For tomorow, Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus: public recitation of Iesu dulcissime (Act of Reparation) - Ench. Indulg., al. conc., 3.
Plenary indulgence reminder
For tomorow, Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus: public recitation of Iesu dulcissime (Act of Reparation) - Ench. Indulg., al. conc., 3.
L'Académie française contre le modernisme
From the website of the French Academy:
Use of accents on capital letters
It can only be deplored that the use of accents on capital letters is inconstant. A certain trend tending to the ommission of accents is observed in manuscript texts. Some often suppress, in typography, all accents on capital letters under the pretext of modernism, but in fact to reduce the costs of composition.
It is appropriate to observe, however, that, in French, the accent has full orthographic value [sic]. Its absence slows down reading, provokes hesitation in pronunciation, and can even lead to error. The same applies to the trema and to the cédille.
In good typography, care should be taken for the systematic use of accented capital letters, including the preposition À, as all good dictionaries clearly do, beginning with the Dictionary of the French Academy, or the grammars, as Le Bon Usage, by Grevisse, and also the National Printing Press [l’Imprimerie nationale], the Bibliothèque de la Pléiade, etc. As for manuscript or typed texts, it is evident that their authors, out of concern for clarity and correction, should have all interest in equally following this rule.
So, then: Ecône or Écône?
A ''Roman-phile sermon"?
That is the way some characterize the lengthy sermon delivered yesterday by Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX / SSPX), in the Écône ordinations (audio in French provided by DICI) - we would not completely disagree with this. When we heard it yesterday, after a first half marked by the usual contrasts between traditional doctrine and the "Spirit of 1789", its second half, in particular, seemed to be dominated by a need to justify dealings with Rome. "We are Catholic, Apostolic - and Roman," he emphasized, in the turning point of the sermon, adding that the crisis must be solved by Rome, and adding that "caritas Christi urget nos" (Christ's charity impels us) to deal with those in Rome.
Now, our caveat would be that nothing of this is truly new: that the notion that the crisis must be resolved from the visible top of the Church is one that is quite traditional and that, it seems, the Fraternity has always defended (at some times, more clearly, at others, admittedly, much less). We are still, nonetheless, still very much impressed by the words delivered by the Superior General of the Fraternity, Bp. B. Fellay, in Minnesota (already linked twice here), and that, in a way, are complemented by the words delivered in the Valais yesterday: "I can guarantee you, my dear brethren, that if and when Rome finally corrects this canonical situation, the fight will start. It will not be the end!"
Let us pray.
Let us pray.
The Priest, called to be a Friend of Christ
"Non iam dicam servos, sed amicos" - "I no longer call you servants, but friends" (cf. Jn 15:15).
Sixty years on from the day of my priestly ordination, I hear once again deep within me these words of Jesus that were addressed to us new priests at the end of the ordination ceremony by the Archbishop, Cardinal Faulhaber, in his slightly frail yet firm voice. According to the liturgical practice of that time, these words conferred on the newly-ordained priests the authority to forgive sins. "No longer servants, but friends": at that moment I knew deep down that these words were no mere formality, nor were they simply a quotation from Scripture. I knew that, at that moment, the Lord himself was speaking to me in a very personal way. In baptism and confirmation he had already drawn us close to him, he had already received us into God’s family. But what was taking place now was something greater still. He calls me his friend. He welcomes me into the circle of those he had spoken to in the Upper Room, into the circle of those whom he knows in a very special way, and who thereby come to know him in a very special way. He grants me the almost frightening faculty to do what only he, the Son of God, can legitimately say and do: I forgive you your sins. He wants me – with his authority – to be able to speak, in his name ("I" forgive), words that are not merely words, but an action, changing something at the deepest level of being. I know that behind these words lies his suffering for us and on account of us. I know that forgiveness comes at a price: in his Passion he went deep down into the sordid darkness of our sins. He went down into the night of our guilt, for only thus can it be transformed. And by giving me authority to forgive sins, he lets me look down into the abyss of man, into the immensity of his suffering for us men, and this enables me to sense the immensity of his love. He confides in me: "No longer servants, but friends". He entrusts to me the words of consecration in the Eucharist. He trusts me to proclaim his word, to explain it aright and to bring it to the people of today. He entrusts himself to me. "You are no longer servants, but friends": these words bring great inner joy, but at the same time, they are so awe-inspiring that one can feel daunted as the decades go by amid so many experiences of one’s own frailty and his inexhaustible goodness.
"No longer servants, but friends": this saying contains within itself the entire programme of a priestly life. What is friendship? Idem velle, idem nolle – wanting the same things, rejecting the same things: this was how it was expressed in antiquity. Friendship is a communion of thinking and willing. The Lord says the same thing to us most insistently: "I know my own and my own know me" (Jn 10:14). The Shepherd calls his own by name (cf. Jn 10:3). He knows me by name. I am not just some nameless being in the infinity of the universe. He knows me personally. Do I know him? The friendship that he bestows upon me can only mean that I too try to know him better; that in the Scriptures, in the Sacraments, in prayer, in the communion of saints, in the people who come to me, sent by him, I try to come to know the Lord himself more and more. Friendship is not just about knowing someone, it is above all a communion of the will. It means that my will grows into ever greater conformity with his will. For his will is not something external and foreign to me, something to which I more or less willingly submit or else refuse to submit. No, in friendship, my will grows together with his will, and his will becomes mine: this is how I become truly myself. Over and above communion of thinking and willing, the Lord mentions a third, new element: he gives his life for us (cf. Jn 15:13; 10:15). Lord, help me to come to know you more and more. Help me to be ever more at one with your will. Help me to live my life not for myself, but in union with you to live it for others. Help me to become ever more your friend....
