Help with some Spring cleaning please?

For those who are not already familiar with it, Wikkimissa is a brilliant French-based, user editable website administered by a certain Emmanuel which comprises what is undoubtedly the most comprehensive directory of traditional Masses worldwide. It is usable in six languages (including Latin) and is an indispensable tool for travelers who need to know where they can assist at Mass in various destinations.

In the six months since Summorum Pontificum has gone into effect, there have been new Mass sites appearing in the news almost weekly. It seems as though Masses are popping up at a faster rate than even tradition-oriented media can keep up with. I would like to make an appeal to readers at this time to familiarize themselves with Wikkimissa and to make any updates relevant to what is happening in their respective regions. Please bookmark the site and look in on it from time to time to make sure the information remains current. You will certainly also want to make the site available to those desiring to assist at a traditional Mass but may not know where to find one. There are undoubtedly scores of tradition minded people out there who would be happy to join us at Mass every Sunday if only they were aware that there was one within traveling distance from their homes. This is a low-burden opportunity to bring as many people to our Masses as possible. Let us hasten to avail ourselves of it.

Motu Proprio miracles: Notre-Dame de Paris

The Parish Priest of Saint-Eugène, one of the few Parishes in which the Traditional Mass is celebrated in the Archdiocese of Paris, announced today at the end of the Solemn Easter Mass that the Archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Vingt-Trois, has already decided to hold a Solemn Mass in the Ancient Use of the Roman Rite in one of the greatest buildings in Christendom, the Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris (Notre-Dame de Paris). The Mass will be celebrated in June, in a specific day to be defined soon.

This turn of events seemed very unlikely, if not impossible, one year ago, before the publication of the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum: thank you, o God, cuius antiqua miracula etiam nostris saeculis coruscare sentimus!

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Source: Le Forum Catholique (also, pictures from today's Mass in Saint-Eugène).

Oremus

The man who is now the most famous convert from Islam to the Church, Magdi Cristiano Allam, vice-director of one of the largest Italian dailies, Corriere della Sera, baptized during the Easter Vigil ceremonies by Pope Benedict XVI, sent today a wonderful personal letter to the Director of the newspaper (in Italian: permanent link; new: full translation by Father Finnegan).

The following paragraph is particularly touching:

Dear Director,

You have asked me if I do not fear for my life, in the mutual knowledge that conversion to Christianity will provide me with yet another [ennesima, lit. "umpteenth"], and much graver, condemnation to death for apostasy. You are absolutely correct. I know what awaits me, but I will face my fate with my head lifted up, with my spine upright, and with the interior solidity of one who is certain of his own faith. And I will do it even more after the historic and brave gesture of the Pope who, from the first moment in which he came to know my desire, immediately accepted to personally impart upon me the Sacraments of initiation to Christianity. His Holiness has sent an explicit and revolutionary message to a Church which, up to now, has been all too prudent on the conversion of Muslims, abstaining itself from making proselytism in countries with Islamic majorities, and silencing on the reality of converts in Christian nations. Out of fear. The fear of not being able to safeguard converts facing their condemnation to death for apostasy and the fear of retaliations facing Christians who live in Islamic nations. Therefore, today, Benedict XVI, with his testimony, tells us that it is necessary to vanquish fear and not to have any misgivings in affirming the truth of Jesus even before Muslims.

Let us pray for the Pope (Oremus pro Pontifice nostro Benedicto).

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Images: Reuters/Dario Pignatelli; Fotografia Felici.

EX ORIENTE LUX

Osanna, Sanctus Deus Sabaoth,
superillustrans claritate tua
felices ignes horum malacoth!

L'anima d'ogne bruto e delle piante
di complession potenziata tira
lo raggio e il moto delle luci sante;

ma vostra vita sanza mezzo spira
la Somma Beninanza, e la innamora
di sé sì che poi sempre la disira.

E quinci puoi argomentare ancora
vostra resurrezion, se tu ripensi
come l'umana carne fessi allora

che li primi parenti intrambo fensi.

Commedia, Paradiso (c. VII)

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Hosanna holy God of Sabaoth,/ abundantly illumining with thy brightness/ the blessed fires of these kingdoms ... The soul of every brute and of each plant,/ The ray and motion of the sacred lights,/ Draw from complexion with meet power endued./ But this our life the Eternal Good inspires/ Immediate, and enamours of itself;/ So that our wishes rest forever here./ And hence thou mayst by inference conclude/ Our resurrection certain, if thy mind/ Consider how the human flesh was framed,/ When both our parents at the first were made. (Transl. H.F.Cary) - ...Our regular Paschal feature...
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Homily of the Holy Father, Benedict XVI, for the Mass of Easter Vigil (Vatican Radio)

A "Charismatic" preacher

The use of a Roman chasuble by the Holy Father was a pleasant surprise in the Good Friday Liturgy - yet, unfortunately, not the only one. The homily pronounced by Father Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Pontifical Household, near the entrance to the Confessio of Saint Peter, the holiest part of the Vatican Basilica, was a deeply disturbing surprise. It seems many are confused in contemporary Rome with some Benedictine developments, and Cantalamessa's words were almost a cry for help from those who feel uncomfortable. Reflections on the Passion and Death of the Lord were very scarce in this peculiar sermon, which was an anachronistic panegyric to "Charismatic" movements and manifestations of "Spiritual Ecumenism":

For a century now, we have seen the same thing repeat itself before our eyes on a global scale. God has poured out the Holy Spirit in a new and unusual way upon millions of believers from every Christian denomination and, so that there would be no doubts about his intentions, he poured out the Spirit with the same manifestations.
...
Spiritual ecumenism is born through repentance and forgiveness and is nourished by prayer. In 1977, I participated in a charismatic ecumenical congress in the U.S., in Kansas City, Missouri. There were 40,000 participants, half of them Catholic -- Cardinal Suenens among them -- and half from other Christian denominations. One evening, one of the leaders of the meeting began speaking at the microphone in a way that, to me, at that time, was strange: "You priests and pastors, weep and mourn, because the body of my Son is broken. ... You laypeople, men and women, weep and mourn, because the body of my Son is broken."

