented the Dark Ages in order to proclaim that they were ridding civilization of religious backwardness."
In reality, however, there never was an obscurantist Middle Ages. On the contrary:
“The most important key to the rise of Western civilization has been the devotion of so many brilliant minds to the pursuit of knowledge. Not after illumination. Not after enlightenment. Not for wisdom. For knowledge!”
The Victory of the Occident
For Stark, it makes perfect sense that many of these "brilliant minds" were medieval Christians, because, "Christianity is a theological religion (founded in thinking about God) that is not concerned solely with the scientific endeavors to explain the world agrees but also gave birth to science: Science did not develop elsewhere because religions, which viewed the universe as an impenetrable mystery, made any scientific endeavor seem absurd". However, over time, Voltaire's and Enlightenment views were "converted by some intellectuals who rejected all religions and by many others who mistakenly believed."
There's a reason why "even popular encyclopedias today acknowledge that the Dark Ages were a myth." This means that, at least in the case of this myth, historical science has triumphed over ideology. It happens all the time, but no one notices. In order to debunk the ten anti-Catholic falsifications of history, Stark draws on the "prevailing opinions among qualified experts". It is a pity that these "only ever write for each other and do not make an effort to share their knowledge with the general public", while conversely, the "illustrious fanatics" continue to enjoy amazing credibility, at least in the media. Even if their dishonest theses have already been refuted and they themselves have admitted their hostility to the Church. This is the case reconstructed in the book by John Cornwell, the famous author of "Hitler's Pope " (German edition: " Pius XII - The Pope who has been silent "), a milestone in propaganda against Pius XII, which has been refuted many times and yet has been reprinted by the press or used in other texts, all errors included. The fact is, bitterly, that "the press always likes scandals and bad news."
And: “The media is really biased towards religion”.
If it is true that the "illustrious fanatics" are fomenting an "'informed' anti-Catholicism" that enjoys undeserved media coverage, then how can truth triumph in the clash of ideas? Stark has no doubts:
"Why should I trust 'my' experts more than those with anti-Catholic views? Quite simply: because my opinion is based on the consensus of authoritative and qualified historians, whom I quote carefully, while the anti-Catholic nonsense has no qualified advocates."
Stark's books are very well received by experts and find an exceptionally positive response among readers. Obviously, they will not find their way into the mainstream. This would require a rethink. He wants to contribute to this rethinking with his books.
It certainly requires courage to defend the theses of “Bearing False Witness”. In the very first chapter, the author endeavors to refute the notion that "the persecution of the Jews was justified for centuries in the name of God." A prejudice so ingrained in the collective imagination that even Catholics hardly seem to question it. The Baylor University professoron the other hand, on the basis of historical documents and non-preconceived "papist" positions, states that he found long ago that in reality "Christians who blamed the Jews for the crucifixion also tended to accept secular forms of anti-Semitism,’ from which it follows that hatred of Jews is by no means a Catholic ‘invention’. On the contrary, according to Stark, "what I learned later, in a next step, was the broad extent to which the Church had protected the Jews from violence".
Views like Obama's will be discredited
Even when it comes to current events, Stark has little trouble defying the mainstream. In his book, he writes that the first armed offensives by Catholic civilization (not the Church) against other religions and heresies took place in the 11th century when Christian supremacy was threatened by the spread of Islam. However, it is wrong to conclude that something similar is happening in the West today.
“The 'Clash of Civilizations' is not the rotten fruit of our 'Islamophobia'. I don't believe that the Christian West is about to become intolerant. Rather, I believe that the non-Christian West is becoming intolerant.”
Also included in the book is a polemical reference to Barack Obama, who in 2015 helped propagate the anti-Catholic reading of the Crusades (Stark's main theme) by declaring that not all religious violence in history has come from Islam and that Christians also "have done terrible deeds in the name of Christ." Stark's comment is dry:
"If terrorism continues, and it will, views like Obama's will be discredited: I am sure we will see a resurgence of support for Christian action."
And what does Stark, who is not Catholic, not Baptist and no longer Lutheran, believe in?
"I lost my Lutheran faith when I was in my twenties and remained a non-believer until my sixties, but was never an atheist until, after years of writing about religion, I concluded that Christianity was the most plausible explanation for it life offers.”
Translation: Giuseppe Nardi
Image : Youtube (Screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
Cardinals Expected to be Silent in the Next Consistory
The cardinals of the Church will meet in a consistory next week, but Pope Francis has set unusual rules for them.
In a few days a cardinal consistory will begin in Rome – with special rules
(Rome) A regular Consistory of Cardinals has been convened by Pope Francis for Monday, August 29th. On Monday and Tuesday the Cardinals will gather in Rome to "reflect." Francis used this word on May 29 when he announced the convocation of the consistory at the end of the Regina Cæli. The convocation consists of several parts. In the first, the Extraordinary Consistory, next Saturday, Francis will create new cardinals with the next conclave firmly in view.