Sixty years of priestly ministry – dear friends, perhaps I have spoken for too long about this. But I felt prompted at this moment to look back upon the things that have left their mark on the last six decades. I felt prompted to address to you, to all priests and bishops and to the faithful of the Church, a word of hope and encouragement; a word that has matured in long experience of how good the Lord is. Above all, though, it is a time of thanksgiving: thanks to the Lord for the friendship that he has bestowed upon me and that he wishes to bestow upon us all. Thanks to the people who have formed and accompanied me. And all this includes the prayer that the Lord will one day welcome us in his goodness and invite us to contemplate his joy. Amen.
Benedict XVI
June 29, 2011
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Congratulations to all new Priests ordained today and during this month throughout the world!
Félicitations à tous les nouveaux prêtres ordonnés aujourd'hui et dans ce mois partout dans le monde!
Kingdoms and empires have passed away - the Rock of Peter stands
William Byrd
Tu es Petrus (Grad., Missa in Festo SS. Ap. Petri et Pauli)
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Kingdoms and empires have passed away; peoples once renowned for their history and civilization have disappeared; time and again the nations, as though overwhelmed by the weight of years, have fallen asunder; while the Church, indefectible in her essence, united by ties indissoluble with her heavenly Spouse, is here today radiant with eternal youth, strong with the same primitive vigor with which she came from the Heart of Christ dead upon the Cross. Men powerful in the world have risen up against her. They have disappeared, and she remains. Philosophical systems without number, of every form and every kind, rose up against her, arrogantly vaunting themselves her masters, as though they had at last destroyed the doctrine of the Church, refuted the dogmas of her faith, proved the absurdity of her teachings. But those systems, one after another, have passed into books of history, forgotten, bankrupt; while from the Rock of Peter the light of truth shines forth as brilliantly as on the day when Jesus first kindled it on His appearance in the world, and fed it with His Divine words: "Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass" (Matth. xxiv. 35).
We, strengthened by this faith, firmly established on this rock, realizing to the full all the heavy duties that the Primacy imposes on Us - but also all the vigor that comes to Us from the Divine Will - calmly wait until all the voices be scattered to the winds that now shout around Us proclaiming that the Church has gone beyond her time, that her doctrines are passed away for ever, that the day is at hand when she will be condemned either to accept the tenets of a godless science and civilization or to disappear from human society. Yet at the same time We cannot but remind all, great and small, as Pope St. Gregory did, of the absolute necessity of having recourse to this Church in order to have eternal salvation, to follow the right road of reason, to feed on the truth, to obtain peace and even happiness in this life.
Pope Saint Pius X
News.va
News.va, the integrated news portal of the Holy See, has just been launched, in time for I Vespers of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul.
It looks interesting - one problem with it, though, is that, when nonsensical or erroneous things are published in it, it will be hard to deny that "The Vatican said it" (the comparative slowness of the Vatican news sources had so far minimized this risk). Perhaps that is why this took so long...
Scola back home
Over half the Popes in the past 100 years - Saint Sarto, Blessed Roncalli, Luciani (Venice); Ratti, Montini (Milan) - occupied one of both major Italian Sees in which Scola has served or is about to serve.
His latest interview, to The Universe (posted today at his personal website), is not very promising, unfortunately - nothing disturbing, it just seems to perpetuate the platitudes of the past five decades. May he be a good Pastor to his Ambrosian faithful, and generous and kind to those dedicated to the Traditional Rites of the Latin Church, as he was in Venice.
Will this show go on?
The closing Mass on March 20, 2011 of the LA Religious Education Congress for this year, with Archbishop Jose Gomez as main celebrant.
Will there be changes (for the better) next year?
(See also RC's post on last year's RE Congress closing liturgy.)
60 Masses for the 60th anniversary of the Pope's priestly ordination
A great initiative of the organizers of the Pentecost Paris-Chartres pilgrimage (Notre-Dame de Chrétienté):
Notre Dame de Chrétienté has decided to ask for the celebration of 60 Masses for the intentions of the Holy Father. These Masses will be celebrated in the Extraordinary Form and will be entrusted to the friendly communities and priests who accompany us in our Pilgrimage....On Wednesday, June 29, we invite all our pilgrim friends to pray for the Pope, making an effort to go to Mass (or, at least, to [spiritually] join its intentions), by reciting the regular prayer for the Supreme Pontiff. [For the prayer, just click on the Pope's permanent image in the sidebar.]
The Holy See has a special website for this priestly jubilee.
Our new discreet search engine is right here
It is the very first item in our sidebar, and you can now easily search all our past posts.
Corpus Christi with the Redemptoristine Nuns
Lovely pictures, posted by the Papa Stronsay blog of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, of the Corpus Christi Mass and procession held in the only currently-existing Redemptoristine Monastery with nuns solely dedicated to the Traditional Mass, under the authority of the Personal Apostolic Administration of Saint John Mary Vianney, Brazil (the monastery is located at São Fidélis, near Campos).
The Redemptoristine nuns take a fourth vow. It is the vow of Enclosure. Their enclosure is such that on every day of the year, except today, they do not easily or clearly see Our Lord because of their enclosing lattice; the plate pierced with small holes. Enclosed souls feel this deprivation keenly. They offer this austerity as a sacrifice to obtain the conversion of sinners and the salvation of the most abandoned souls.