I began to see people around me fall to their knees, one after another, and to weep with repentance for the divisions in the body of Christ. And all of this went on while a sign reading "Jesus is Lord" went up from one part of the stadium to the other. I was there as an observer who was still rather critical and detached, but I remember thinking to myself: If one day all believers shall be reunited in one single body, it will happen like this, when we all are on our knees with a contrite and humiliated heart, under the great lordship of Christ.

This only days after the harshest words pronounced by a Pope against the deviations of the "Charismatic" movement in forty years. It happened as Benedict addressed the Bishops of Guatemala in their "ad limina" visit:

God has blessed the Guatemalan People with deep religious feeling, rich in popular expressions, which must develop in solid Christian communities that joyfully celebrate their faith as living members of the Body of Christ (cf. I Cor 12: 27), faithful to the foundation of the Apostles. You know very well that firmness of faith and participation in the sacraments strengthen your faithful against the risk of the sects or of groups that claim to be charismatic but that create a sense of confusion and can endanger ecclesial communion.

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In the picture: Father Cantalamessa being "blessed" by Protestant ministers in an ecumenical gathering in Buenos Aires, Argentina (June 19, 2006).

90 years of Inter Sodalicia The Sorrowful Virgin Mary:"...Ipsam cum Christo humanum genus redemisse."

Papal power is not limited by the names traditionally used for documents or by the limited scope of those whom the Pontiff wishes to address. In fact, mighty words of Magisterial authority may arise in the most unexpected texts. This happened exactly 90 years ago, on March 22, 1918, when Pope Benedict XV issued "Inter sodalicia", a commemorative letter to an old Roman sodality, the Confraternity of Our Lady of Good Death - that is, the Addolorata, or Sorrowful Virgin. The praise of the Addolorata, appropriate for this Holy Saturday, as Christians remember the entombed Christ, brought forth from the papal hands a teaching reaching into the depths of Apostolic Tradition:

The fact that the Sorrowful Virgin is elected and invoked as the Patron of a good death wonderfully corresponds to Catholic doctrine and to the pious Tradition of the Church. (...)

Because the Doctors of the Church by common consent profess that, if the Most Blessed Virgin did not apparently have any participation in the public life of Jesus Christ, and then suddenly reappeared on the path to Calvary and under the Cross, she could not have been present without Divine design. For, as she suffered and almost died together with her suffering and dying Son, she gave up her rights as mother over this Son for the salvation of men and, to appease Divine justice, she, as much as it pertained to her [quantum ad se pertinebat], immolated Him, so that it can be said appropriately that she has, together with Christ, redeemed the human race [Ipsam cum Christo humanum genus redemisse].

But if for this reason, every kind of grace we receive from the treasury of the redemption is ministered as it were through the hands of the same Sorrowful Virgin, everyone can see that a holy death should be expected from her, since it is precisely by this gift that the work of the Redemption is effectively and permanently completed in each one. (...)

... further, there is a most constant belief among the faithful, proved by long experience, that as many as employ the same Virgin as Patron will not at all perish forever.

Don Guido Marini: Motu proprio favors unity and mutual enrichment of the uses

Main excerpts of the interview granted by the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, Monsignor Guido Marini, to Paolo Luigi Rodari, published today in Il Riformista (transcript):

"My very first reaction was one of great surprise and great fear. Afterwards, I lived with a certain trepidation the eve of the beginning of my service and, also, I greatly felt the separation from my diocese and from my city [Genoa], from my sister and from her family, from so many friendly people, from the sets in which I practiced my priesthood in particular ways: the [Archdiocesan] Curia, the Seminary, the Cathedral. At the same time, though, I remained much honored of having been called by the Holy Father to carry out the service of Master of Liturgical Celebrations. I immediately felt the opportunity which was granted to me of being beside the Holy Father as a true grace for my priesthood."

Monsignor Guido Marini, Genoese, 42, thus describes describes to Il Reformista his arrival at the Vatican last October to take the post of Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations. A nomination which allows him to work in close contact with Benedict XVI.

"I have found precise confirmation of what I felt at the beginning of this new task of mine - he says - every time I have had the grace of meeting the Holy Father. These meetings have been and are always motive of great joy and of great emotion for me. I have never thought that I, careful reader and admirer of cardinal Ratzinger, that I would one day have the pleasure of being close to him as I am now. And, besides, every time, along with the profound veneration which the figure of the Pope provokes in me, I live the experience of his serene, gentle, kind, and delicate human demeanor which fills my heart with joy and invites me to apply myself with every energy to cooperate with generosity, humility, and fidelity in the fulfillment of his Magisterium in the liturgical field, as much as it related to my competences."

..."The position of the Cross at the center of the altar - Marini says - signals the centrality of the Cruficied in the eucharistic celebration and the exact interior orientation which the entire assembly is called to have during the eucharistic liturgy: we do not look at ourselves, but at Him who was born, dies and was risen for us, the Savior. The salvation comes from the Lord, He is the East, the Sun which rises, to whom we must all turn our gaze, from whom we must all receive the gift of grace. The question of liturgical orientation, and the even practical way by which this takes shape, has great relevance, because a fundamental theological, anthropological, ecclesiological datum, inherent to the personal spirituality, is connected to it."

Continuity

A "repositioning", that of the Cross, which makes clear how the liturgical practices of the past must live still today:

"The liturgy of the Church - Marini explains -, as by the way all her life, it made of continuity: I might say development in continuity. This means that the Church proceeds in her historical path without losing sight of her own roots and her own living tradition: that may demand, in some cases, even the retrieval of precious and important elements which were lost, forgotten along the way, and which the passage of time has made less luminous in their authentic meaning. When this happens, it is not a return to the past, but a true and enlightened progress in the liturgical field."