What is certain is that the reflections to be undertaken by the cardinals will not be free and open, clear and honest exchanges with parrhesia [freedom of speech], as Francis is wont to say, but on the contrary: none of the cardinals will be able to intervene or even ask questions.
This "detail" was revealed yesterday by the voyeuristic, sleazy website Dagospia, which, however, has surprisingly good contacts in the Church sector.[We'll definitely take that into account!] It also reported that the Cardinals read the “detailed introductory report of Monsignor Marco Mellino, Secretary of the Council of Cardinals [ex C9 Council of Cardinals], on the Roman Curia in the light of the Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium, with a general presentation, news, times and methods of application.” This report was already mentioned in a report by the Italian press agency ANSA on May 9th, which had as its subject the purpose of a meeting between Francis and the heads of dicasteries at the Roman Curia that took place on that day.
Dagospia published the document in its entirety, that is, the report read by Mellino at that meeting to the dicastery leaders “with laughter and unflattering comments” and then sent to the cardinals around the world who will be gathering at the Vatican in a few days will. Msgr. Mellino prepared them, recte warned them that no interventions or questions from the cardinals were planned.
Those who thought - and this is of course primarily true of the cardinals themselves directly concerned - that the Consistory would be an opportunity to ask Francis for clarifications on, or even to comment on, the curial reform that came into force on June 5th, will have to postpone these expectations. The College of Cardinals is the Senate of the Church and is intended to advise the Pope. But apparently the expectations of the current governing pontiff, who says "think about it" but means silence, are "too high".
According to Dagospia, the text has already drawn criticism from some members of the College of Cardinals, who consider it an idiosyncratic "potpourri of reflections" by Paul VI, John Paul II and Francis. The missing mention of Benedict XVI. is no coincidence.
On Sunday, between the extraordinary consistory on Saturday and the ordinary one beginning on Monday, Pope Francis will pay a pastoral visit to L'Aquila, the old imperial city of Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, which was almost leveled by a severe earthquake in 2009. A visit to the tomb of Celestine V, the only pope in church history who voluntarily resigned before 2013, is also planned.
In 1294 Celestine, who until then had lived as a hermit in the mountains, resigned after just a few months. It was only on this condition that he had consented to his election, after the cardinals had been unable to elect a new pope for two years since the death of his predecessor. The two major factions, Guelfi and Ghibellini, who divided Italy, also balanced each other out in the Church senate. Some were close to the Guelphs and were considered the "papal party", the other to the Waiblingen, meaning the Staufers, i.e. the "imperial party". However, Celestine, now Pietro da Morrone again, was not allowed to return to his hermit life, but was held in honorable custody by his successor - honored, but in prison.
Pope Benedict XVI visited Celestine's grave in 2009. Francis' visit to the tomb sparked speculation and led to the "mistaken reading" that Bergoglian Vaticanists tirelessly assert that Francis also intends to resign and announce his abdication at the forthcoming consistory.
It remains to be seen how many of the Church's 206 cardinals will be present in Rome in the coming days to be mere extras, now that they know what role they are destined to play. In addition, neither the WHO nor the Vatican, where particularly radical and disproportionate Corona measures were taken, officially declared the “pandemic” to be over, which is why there is a harmless excuse not to make the trip to Rome in the first place.
Text: Giuseppe Nardi
Image : Vatican.va (screenshot)
Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com
AMDG
Friday, August 26, 2022
Blame Trump!
Thursday, August 25, 2022
EF book recommendation for August.
House of Saint Peter Found Beneath Byzantine Basilica
Edit: the Catholic snooze agency finally reported something good!
The site is a tribute of the ravening Mohamedan, who probably burned the church down and built a horse barn over it.
Could this be a sign of divine favor, or a warning?
[CNA]A team of archaeologists uncovered evidence this month that may be the “smoking gun” confirming the location of the house of St. Peter.
While excavating a fifth-sixth century Byzantine basilica at the el Araj archaeological site located on the shores of the Sea of Galilee in Israel, the team discovered a large Greek mosaic that seems to bolster the theory that the church was built over the home of Ss. Peter and Andrew.
Steven Notley, who leads the dig at what is being called “The Church of the Apostles,” is a professor of the New Testament and Christian Origins at Nyack University. He told CNA in a phone interview that the basilica’s mosaic is the “most definitive archaeological connection [we have] with [St.] Peter.”
The mosaic is inscribed with a petition that asks for the intercession of St. Peter, who is referred to as “the chief and commander of the heavenly apostles.”
AMDG