This is how these nuns view the Holy Sacrifice:
The Sons explain:
The celebrating priest is Father Everaldo Bon Robert, of the Apostolic Administration.
Note: a happy Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Succor to all Sons and Daughters of St. A.M.Liguori!
The Sons explain:
This is a typical Redemptoristine view of Mass. The nuns have a strict grill which St. Alphonsus gave them consisting in a plate that is pierced with holes. The nuns may draw near the grill and peep through. This photo is somewhat blurred at the edge of a hole in the lattice.
The celebrating priest is Father Everaldo Bon Robert, of the Apostolic Administration.
Note: a happy Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Succor to all Sons and Daughters of St. A.M.Liguori!
The mediocre leader of the most mediocre episcopate in Europe:
"No fundamental obstacle" to the ordination of women
We first saw this on this blog, and it was also reported by Andrea Tornielli: the Patriarch of Lisbon, Cardinal Policarpo, in an interview to the monthly of the Portuguese Bar Association, said the following:
[Q.:] Women cannot hold positions of responsibility in the Catholic Church. What is your opinion?
[A.:] Your affirmation is not accurate, look, since St. Paul... [sic] The problem that was recently considered is the one of ministerial priesthood. Other than that, there have been periods in which women were absolutely decisive; it suffices to think of the role of monasteries, where they had great responsibilities. The problem that was put was highlighted by the fact that non-Catholic churches ordained women to the ministerial priesthood, which created, let us say so, controversy. The position of the Catholic Church is very much based in the Gospel, it does not have the autonomy that, for instance, a political party or government in general has. It has its fidelity to the Gospel, to the person of Jesus and to a very strong tradition that we received from the Apostles. And already at the time of Jesus there was a very beautiful complementarity between the role of women and the role of men. It was not by fortune that Jesus chose men to be apostles and gave women another kind of attention... [sic] I believe this is a false problem. Once I was here in the Diocese and, when we had a discussion, there was a young women who asked the question: why can't women be priests? And I decided to risk it. I said: you are right, but, in order that others study this matter, it is necessary to know if there are candidates...[sic] which one of you would like to follow it? All kept their heads down. I have met and I know women in [positions of] responsibility in the church who do not want the ministerial priesthood. Once, in the context of an international meeting on the new evangelization, in Vienna, this question was posed, and I said that there is not, at this moment, any Pope who has the power to do that. This would create tensions, and it will happen only when God wants it to happen and, if it is in His plans, it will happen. Once, I asked a [note: probably Lutheran] priest in Denmark, and he was very curious, and told me that in the area of charity, all women are there, with all their tenderness and dedication; regarding the Sunday mass, it got empty as soon as women began presiding. I do not know why. The Holy Father John Paul II, at one point, seemed to settle the matter. I believe that the matter is not settled like this; theologically, there is no fundamental obstacle; there is this tradition, let us say it this way... [sic] it was never different. [Added emphasis]
[Q.:] From a theological point of view, there are no obstacles... [sic]
[A.:] I believe that there are no fundamental obstacles. It is a fundamental equality of all members of the Church. [Added emphasis.] The problem is on another level, in a strong tradition, which comes from Jesus, and in the ease with which the reformed churches went that way. This did not make the solution of the problem any easier, if this problem has a solution. It is certainly not for our lifetime, today, then, in the moment in which we are living, it is one of those problems which it is better not even to raise... [sic] it provokes a chain of reactions.
These are the fruits of the government of Cardinal-Patriarch Policarpo (Paul VI, Class of '78; John Paul II, Consistory of 2001), leader of the Portuguese Church for the past 13 years: legalization of abortion on demand and establishment of same-sex "marriage" as the Church pretended to do something about both as it actually did nothing, collapse of religious attendance, as well as preserving the proud position of Lisbon as the only - let us repeat: the only - Western European capital without a regular diocesan Traditional Mass.
Desiderium collium aeternorum:
this is man's greatness, but also his difficulty
Heart of Jesus, of whose fullness we have all received, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, patient and rich in mercy, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, rich to all who invoke Thee, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, fount of life and holiness, have mercy on us.
(From the Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus)
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Today I would like to recall the famous episode in which as the Lord was setting out, someone — a rich young man — ran up and kneeling before him asked this question: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mk 10:17).
Perhaps today we would not express ourselves this way, but the meaning of the question is exactly the same: what should I do, how should I live in order to live truly, to find life. We can therefore see in this question the broad and varied human experience that leads to the search for meaning, for the profound sense of life: how to live and why to live. Indeed, the “eternal life” to which the young man of the Gospel referred not only means life after death, he did not only want to know how to reach Heaven. He wanted to know: how must I live now in order to already obtain the life that can then also be eternal. Therefore, in this question the young man expresses his need to find meaning, fullness and truth in daily life. A person cannot live without this search for the truth about himself — who am I, what am I living for — a truth that is an incentive to widen his horizon and to go beyond material things, not in order to flee from reality but to live it in an even truer way that is richer in meaning and hope, and not merely superficial.
... The important questions we bear within us remain, they always resurface. Who are we? Where do we come from? Who do we live for? These questions are the highest sign of the transcendence of the human being and of our innate capacity not to stop at appearances. And it is precisely by looking at ourselves with truth, sincerity and courage that we understand the beauty, and also the precariousness of life and feel a dissatisfaction, a restlessness, that nothing material can assuage. In the end all promises often prove inadequate.