And, in this progress, the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum cannot be unmentioned:

"A twofold precise understanding comes up when considering with attention the Motu proprio and also the letter addressed by the Pope to the bishops of all the world to present it. First of all, that of attaining "a reconciliation in the bosom of the Church"; and, in this sense, as it has been said, the Motu proprio is an extremely beautiful act of love towards the unity of the Church. Secondly, and this is a fact not to be forgotten, that of favoring a mutual enrichment between both forms of the Roman Rite: in such a way, for instance, that in the celebrations according to the Missal of Paul VI (ordinary form of the Roman Rite) it 'will be able to demonstrate, more powerfully than has been the case hitherto, the sacrality which attracts many people to the former usage'."
...

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Image: AFP/Andreas Solaro

Oremus et pro beatissimo Papa nostro Benedicto,

ut Deus et Dominus noster, qui elegit eum in ordine episcopatus, salvum atque incolumem custodiat Ecclesiæ suæ sanctæ, ad regendum populum sanctum Dei.

Oremus.
Flectamus genua.
Levate.

Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, cuius iudicio universa fundantur: respice propitius ad preces nostras, et electum nobis Antistitem tua pietate conserva; ut christiana plebs, quæ te gubernatur auctore, sub tanto pontifice, credulitatis suæ meritis augeatur. Per Dominum nostrum Iesum Christum Filium tuum, qui tecum vivat et regnat in unitate Spiritu Sancti, Deus, per omnia sæcula sæculorum.

Amen.

UNDE ES TU?

"Ecce homo." Cum ergo vidissent cum pontifices et ministri, clamabant, dicentes: "Crucifige, crucifige eum." Dicit eis Pilatus: "Accipite eum vos, et crucifigite: ego enim non invenio in eo causam." Responderunt ei Iudaei: "Nos legem habemus, et secundum legem debet mori, quia Filium Dei se fecit." Cum ergo audisset Pilatus hunc sermonem, magis timuit. Et ingressus est praetorium iterum: et dixit ad Iesum: "Unde es tu?" Iesus autem responsum non dedit ei. (Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint John, from the Liturgical Action in Commemoration of the Passion and Death of the Lord - St. John, xix, 5-9: "'Behold the Man.' When the chief priests, therefore, and the servants, had seen him, they cried out, saying: 'Crucify him, crucify him.' Pilate saith to them: 'Take him you, and crucify him: for I find no cause in him.' The Jews answered him: 'We have a law; and according to the law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.' When Pilate therefore had heard this saying, he feared the more. And he entered into the hall again, and he said to Jesus: 'Whence art thou?' But Jesus gave him no answer.")

Besides friends and disciples, there is another tribunal before which every new doctrine must appear, namely, the tribunal of the people. After having spoken in secret to the chosen ones, it becomes needful to quit the chamber, to appear in public, to speak to mankind of all ages and conditions, to those who have not leaned upon the bosom of the Master, who have not received the education of friendship, who know not what is required of them, who oppose to the word of doctrine a host of passions blended with as many prejudices.

Jesus Christ did this; He heard the murmurs of the crowd around Him, and was undaunted before the account which He had to give them of Himself. "How long," cried they to Him, "dost Thou hold our souls in suspense? If Thou be the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus Christ answered them: "I speak to you, and you believe not; the works that I do in the name of My Father, they give testimony of Me. ...I and the Father are one.".

At that saying, which expressed all, the Jews took up stones to stone Him, and Jesus said to them: "Many good works I have showed you from My Father; for which of these works do you stone Me?" The Jews answered Him : "For a good work we stone Thee not, but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, maketh Thyself God."

The language which Jesus Christ held towards the people in order to make known to them the origin and mission of their new spiritual Master, was, then, language free from all constraint and obscurity. He fearlessly uttered to them that terrible phrase : "I and my Father are one", EGO ET PATER UNUM SUMUS. But, above the people, that confused mass whose voice is at the same time the voice of God and the voice of nothingness, above the people who form at the same time the highest and the lowest authority rises, with calm vigilance and self-respect, the highest representation of right and truth, every nation possesses a supreme magistracy which concentrates in itself the glory and enlightenment of the country. And before it every doctrine claiming to rule, either by doing apparent or real violence to received traditions, must at last appear. Jesus Christ could not escape from this general law of the human order. He is called before the council of the elders, the priests, and the princes of Judea.

After hearing evidence more or less inconsistent, the high priest at length resolves to place the question in its true light; he stands up and addresses this solemn charge to the accused : "I adjure Thee by the living God that Thou tell us if Thou be the Christ, the Son of God." Jesus Christ calmly replies in two words: "EGO SUM", I am! And He immediately adds, in order to confirm His avowal by the majesty of His language: "I am; and you shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of the power of God, and coming with the clouds of heaven."

Then the high priest tears his garments. "What need we any further witnesses?" he exclaims. "You have heard the blasphemy! What think you?" And they all condemn him, as guilty, to death. He is then brought before the Roman governor, who, not finding good reasons for His condemnation, wishes to release Him; but the princes of the people persist: "We have a law," say they, "and according to the law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God." Pilate so fully comprehends this, that his Roman, and therefore religious, ear is all attention; he draws Jesus Christ aside, and timorously asks Him whence He is: "UNDE ES TU?" Jesus Christ is silent; He confirms by His silence all that He is accused of having said of Himself, and what, in fact, He has said.

The people who witness His crucifixion understand His condemnation in the sense in which it was pronounced; they insult Him even in death by these expressive derisions : "Vah, Thou that destroyest the temple of God, and in three days dost rebuild it: save Thy own self; if Thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." And, when darkness covers the earth, when the rocks are broken in pieces, when the veil of the temple is torn in two, and all Nature proclaims to mankind that a great event is in action, the lookers-on and the Roman centurion strike their breasts, saying: "Indeed, this was the Son of God!" And the apostle St. John concludes his gospel in these words: "These [things] are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God."

Henri-Dominique Lacordaire
Conférences de Notre-Dame de Paris (1846)

Ego lilium convallium

Hic calix novum testamentum est in meo sanguine. (From the Epistle for the Mass in Cena Domini, I Corinthians xi, 25: "This chalice is the new testament in My Blood.")

Chalice - Lily. The chalice is the lily, stylized and adapted to our use, and which, born from water, is proper for us to take to our lips.

The lily, and especially the water-lily, also called lotus or nenuphar, has always had a peculiar place in the symbolism of all religions. It projects its roots to substantial and deep regions, separated from our sight by these fluid, contemplative, mirror-like layers which are the domain of that which is contingent, unstable, of illusion and of this "time", of this reflection which relates to several circumstances.

It is there, from below, that it feeds from this mysterious mud where the hand of the Creator searched and modeled the matter of man. Infixus sum, Psalm LXVIII tells us, in limo profundi and it is from there that Israel "will spring like a lily" (Os. xiv, 6). Whether in Egypt, in Assyria, in Persia, in India, or in China, it is the lily which stands as a support for all gods or which, between its fingers, recreates their souls by opening their nostrils. It is the lily which also has its place in the capitals of columns and in the arms of the candelabra, such a prominent place in the decoration of Ark and Temple.

On the elongated stem which it uses to reach the deep, to search for life through moment and accident, it blossoms, in a circle of geometrically composed petals: the flower, the essential and synthetic cup, the central point which bestows perfect meaning and is the supreme center of the calculated dispositions of a concentric universe.

Ego flos campis, say the Canticles (ii, 1) et lilium convallium.

Paul Claudel
Un poète regarde la croix

Mikhail Gorbachev: I'm a Christian

Mikhail Gorbachev has just publicly revealed his Christian faith. And how interesting it is, that he chose to do so by going as a pilgrim to a Catholic shrine -- the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi. (Mr. Gorbachev was baptized Russian Orthodox as an infant)

From the Telegraph:

Mikhail Gorbachev admits he is a Christian
By Malcolm Moore in Rome

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Communist leader of the Soviet Union, has acknowledged his Christian faith for the first time, paying a surprise visit to pray at the tomb of St Francis of Assisi.

Accompanied by his daughter Irina, Mr Gorbachev spent half an hour on his knees in silent prayer at the tomb.

His arrival in Assisi was described as "spiritual perestroika" by La Stampa, the Italian newspaper.

"St Francis is, for me, the alter Christus, the other Christ," said Mr Gorbachev. "His story fascinates me and has played a fundamental role in my life," he added.

Mr Gorbachev's surprise visit confirmed decades of rumours that, although he was forced to publicly pronounce himself an atheist, he was in fact a Christian, and casts a meeting with Pope John Paul II in 1989 in a new light. Mr Gorbachev, 77, was baptised into the Russian Orthodox Churchand his parents were Christians. In addition, the parents of his wife Raisa were deeply religious and were killed during the Second World War for having religious icons in their home.

Ronald Reagan, the former United States president, allegedly told his close aides on a number of occasions that he felt his opponent during the Cold War was a "closet believer".

Mr Reagan held deep religious convictions himself. However, until now Mr Gorbachev has allowed himself to express only pantheistic views, saying in one interview "nature is my god". After his prayers, Mr. Gorbachev toured the Basilica of St Francis and asked in particular to be shown an icon of St Francis portraying his "dream at Spoleto".

St Francis, who lived in the 12th century, was a troubadour and a poet before the spiritual vision caused him to return to Assisi and contemplate a religious life.

Even in his early days, St Francis helped the poor, once giving all of his money to a beggar. As well as spending time in the wilderness, he also nursed lepers and eventually became a priest. "It was through St Francis that I arrived at the Church, so it was important that I came to visithis tomb," said Mr Gorbachev.

"I feel very emotional to be here at such an important place not only for the Catholic faith, but for all humanity."

He also asked the monks for theological books to help him understand St Francis's life. Father Miroslavo Anuskevic, who accompanied the former Soviet leader, said: "He was not recognised by any of the worshippers inthe church, and silently meditated at the tomb for a while. He seemed a man deeply inspired by charity, and told me that he was involved in a project to help children with cancer.

"He talked a lot about Russia and said that even though the transition to democracy had been very important for the world, it was very painful for Russia. He said it was a country which has a great history, and also a great spirituality."

Palm Sunday in the Philippines

Some pictures of Palm Sunday in Asia's bastion of Catholicism -- a display of different kinds of inculturation: some that are deeply traditional in spirit (the coconut palm fronds), others that violate the liturgical traditions of the Roman Rite (stoles placed over chasubles, the absence of traditional chants). I find our Palm Sunday processions to be deeply emblematic of the battle between tradition and modernity in the Catholic Church in Asia.

Lacordaire in Holy Week: The Triumph of the Crucifixion

"Converte gladium tuum in locum suum: omnes enim, qui acceperint gladium, gladio peribunt. An putas, quia non possum rogare Patrem meum, et exhibebit mihi modo plus quam duodecim legiones Angelorum?" (from the Passion of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew, Mass for the Second Sunday in Passiontide or Palm Sunday: "Put back thy sword into its place; for all those who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or dost thou suppose that I cannot entreat My Father, and He will even now furnish Me with more than twelve legions of angels?")

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Jesus Christ despised all human means, or, rather, He abstained from employing any.

Politics rank among the highest of these. It is the art of seizing the tendency of minds at a given moment, of bringing together opinions and interests which seek to be satisfied, of anticipating the will of a people before they have a clear consciousness of it themselves; of assuming, by the help of circumstances, the post of their natural representative, and of placing them upon a course in which we shall be borne along with them for half a century. Such is the art of politics an illustrious art, which may be used for good or evil, and which is the source of prosperous and lamentable vicissitudes among nations.