Correcting misreports
The Holy See-SSPX doctrinal discussions are already very complicated in themselves - there is no further need to distort anything. Several news sources, for example, have stated that the Superior General of the SSPX, Bishop B. Fellay, characterized "the Church" as "filled with heresies" in his sermon for the ordinations of the United States district (for an Italian example, see this).
What Fellay actually did say, however, was that this was something mentioned in the Vatican halls by Vatican officials, which he repeated:
[Merci à Ennemond.]We will continue to say that there is a crisis in the church. Sometimes it’s really frustrating because in Rome they give the impression that everything is fine, and the next day we talk to them it’s not. These are the words from the Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: “But you know, it’s the priests, it’s the bishops, it’s the Catholic universities: they are full of heresies!” That’s what the the Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith told us in June 2009!
Timely!
Congratulations to the bishops of New York State for releasing a collective letter against the approval of "same-sex marriage" after its actual approval by the legislature and at about the same time the self-declared Catholic governor was proudly signing it into law.
Yes, it is said that the Metropolitan Archbishop fought against it - but one wonders if these things would move forward if Bishops acted towards Catholic politicians with at least half the vehemence with which Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II acted towards Archbishop M. Lefebvre - or with the same "love" which some of them still dedicate to Traditional-minded Catholics in their respective dioceses... Or will priests and bishops in New York be any less inclined to fawn over Catholic Assembly Members and Senators who voted for this abomination, and the Governor who signed it, when they meet and greet them, in parish halls, cocktail parties, and dinners? Will priests and lay faithful who publicly celebrate this abomination be punished or warned? And so continues this disconnect between what the Church says and how her representatives act, as if what they said had no influence on how they behave: to those on the outside, it all looks like a farcical act.
Yes, it is said that the Metropolitan Archbishop fought against it - but one wonders if these things would move forward if Bishops acted towards Catholic politicians with at least half the vehemence with which Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II acted towards Archbishop M. Lefebvre - or with the same "love" which some of them still dedicate to Traditional-minded Catholics in their respective dioceses... Or will priests and bishops in New York be any less inclined to fawn over Catholic Assembly Members and Senators who voted for this abomination, and the Governor who signed it, when they meet and greet them, in parish halls, cocktail parties, and dinners? Will priests and lay faithful who publicly celebrate this abomination be punished or warned? And so continues this disconnect between what the Church says and how her representatives act, as if what they said had no influence on how they behave: to those on the outside, it all looks like a farcical act.
Cardinal Ranjith's reforms in his archdiocese, and more from Adoratio 2011
Fr. Simon Henry of Offerimus Tibi was present at the Adoratio 2011 conference in Rome and wrote three posts on the conference as it unfolded:
Pope Benedict's intention - BEYOND INDULTS AND PERMISSIONS - that kneeling for Communion remains universal (This post says of Mauro Cardinal Piacenza that at a concelebrated Mass during the conference at which he was the main celebrant, "at the canon of the Mass he dropped his voice considerably (even though microphones were used) and so the canon was not actually silent but sotto voce.")
The final post reports, among other things, the statements of Cardinal Ranjith during the conference:
In his address to the Conference he spoke of the lack of faith in many parts of the Church itself, a lack of faith in the objective presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist.
Ecce ego, quia vocasti me
Loquere, Domine, quia audit servus tuus ['Speak Lord, for thy servant heareth.'] I am Thy servant; O give me understanding that I may know Thy testimonies. Incline my heart unto the words of Thy mouth. Let thy speech distil as the dew. The children of Israel spake in old time to Moses, "Speak thou unto us and we will hear, but let not the Lord speak unto us lest we die". Not thus, O Lord, not thus do I pray, but rather with Samuel the prophet, I beseech Thee humbly and earnestly, Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth. Let not Moses speak to me, nor any prophet, but rather speak Thou, O Lord, who didst inspire and illuminate all the prophets; for Thou alone without them canst perfectly fill me with knowledge, whilst they without Thee shall profit nothing.
Priestly ordinations from France for 2011
Perepiscopus reports that for this year (see this, this, and this) at least 113 new diocesan priests are expected to be ordained for France -- 107 for the dioceses in France and 6 for the Paris Foreign Mission Society. Two of the posts on Perepiscopus and elsewhere mention 109 new diocesan priests, but this number apparently includes one nonexistent "ordinand" (for Chartres) and excludes five ordinands -- two for Ajaccio and three for Nice.
The number for the dioceses in France includes
The number for the dioceses in France includes
Rorate Caeli Purgatorial Society (thirty-eighth posting of souls)
Below, please find the thirty-eighth posting of enrolled souls of the Rorate Caeli Purgatorial Society.
How to enroll souls:
A Vatican II Moment
Shameless: El Dominico Fabuloso - The Fabulous Dominican
Every day human interdependence grows more tightly drawn and spreads by degrees over the whole world. As a result the common good, that is, the sum of those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members relatively thorough and ready access to their own fulfillment, today takes on an increasingly universal complexion and consequently involves rights and duties with respect to the whole human race. Every social group must take account of the needs and legitimate aspirations of other groups, and even of the general welfare of the entire human family.
Gaudium et Spes, 26
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This comes to us from the fine northern Mexican city of Saltillo, Coahuila (CNA; image: Vanguardia):
Saltillo, Mexico, Jun 23, 2011 / 05:48 pm (CNA).- The San Elredo Community, which is backed by Bishop Raul Vera of Saltillo, Mexico, plans to request that civil unions between same-sex couples from now on be referred to as “marriage."