Jesus Christ was admirably placed for becoming the instrument of a revolution favorable to His religious designs. The people from whom He had sprung had lost, under the Roman yoke, the remains of their ancient nationality; hatred of Rome was then at its height among them, and, in the deserts and mountains of Judea, bands of liberators were daily formed under the command of some patriot, distinguished for his boldness or some other characteristic. These movements were seconded by celebrated prophecies, which had long announced a chief and a savior to the Jewish people.

The relation of these ideas and interests to the new kingdom, the coming of which Jesus Christ proclaimed, was evident. Nevertheless, so far from conniving at and employing them, He trampled them under foot. In order to prove Him, He is asked whether it is needful to pay tribute to Caesar; He calls for a piece of money, and, on being told whose image and superscription it bears, He calmly replies: "Render then to Caesar that which is Caesar's, and to God that which is God's." He goes still further. He announces the temporal ruin of His nation, He speaks against the temple, the object of religious and patriotic veneration among the Jews, and He openly predicts that there shall not remain of it one stone upon another; therefore, this charge was numbered amongst the accusations brought against him before the supreme magistracy.

His doctrine, so favorable to the people and to the poor, was of a nature to obtain great popularity for Him: this is a powerful mainspring for revolutions. In fact, He gained such an ascendancy over the people that they wished to elect Him King of Israel; but He fled in order to avoid that honor, and broke with His own hands an instrument which great men would commonly have valued as a gift and a sign from Heaven.

Next to the art of politics comes power, one of its adjuncts, but which may be considered without reference to the causes that generally communicate it. Jesus Christ had nothing so much at heart as to prevent His disciples from trusting to power and from exercising it. He sends them forth, He says, like lambs; He announces to them all kinds of troubles, without giving them any other help than patience, meekness, and humility. If, unmindful of His lessons, they would call down fire from heaven, he reproaches them with not yet knowing "of what spirit they are." At the moment of His arrest, when He might have defended Himself, and an apostle drew the sword, Jesus Christ says to him: "Put back thy sword into its place; for all those who take the sword will perish by the sword."

While the authors of other doctrines seek a sanction from victory rashly forgetting that victory is variable and conscience immutable, Jesus Christ chooses the Cross for His standard, and protests against all triumph of power by the triumph of His crucifixion.

Henri-Dominique Lacordaire
Conférences de Notre-Dame de Paris (1846)

Enough!

"At the end of this solemn Celebration, in which we have meditated upon the Passion of Christ, I wish to remember the late Archbishop of Mosul of the Chaldeans, Paulos Faraj Rahho, who died tragically a few days ago. His beautiful testimony of faithfulness to Christ, to the Church, and to his people, whom he had not wanted to leave, despite numerous threats, prompts me to raise a strong and heartfelt cry: enough with the bloodshed, enough with the violence, enough with the hatred in Iraq!

"And at the same time I raise a plea to the Iraqi people, who for five years have endured the consequences of a war which has caused the collapse of their civil and social life: beloved Iraqi people, lift up your heads and be yourselves builders of your national life! May reconciliation, forgiveness, justice, and respect for civil co-existence among tribes, ethnicities, and religious groups be the path towards peace in the name of God!"

Benedict XVI
Angelus
March 16, 2008

The New Papal Cross

The Pope is currently celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at St. Peter's Square. Among other things, he is using a papal cross worthy of the name, replacing the twisted crucifix that had been used in the previous three decades. So, do tune over to the various live broadcasts available!

Fr. Peter Knowles OP: Eternal Memory!

(Fr. Peter Knowles OP is the bearded priest in phelonion, third from left in this picture. Source: St. Michael's Russian Catholic Church)

Fr. Peter Knowles OP died last March 11, 2008 at the age of 81. In his lifetime he had acquired a fair reputation as a preacher and theologian. This reputation was built not only on the few learned articles that he would publish every year, but also on his role as a guardian of two traditions in the Catholic Church. These were the classical Dominican tradition of preaching and sound theology, a brilliant child of the Latin tradition; and the Russian Catholic Church, that small but extremely significant community historically known for its purely Byzantine liturgy, as well as its uncompromising defense of papal primacy and the need of the Orthodox East to be in communion with Rome.

These two traditions exemplify the range and universality of the true faith; and both have been under severe stress and siege in the past four decades from modernistic currents. Much has been said about the assault on the venerable traditions of the ancient religious orders of the West. Rarely, though, do we hear about the neglect and outright hostility that the Russian Catholic Church continues to face, as not a few Catholics consider this small community of a little more than 20 chapels and small convents to be an embarrasment in the age of Ecumenism. Fr. Peter Knowles, nevertheless, enthusiastically embraced the ideals behind the Russian Catholic dream, as expressed by such great converts to Catholicism as Blessed Leonid Fedorov and Fr. Alexander Rzewuski; for that alone, his passing must not pass unmentioned in the pages of Rorate Caeli.

Fr. Knowles was assigned to serve the Russian Catholic community in 1962. He served at the Chapel of St. Nicholas in the Russian Catholic Center in Melbourne.

The Australian has a long and informative article on this fascinating priest. Some of his popular articles include Alexander Rzewuski (1893-1983): The Catholic Church viewed with 'fresh eyes', Leonid Federov (1879-1935): Russian Catholicism - a brave vision unfulfilled and How monastic life can reinvigorate the Church

Fr. Peter Knowles OP: Requiescat in Pace, Vechnaya Pamyat! May you rest in peace and may your memory be eternal.

IMPORTANT Definitive text of the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum published

Gianni Cardinale reports in today's issue of the semi-official daily of the Italian Episcopal Conference, Avvenire (transcript), that the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum has been finally published in the official gazette of the Holy See, the Acta Apostolicae Sedis (dated September 7, 2007, and including the official acts of the preceding months), with the following changes:

• A subtitle was given to the motu proprio: «De usu extraordinario antiquae formae Ritus Romani» ("On the extraordinary use of the ancient form of the Roman Rite");


• In article 1, the word «conditiones» was replaced with the more correct form «condiciones», with no change in meaning ("conditions");


• In article 3, the word «plerumque» was replaced with «habitualiter» (our translation remains "habitually");


• In article 5, § 1, «continenter» was replaced with «stabiliter», avoiding the notion that the group of faithful would have to be continuous in a certain parish - it only has to exist in a stable, but not necessarily in a permanent and continuous fashion;


• In article 7, «non potest» ("cannot")was replaced with «non vult» ("does not want"): «Art. 7 If a group of lay faithful, as mentioned in art. 5 § 1, has not obtained satisfaction to their requests from the pastor, they should inform the diocesan bishop. The bishop is strongly requested to satisfy their wishes. If he does not want to arrange for such celebration to take place, the matter should be referred to the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei”.»

The Latin original text and our English translation, as well as our PDF Latin-English version in parallel columns, have been modified accordingly.

Chaldean Catholic Archbishop killed by captors

AsiaNews has just reported that the Archbishop of Mosul has been killed

The archbishop of Mosul is dead
Bishop of Arbil: "A heavy Cross for our Church, ahead of Easter".

Mosul (AsiaNews) - The Chaldean archbishop of Mosul is dead. Archbishop Faraj Rahho was kidnapped last February 29 after the Stations of the Cross. His kidnappers have given word of his death, indicating to the mediators where they could recover the body of the 67-year-old prelate.

"It is a heavy Cross for our Church, ahead of Easter", Rabban al Qas, bishop of Arbil, tells AsiaNews in response to the news.

Minor changes in Ecclesia Dei

From the news Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office:

The Holy Father Benedict XVI named today Monsignor Camille Perl Vice-President of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei", and has named the former Adjunct Secretary, Monsignor Mario Marini, to Perl's former position as Secretary of the same Commission.

"Caritas in veritate", the title of the new encyclical

According to Alberto Bobbio, reporting today in Italian daily L'Eco di Bergamo (a regular newspaper closely linked to the Catholic Church in Italy and controlled by the Diocese of Bergamo), the title of the Pope's third encyclical, to be released around the time of Benedict's summer vacation, will be "Caritas in veritate" ("Charity in Truth").

Transcript: Papa Ratzinger Blog

Prayer for the Jews: Bertone tells Jewish leaders: "We ask for reciprocity" - and other news on Moscow and Encyclical

At the end of his voyage to Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, granted an interview to Italian news agency ANSA - released yesterday and republished today by Italian Catholic website Korazym. On the issue of the reformed Prayer for the Jews, Cardinal Bertone had some stern words - and ANSA also heard the opinion of the Chief Rabbi of Rome:

PRAYER FOR THE JEWS.

Reciprocity: the Cardinal asks for it regarding the controversy in the Jewish world surrounding the change of the Good Friday prayer of the Tridentine Rite for the conversion of the Jews. The matter refers only to "a very specific portion of the Catholic world", Bertone explained and, nonetheless, "prayers which might or should be modified" exist "for both parties". According to the Cardinal, "nobody wishes that one party change its own identity or be forced to perform acts, gestures, or to say prayers which do not conform to its own tradition, even to its own faith. And, therefore - he continued - it is an attitude of reciprocity which is asked, of respect for the affirmation of one's own identity, without desiring the forced conversion of anyone, but proposing one's own faith with maximum respect".

Immediate reply from the Chief Rabbi of Rome, Riccardo Di Segni, according to whom "the Jewish prayers have already been 'self-censored' centuries ago". "The essential information - Di Segni observes - is that today there is not any reference to Christians in our prayers, which have already been the object of repeated interventions of censorship and self-censorship. The Hebrew texts were modified centuries ago, long before the [Second Vatican] Council." "Another fundamental difference is that regarding the use which is made of the prayer"- the rabbi still adds. "No Jew in the world has never asked anyone to convert, while, instead, the principle of faith of a prayer which asks for the conversion of the Jews has been constantly accompanied by a missionary pressure."

Bertone also had interesting words on other matters: the time of a meeting between Pope Benedict and the Patriarch of Moscow "is approaching". On the release of the Pope's third encyclical, Bertone reveals that it shall "not be published before the Pope's summer vacation" - in Bressanone (South Tyrol), from July 28 to August 11, 2008.

WYD 2008: JUVENTUTEM REGISTRATIONS

For pilgrims intending to travel to Sydney Australia for World Youth Day, please note:

The closing date for Juventutem registrations and payments is 9th May.

Please ensure you have registered and made any payments by this date.

Go here for further information.

AN IMPORTANT LIST OF CONTACTS:

For Australian Pilgrims:

QLD: Anne Coles annelouisecoles@juventutem-australia.com
WA: Aaron Pereira aaron.pereira@juventutem-australia.com
ACT: James Doig james.doig@juventutem-australia.com
NSW: Eve Woolven e.woolven@juventutem-australia.com
TAS: Mishka Gora kylefirth@juventutem-australia.com
VIC: Tara Peters t.amp.peters@juventutem-australia.com

For Overseas Pilgrims:

USA: Indira Sweeny indirasweeny@hotmail.com

France: france@juventutem.com

Germany: Theresa Johler Theresa.Johler@gmx.de

Ireland: Robert Lane rjrlane@hotmail.com

Netherlands: David Oostveen david@ecclesiadei.nl

Argentina: Ramon Lopez ramon@juventutem.com.ar

Chile: juventutemchile@gmail.com

Just Released: Ignatius Press 1962 Ordo Missae

Responding to the Pope’s initiative in Summorum Pontificum, the Ignatius Press has now released an Order of Mass for the Extraordinary form of the Roman Rite. The Mass-book may be purchased online here. This is a completely new edition, not a reprint of previous books, published under the Imprimatur of the Archbishop of Melbourne, Australia, the Most Rev’d Denis Hart. In a Foreword the Archbishop remarks:

I am delighted that the Missal of Blessed John XXIII has been restored as the Extraordinary form of Mass in the Roman Rite because of the spiritual values it contains, together with the focus on worship with Christ to the Father. This Mass book invites us to be drawn into the mystery which is God’s love for us in giving his own Son at the Last Supper and on Calvary for our redemption. The book will serve to help us understand the prayers and be united with the priest in offering the one, perfect, unbloody sacrifice to God the Father, which brought our redemption.