Pope to proclaim 2012 "Year of the Faith"?
According to French-language Rome-based news agency I.Media, Pope Benedict XVI will probably declare 2012 a special year, the "Year of the Faith" - including, perhaps, an encyclical letter. The year would also celebrate the 20th anniversary of the publication of the first edition of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCE), whose typical Latin edition was released in 1997. The Holy See has not commented on the report. [Source: La Croix; tip: Le Forum Catholique.]
How has that been working out?
Certainly many exterior elements, recommended by founders of orders or religious congregations are seen today to be outmoded. Various encumbrances or rigid forms accumulated over the centuries need to be curtailed. Adaptations must be made. New forms can even be sought and instituted with the approval of the Church. For some years now the greater part of religious institutes have been generously dedicating themselves to the attainment of this goal, experimenting—sometimes too hardily—with new types of constitutions and rules. We know well and We are following with attention this effort at renewal which was desired by the Council.
In 1971, Pope Paul VI already knew of the high flames that the Council had ignited - in religious life perhaps more strongly than elsewhere. Exactly one year after this exhortation, he would pronounce his famous words, that it seemed that "through some opening, the smoke of Satan had entered the temple of God". And yet, he persisted in the renewal... Maybe the Council would have been a good wine after all - but the Lord never said that the old bottles should be thrown away: "no man putteth new wine into old bottles: otherwise the wine will burst the bottles, and both the wine will be spilled, and the bottles will be lost"...
[Image source: La Cigüeña, as part of a series on the declining number of women religious.]
Juventutem going to Rio in 2013
The city of Rio de Janeiro is located just 170 miles southwest of Campos (also in the state of Rio de Janeiro), where the only currently-existing Personal Apostolic Administration dedicated to the Traditional Roman Rite is located.
You report: Traditional Mass returns to Sudbury, Ontario
Good Catholics in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, now have a regular Traditional Latin Mass (except in Winter months). About 40 people were in attendance at this first Mass. The priest celebrant is Fr. Neil Campbell of the Peterborough Diocese. Let's all pray for these Catholic that, even when it's cold, they can find the Traditional Mass.
And please remember to follow @RorateCaeli on Twitter.
The Lord, who makes peace within the borders of the Church
Qui pacem ponit fines Ecclesiae, frumenti adipe satiat nos Dominus: the Lord, who establishes peace within the borders of the Church, satisfies us with the finest of Wheat.
May this Antiphon of Vespers for the Feast of Corpus Christi inspire all our readers to pray for peace and unity in the Church - the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman Church (cf. Mystici Corporis Christi, 13).
A very happy Feast of Corpus Christi to all our readers: please send us your images, videos, and reports from your Traditional celebrations of the Most Holy Body of Christ anywhere in the world.
[And, from Te Igitur, images of Corpus Christi in destroyed Warsaw (1946), led by Card. Hlond.]
The Council and the Church's loss of relevance
Bishop Jozef De Kesel is no stranger to our readers. Rorate Caeli blogged about what could be construed as a heretical statement that he made shortly after his installation as the Bishop of Bruges, Belgium. Last week, In Caelo translated some gloomy remarks on Vatican II and its aftermath (see below) that were attributed to him by the Dutch website Rorate. (You read that right.)
Emphases mine.
Emphases mine.
Ordinations for the Institute of Christ the King
Perepiscopus notes that for this year, the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest will have four new priests (three Frenchmen and one Italian), who will be ordained by H.E. Raymond Cardinal Burke, who is singularly close to the Institute. (In comparison, the ICRSS had three new priests in 2010 and five in 2009.)
An appeal for financial assistance for the ICRSS seminary that has been published in the name of the four ordinands notes that the Institute now has 80 seminarians, up from around 30 when the ordinands first entered the Gricigliano seminary (presumably during the time before Summorum Pontificum). It also reports that a total 15 seminarians will receive major orders this year. (I believe that this refers to the total number of ICRSS members who will be ordained to the subdiaconate, diaconate and priesthood. However, no break-down of that number is given.)
A previously unpublished talk by Paul VI on St. Thomas Aquinas
The website of L'Osservatore Romano recently posted a "previously unpublished" talk that Pope Paul VI gave during his visit to Aquino, Italy on September 14, 1974. (On that same day, Paul VI also delivered an allocution on St. Thomas Aquinas in the Basilica of Fossanova, which can be found in pp. 539 - 541 of the Acta Apostolicae Sedis for 1974.)
Posted below is the section of that talk dealing with the honor due to St. Thomas Aquinas and his teaching. Emphases mine.
Posted below is the section of that talk dealing with the honor due to St. Thomas Aquinas and his teaching. Emphases mine.
To you, the inhabitants of Aquino, what shall we say? It is certainly unnecessary to urge you to be always happy and proud to be the descendants and fellow-citizens of such a great man, a Saint, a Doctor of the Church, who expounded her doctrine as no one else, perhaps, has succeeded in doing in her history. A great glory for you, a great fortune! Let us hope, nay more let us urge you to be worthy of it!
Varia from the Netherlands
1). A little more than two months ago, various websites reported (and praised) the introduction of a monthly Mass according to the 1962 Missal in the St. Joseph Cathedral of the Diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden in the Netherlands. (NLM's report -- with videos -- can be found here, while Paix Liturgique mentions it here.) The first Mass was attended by around 80 people -- not an inconsiderable number, especially for the Netherlands.