In addition to a new and fresh translation into English of the prayers of the Mass, placed alongside the Latin, there is an excellent introduction to the Mass, instructive to those familiar with the Rite and those who are not. Here is an excerpt:

In 1970, when the New Order of Mass was introduced, much was changed pertaining to the celebration of Mass and everything associated with it. The nature of the Mass, of course, did not change, but how it was presented changed very markedly. It was far more than a change from Latin to English: it involved a change in emphasis. In trying to simplify the Sacred Liturgy and make it more readily comprehensible, the architects of the New Order of Mass have emphasised the communal aspect of the Mass. Typically, the celebrant stands on one side of the altar, facing the congregation, and all are gathered around the table of the Lord, to partake of the Sacred Banquet. Very often there is a strong emphasis on active external participation.

When the celebrant is not facing the congregation, however, the entire atmosphere of the Mass is changed: both priest and people are facing the same direction to pray. Many have forgotten that from earliest Christian times, Mass was celebrated looking towards the rising sun (a great symbol of the Resurrection, and of Christ’s Second Coming in Glory): everyone faced this direction. Furthermore, the Mass is not limited to the confines of the building in which it is being celebrated, but is a cosmic event, involving the angels and saints and the souls of the faithful departed who are yet to receive their eternal reward. Simply by changing the position of the celebrant, a different sense of the Mass as a sacred event is conveyed to all present. The great silences, the solemn ritual actions of the celebrant and the beauty of the ancient Latin prayers, all reinforce the mysterious and sacred atmosphere of this More Ancient Use of the Roman Mass.

The sense of the sacred is not only manifest in the celebration of the Liturgy itself, but in all the things that surround it: the way the celebrant is vested, the manner in which the altar is decorated, the manner in which the celebrant and his ministers conduct themselves in the sanctuary - all of these things are governed by rules which the Church in her wisdom adopted over the course of centuries.

The translations themselves deserve our attention, this being the rendering of the prayer Suscipe Sancta Trinitas at the Offertory:

Accept, holy Trinity, this offering which we make to you in remembrance of the passion, resurrection and ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ, and in honour of blessed Mary ever Virgin, of blessed John the Baptist, of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul, of those whose relics rest here, and of all the Saints. To them may it bring honour, and to us salvation; and may they, whose memory we keep on earth, be pleased to intercede for us in heaven. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Furthermore, commentaries on the prayers and rites of the Mass are included, such as this one (on the prayer Suscipe Sancta Trinitas, translated above):

This beautiful prayer, a summary of the things a Catholic should keep in mind when praying the Mass, is deserving of especial attention. It reminds us firstly that all our worship is offered to the One God, who is a Trinity of Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Secondly, in reflecting the Anamnesis after the consecration, the prayer insists on the unity of Christ’s Paschal Mystery that is re-presented for us in sacramental form: His Passion, Resurrection and Ascension. Finally, it asserts that a secondary end of the Mass is the honour of the Saints (that is, the victory of Christ in His members is being praised), and accordingly it begs their intercession for us on Earth. Make a point of praying this prayer in the silence of your heart, uniting yourself with the words of the celebrant.

This is a section of the translation of the Last Gospel:

The Word is the true light, who enlightens every soul born into the world. He through whom the world was made came into the world; but the world did not recognise him. He came to his own, and his own did not receive him. But to all who did receive him and who believed in his name, to these he gave power to become children of God: those who were born, not of blood, nor by the will of flesh, nor by the will of man, but are born of God.

Following remarks made by the Pope in Summorum Pontificum, this new Mass-book includes as an Appendix a selection of Prefaces from the 1970 Missal, which are permitted for use in the Extraordinary form. These prefaces are: Preface of the Baptism of the Lord, Preface of Saint John the Baptist, Preface of the Annunciation, Preface of the Angels, Preface of Pentecost, Preface of Pastors, Preface of the Transfiguration, Preface of Martyrs, Preface of the Assumption, Preface of Religious & Holy Virgins, Preface of the Immaculate Conception, Preface of Matrimony, Preface of the Apostles Peter & Paul.

Other prefaces, which had been included in some post-1957 editions of the Missale Romanum, are also included. This is the translation of the Preface of the Lord’s Supper (for use on Holy Thursday):

It is truly fitting and just, right and profitable for our salvation, always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Lord, holy Father, almighty, eternal God, through Christ our Lord, the true and eternal High Priest and, alone, the Priest without stain of sin. In the Last Supper, establishing the form of the eternal sacrifice, he firstly offered himself to you as a victim, thus teaching us the noblest and best offering. By his body, sacrificed for us, we are now fed, we are now strengthened; by his poured-out blood we are now given drink, we are now cleansed. And so, with the Angels and Archangels, with the Thrones and Dominations, and all the strength of the heavenly host, we sing without ceasing this hymn to your glory:

Adjacent pictures shew the cover and also one of several line drawings which were prepared especially for this book.

Lastly, attention might be drawn to a small but lovely collection of devotional prayers included in the Mass-book. This is one:

For the Church
(Missal of Robert of Jumieges - 11th century)
Almighty, Eternal God, by ever giving strength to our weakness, you enable the Church to flourish even amidst its trials, so that when it appears to men to be utterly cast down, then rather does it gloriously prevail. Whilst, then, it accepts affliction as a proving of its faith, let it persevere, by your grace, in triumphant loyalty.

An idea of apostolate for families

The following text was written for the bulletin of the Latin Mass community of Arkansas. Then I thought that families in other places might be interested too.