After only two monthly celebrations (one each for April and May), the blog In Caelo reports that the Mass has been discontinued:
After only two monthly celebrations (one each for April and May), the blog In Caelo reports that the Mass has been discontinued:
At Catholica, editor Tom Zwitser shares some discouraging news. After two Masses, the celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Latin rite of the Mass at the cathedral of St. Joseph is to be discontinued immediately. Sad news, and the reasons for this decision not only highlight the lack of communication (which I, in a different context, have also experienced) within the parish and the Diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden, but also the contradictory position with the world Church taken by the diocese...***
But what is now happening in Groningen? After two EF Masses in April and May (announced as to take place on every first Sunday of the month, celebrated out of necessity by priests from outside the diocese, initially until summer, but with the implied possibility that they may continue after that if an average of 30 faithful would be attending at that point), a decision was made to limit the number of Masses to four per year. This, as Mr. Zwitser quotes, “not to encourage a division of spirits within the parish”. It must be said, at this point, that finding qualified priests, acolytes and volunteers willing to organise and celebrate these Masses is difficult in this diocese, with such a small number of clergy and faithful to begin with. This difficulty, coupled with, in his words, the lack of cooperation he received, led Mr. Zwitser to decide not to continue as the lone mandated organiser.
Maybe the diocese will continue offering EF Masses, but this first attempt can be considered a failure. It’s quite sad that there seems to be such opposition to the older form of the Mass, especially when Rome has been quite clear in this respect...
2) In Caelo also reports that for this year, the Catholic Church in the Netherlands (six dioceses and one archdiocese) expect to have a total of 6 new priests, down from 13 in 2010. Of the six, three come from the Diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden, which has the smallest number of Catholics among the Dutch dioceses. The Archdiocese of Utrecht and the dioceses of Haarlem-Amsterdam and Roermond each have one new priest for this year. Nine transitional deacons all in all are also set to be ordained this year -- four for Roermond, three for Haarlem-Amsterdam, and two for ‘s Hertogenbosch. Hopefully all nine will be ordained priests next year.
Paulinus: one of the last Romans
The life story of Saint Paulinus of Nola would be breathtaking even had he never been considered a saint. He was everything a man could be at that age: husband and father (of an only son, who died in infancy), civil servant and governor, a classicist and a fiery convert, a monk, a priest, and a bishop - a Roman (born in Gaul, governing and serving in Italy, having lived many great years in Spain) and a Catholic above all, as the empire in the West was about to collapse. We, who live in an era at once similar (as epochal changes seem to indicate that, for the first time in 600 years, Europe or nations of European heritage are losing the grasp of world leadership) and quite different (the liberated, confident, and supremely influential post-Constantine Church and our own explicitly anti-"triumphalist", visibly decadent, and seemingly irrelevant Vatican II Church) from Paulinus's own days can certainly learn from his example: faith, patience, love, perseverance, and humility - as this extract of one of his famous letters to Saint Augustine shows:
For I am even now a sinner labouring under great honour, a veteran in the number of sinners; but to the Eternal King a novice of warfare in the flesh. Hitherto, miserable man that I am, I have admired the wisdom of the world, and its reprobate prudence as made known by its useless literature. But to God I have been foolish and dumb. After I have grown old amongst His enemies, and have faded away in my thoughts, I have raised my eyes to the mountains, to the precepts of the law, and receiving the gift of grace from whence help came unto me from the Lord; who not rewarding me according to my iniquities, illuminated me, blind as I was; released me, bound as I was; and humbled me who was sinfully upright, in order that He might raise me when piously humble.
You report: Confirmations in Dayton; Mass in Kenosha.
1. More Traditional Confirmations: Pictures of the Sacrament of Confirmation according to the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, administered to 16 confirmandi by Cincinnati Archbishop Emeritus Daniel Pilarczyk on Trinity Sunday (19 June 2011) at Holy Family Church, Dayton, Ohio, the home parish of His Excellency's childhood.
2. Those who attended the Mass announced here in Kenosha, Wisconsin, send us the following report:
Gonzaga: Purity and love for the Word
The Jesuits had several houses in Madrid. It was in one of these that Aloysius found the guide of his soul. He chose for his confessor Padre Fernando Paterno, a Sicilian, and, under his direction, communicated frequently, and made fresh progress in evangelical perfection. What his life was, even in the midst of the daily distractions and disadvantages which his presence at the court entailed upon him, may be gathered from the testimony of this very father, given after the saint's death, to his purity of conscience. Not only, he averred, had Aloysius never committed a mortal sin, having ever abhorred the very thought of it, but many and many a time the padre could not in his confessions discover sufficient matter for absolution.
Analysis: Holy See and SSPX
The ball is in whose court? - 5 years later
UPDATED
It is almost unbelievable that it has been over five years since we wrote this (The ball is in whose court?, Feb. 15, 2006) - yet, while the situation has improved tremendously since then (from the motu proprio to the lifting of excommunications, and to the doctrinal discussions), there are aspects discussed then that need to be considered. In 2006, we said:
So, there are two reasons why the "ball" is at this moment far from the FSSPX's "court". First, because while the conditions for dialogue are (apparently) close to their implementation, we will only know that for sure after the papal-curial meeting of late March and afterwards. Second, because, as far as Vatican II is concerned, the message of Benedict XVI, the message that the Council was no "rupture", that one does not have to "accept" Vatican II as something which changed the Faith, because the Conciliar "Fathers had no such mandate and no one had ever given them one" (Papal words), has to reach those huge portions of the Church completely drowned in the "Hermeneutics of Rupture".
At least the first part has to be implemented: in a few months we will know what, if anything concrete, was offered and then we may finally assert that the "ball is in their court".
Now, it is true that something like a canonical solution could eventually be on the table in 2011 - but that has always been true. Remember the One-Two-Three Strategy? If you do not, we will remind you, from April 2006:
The Superior for the District of France of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX/SSPX), Father Régis de Cacqueray [he is still District Superior in 2011], published a communiqué on the official website of the District ... .The most important passage of his communiqué is ... :
Whatever they [the websites] are interested in portraying [that is, that the Fraternity is dominated by a "cabal of conspirators" willing to "sell out"], the Fraternity of Saint Pius X remains faithful to a line [which has been] clearly expressed and regarding which it has not wavered:- [1] obtaining the two preconditions, which are the withdrawal of the decree of excommunications and the freedom of every priest to celebrate the Mass of Saint Pius V;
- [2] the resolution of doctrinal questions;
- [3] the search for the most adequate canonical solution.
So, then: that all seemed so distant in 2006! Yet, the first most difficult, almost unimaginable, preconditions were fulfilled; and the second one has taken place as a "first phase" and has not truly reached a stalemate (as many would have wished, and have wrongly reported), unless one wishes to argue about what exactly résolution (resolution) meant then.
What we do mean, and this is why we must emphasize these posts from 2006 (we have not been following this publicly just for the past few months), is that there is no need to be overly dramatic about the current situation: the "search for the most adequate canonical solution" may well involve dialogue - such things are not exactly found in the ether -, but there must be no doubt of who, what side, is in the position to actually propose, or confer (unilaterally), a concrete solution.
Now, we know, because the Superior General of the FSSPX himself declared so last week, that there is not a concrete standing offer at this moment. Therefore, it is not correct to say at this moment that the ball is on the Fraternity's side. When it actually is, we will know it.
Now, we know, because the Superior General of the FSSPX himself declared so last week, that there is not a concrete standing offer at this moment. Therefore, it is not correct to say at this moment that the ball is on the Fraternity's side. When it actually is, we will know it.
[UPDATE- 1800 GMT:] As a perfect complement to our post, French Rome-based religious news agency I.Media reported, in the Roman afternoon, that Roman authorities have declared to them that "it is too soon to say that the doctrinal discussions are a failure" and that a joint analysis of the discussions so far (what Bp. Fellay called the "first phase") will be made in September:
[S]ources close to the dossier affirm that it is too soon to say this [that the discussions have ended in failure] and announce an upcoming meeting between those in charge from both parties to evaluate these two years of work, a meeting that could take place in mid-September.
"The discussions are not formally over," an authorized source, close to the dossier, explained to I.MEDIA, adding that if the phase of disputatio is definitely over, it still demands an evaluation by both parties. In this sense, it is revealed in Rome, "it is too soon to say that it is a failure, as it is too soon to say that these discussions have succeeded." (Source)
More on the new SSPX seminary
During the toast after the June 17 ordinations in Winona, the Superior General of the SSPX "officially announced the launching of the new seminary in Virginia for lack of space at the present Winona facility to meet the demands of the expanding numbers knocking at the seminary’s door." For those curious about this future seminary, (which will be located on a 700-acre site near Charlottesville, VA) the website of the St. Thomas Aquinas seminary has an FAQ.
Traditional Confirmations in Rome and Boston
1) Orbis Catholicus Secundus has photos of the Rite of Confirmation and the Solemn Pontifical Mass celebrated yesterday (Trinity Sunday) by Bishop Athanasius Schneider in the parish of Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini in Rome.
2) Photographs of the Sacrament of Confirmation administered on June 4, 2011 by Cardinal O'Malley, Archbishop of Boston can now be viewed here. Gloria TV also has the following video of the ceremony:
For the record of events
Absolutely no consistent news or even solidly believable rumors on the matter: notions of a concrete and specific standing offer by the Holy See were denied by the Superior General of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X in his visit to his congregation's seminary in the United States, where the June Ordinations took place - specifically as a sidenote in his sermon. They have also been mostly denied by our sources.
Hoc enim Prophetae, hoc Apostoli tradiderunt, hoc ipse Dominus docuit
_______________________________________
(Athanasian Symbol - Prime, Office of the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity)
Whosoever willeth to be saved, *before all things it is necessary that he hold the Catholic faith.
Rorate Caeli Purgatorial Society (thirty-seventh posting of souls)
Below, please find the thirty-sixth posting of enrolled souls of the Rorate Caeli Purgatorial Society.
How to enroll souls: please email me at athanasiuscatholic@yahoo.com and submit as follows: "name, state, country." If you want to enroll entire families, simply write in the email: "The Jones family, Ohio, USA". Individual names are preferred. Be greedy -- send in as many as you wish and forward this posting to friends as well. PLEASE follow this format strictly, as any deviation creates a lot of extra work.
Please consider forwarding this Society to your family and friends, announcing from the pulpit during Holy Mass or listing in your church bulletin. We need to spread the word and relieve more suffering souls.
And please remember to follow @RorateCaeli on Twitter.
¡Viva Cristo Rey! ¡Viva el Santísimo Sacramento!
The Catholic Church back in the streets
For the first time since the Revolution, a mass - of Corpus - and a procession will be celebrated in the very center of the capital
The Catholic Church will regain the streets of Mexico City next Thursday ... . Coinciding with the festivity of Corpus [Christi], the Cardinal-Primate Norberto Rivera will celebrate a mass in Tlaxcoaque Square and head a procession to the capital Zócalo, the main public space of the country.
Congratulations to Catholic Mexicans who, for decades, sacrificed so much for it. Today, more than ever, Mexico, besieged by violence - and particularly its capital (with abortion on demand and the destruction of marriage) -, needs public prayers.
June: time for the "Vienna Western Mass"
UPDATE June 17, 2011: THE "WESTERN MASS" FOR THIS YEAR HAS BEEN CANCELLED! (Sources: Kreuz.net and www.stop-western-mass.com)
Originally posted on June 14, 2011 at 09:48 AM (GMT):
This seems like a lost cause - as everything related to the Cardinal of Vienna -, but, since we were sent it, we cannot deny our support:
Originally posted on June 14, 2011 at 09:48 AM (GMT):
This seems like a lost cause - as everything related to the Cardinal of Vienna -, but, since we were sent it, we cannot deny our support:
Please help us to defeat a sacrilegious Western Mass.This annual event will be celebrated on coming June 26th, by the rector of Vienna cathedral, Fr Anton Faber, for the fourth time.Most of the participants at this Mass are sitting at beer benches. While Fr Faber offers the sacrifice of Calvary, they are smoking, drinking and eating. From the beer benches they proceed to receive Holy Communion.This video shows you the Western Mass of last year: http://en.gloria.tv/?media=164417This year, Gloria.tv Austria has contacted the archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Cardinal Schönborn, through both, his spokesman and his secretary. We have urged the Cardinal to stop these liturgical abuses and to replace the Western Mass with a prayer service with no distribution of Holy Communion.Help us, to make this appeal known. Here the appeal’s website: www.stop-western-mass.com.Emails can be written directly to cardinal Schönborn: ebs@edw.or.at
Timeo Ambrosianos et dona ferentes
What a great gift Cardinal Ravasi, President of the Pontifical Council for Culture and born in the Archdiocese of Milan, is giving the Pope for the 60th anniversary of his priestly ordination (to be celebrated on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul): an exhibit of contemporary religious "art".
The exhibit is (not ironically) named "The splendor of truth, the beauty of charity" - and the beauty begins with the poster:
Perhaps this is a fusion-art of the Tiara and Keys and of the Skull and Crossbones. Is it subconscious art? It reminds us of the quip one prelate is said to have made to Pope Saint Pius X on the difference between a Cardinal and a Pope - the Pope being "a Cardinal who no longer longs for the death of the Pope".
The exhibit includes the works of some amazing artists (a collection of whose previous works was gathered, for illustrative purposes, by Francesco Colafemmina of Italian blog Fides et Forma - which we do not link here because some of the works gathered by him are scandalous and absolutely inappropriate for a great number of people). Just to make it clear: naturally, it is not the scandalous works that will be displayed, just the ugly ones. The artists include sculptor Oliviero Rainaldi (who is now famous because of his refrigerator-shaped statue of John Paul II near the Termini railway station in Rome, the Papa-Frigo) and Sidival Sila, author of the below-displayed "Cosmic Christ" (a Teilhardian art experience):
An Ordinary work of art! (We were about to call it extraordinary, but that word is now reserved only for truly good things.) Is this the Cardinal's revenge because he was not included in the terna for the succession of the Archbishop of Milan?
When we have examples of the assuredly beautiful works of art of the exhibit, we will post them here: stay tuned!
Time to restore the fullness of the Magisterium,
suspended after the Council
From the latest of the series of installments of Sandro Magister's Chiesa on the hermeneutics of renewal in continuity, rupture, and the concerns of Traditional Catholics - Dr. Enrico Maria Radaelli, disciple and guardian of the legacy of Romano Amerio, speaks:
A proposal for the fiftieth anniversary of Vatican IITHE SUPERNATURAL WAY TO RESTORE PEACE BETWEEN THE PRE- AND POST-COUNCILby Enrico Maria RadaelliThe discussion that is taking place on Sandro Magister's website between schools of different and opposed positions on recognizing continuity or discontinuity with Tradition in the ecumenical council Vatican II, in addition to referring to me directly right from its opening salvos, touches closely on some preliminary pages of my recent book "The beauty that saves us." [La bellezza che ci salva]By far the most significant feature of the book is the demonstrated identification of the "origins of beauty" with those four substantial qualities – true, one, good, beautiful – which Saint Thomas Aquinas says are the names of the Only-Begotten of God: an identification that should clarify once and for all the fundamental and no longer avoidable link that a concept has with its expression, meaning the language and the doctrine that uses it.It seems obligatory for me to step in and make some clarifications here for those who want to reconstruct that "City of beauty" which is the Church, and so return to the only road (this is the thesis of my book) that can lead us to eternal happiness, that can save us.I will complete my contribution with the suggestion of the request that deserves to be made to the Holy Father so that, recalling with Brunero Gherardini that the fiftieth anniversary of the Council will fall in 2015 (cf. "Divinitas," 2011, 2, p. 188), the whole Church may take advantage of that extraordinary event to restore the fullness of that "munus docendi," of that magisterium, suspended fifty years ago.
Can this end well?
Meanwhile, in vibrant next-door neighbor Turkey, newly-reelected Prime Minister Erdogan declares in his victory speech: "Believe me, Sarajevo won today as much as Istanbul".
Sarajevo?...
A flagello Turcorum, libera nos, Domine.
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