You can find information about Domus Christiani on their website (in French) : http://domus-christiani.org/

Domus Christiani is an association of families attached to the Latin Mass and which contains 120 groups in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg. Each group is composed of five to ten families, and when it is possible, it benefits from the spiritual guidance of a priest. The purpose of this association is the sanctification of marriage. According to the well-grounded spiritual tradition of the Church, this goal will be reached by three main means.
First, it is the deepening of the interior life: Sacraments and prayer are its foundation. The study of doctrine and of its practical application contributes to increasing the knowledge and love of God. The devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of families, and the consecration of homes and families to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary form the core importance of the groups.
The second means is given by Saint Paul: Let love be without dissimulation. Hating that which is evil, cleaving to that which is good, loving one another with the charity of brotherhood: with honor preventing one another. (Rom. 9:12)
Finally, the third means is the missionary spirit, which can come only from a deep interior life, as Dom Chautard says in The Soul of the Apostolate. The application of the missionary spirit will result by an increasing of the group. It has to be well understood that a personal engagement in the life of the family, the life of the community and the life of the society is the offspring of the interior life.

As an international association, Domus Christiani has its rules, and organizes many activities such as retreats, pilgrimages, conferences and so forth. Each member has to fulfill certain commitments.
I will not explain the details, but I will just keep some elements that we can apply and use for ourselves here in Arkansas. If you wish, we can begin a non official Domus Christiani group, or groups if we have enough families interested.

The principle is simple and we just have to adopt the goal and the means given by Domus Christiani. It is all about your own spiritual life and the spiritual life of your families. Father Gordon and I are at your disposal for any advice and spiritual guidance in this matter.
Now, what can we do on a practical level? There is one thing that the families of Domus Christiani do and that we can also do. Each group meets monthly taking turns in the house of one of the families. It concerns only the parents, not the children. The family that welcomes the others gives a talk of 20-30 minutes on a subject of doctrine or spiritual life. It is a good exercise as it allows you to study the doctrine while you prepare your talk. The priest, who usually participates in the meeting, can help with the preparation of the talk, but this has to be given by the family. It is a good thing also that husband and wife work together on a subject and give the talk together. The talk can be followed by questions and a discussion. Then there is a time of prayer: the rosary with a short meditation for example. And finally the dinner is a nice convivial time. Each family can bring a meal, so that the family that welcomes the others does not have to cook for everyone. It is a good opportunity to practice fraternal charity and to get to know each other better. For the priest, it is also a good occasion to visit the families and bless the houses.

I have been the spiritual adviser of two different Domus Christiani groups for three years when I was in France. It is certainly my best memory as a priest and I really enjoyed the authentic Christian spirit that was in each group. I have to say that those groups were composed of families which did not have the Latin Mass around. You can imagine their joy when a traditional priest would come to their home and even sometimes say Mass there, as I used to do many times.
I think now about our families of Mountain Home which have Mass only once a week and also of our families of Saint Patrick that live out of town and cannot come during the week at North Little Rock. It would be a good opportunity for them, as well as for the others, to increase our community life, to study more about our faith and to be more missionary minded. In other words, it would be a good opportunity to be more holy.
In addition to the monthly meeting, each family will pray every day for the other families of the group and promise to help them according to its possibilities for their needs. Charity is not a vain word and has to be practiced by acts.
Any family can join us. You can be a young couple with no child or a retired couple with children far from home or you can be a huge family with many children. You are all welcome.
If you are interested let us know. We will try to organize the groups according to the number and the locations of the families. The activities will start in April.
Maria, Regina familiarum, ora pro nobis.

Father Laurent Demets, FSSP

CONFIRMEDPersonal Parish for the Traditional Mass in Rome

We were asked to remove the following note (first posted on December 17, 2007) - but now that the largest Italian daily, Corriere della Sera, has confirmed it in today's edition, there is no reason to maintain discretion about it anymore.

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From the website of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) in Melbourne:

Personal Parish for the Extraordinary Form to be established in Rome: the traditional Mass apostolate in Rome under Fr Joseph Kramer is to be elevated into a personal parish, with Fr Kramer as its first parish priest. The apostolate will move early in 2008 into a larger Church, which will be given for the exclusive use of the new Parish: the Church of Trinita dei Pellegrini. We are told that the Holy Father wishes this model to be “an exemplar for the whole Church”. We thank God for this development, rejoice in the Holy Father’s leadership, and congratulate Fr Kramer and his community.

Congratulations to Father Kramer and the Traditional Mass congregation in tiny Muratori.
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Tip: Bob Catholic

Picture: High Altar at the church of the Most Holy Trinity of the Pilgrims (Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini), near Piazza Farnese, in Rione Regola; painting by Guido Reni.

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The Corriere also reports the following this Wednesday:

"There is still not an official act by Cardinal Ruini [the Cardinal-Vicar (Administrator) of the Diocese of Rome]", [says] monsignor Ernesto Mandara, who oversees the churches of the city center at the Vicariate. But the document for the establishment of the new parish which we be granted to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, which includes over 200 priests around the world to carry forward the ancient rite, is ready. Barring unforeseen [events], the activities will begin soon after Holy Week.

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Transcript: Papa Ratzinger Blog.

Vatican not recognizing Kosovo independence

The Holy See does not plan to recognize the independence declared by Kosovo in the near future - and this due to Ecumenical considerations.

The Italian news agency ANSA reports on an interview with the President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Cardinal Kasper:

"The Vatican - the German Cardinal recalled - has not said anything on the recognition [of the independence] of Kosovo and we still await; in the end, the great European nations position themselves for the recognition, [and] it will be seen what the Holy See will do in the near future."

The Cardinal [porporato] recalled that the Holy See "understands the concerns of Serbians because Kosovo is the birthplace of the Serbian Orthodox Church and understands the suffering caused to them by the separation of Kosovo". All this was made known, Kasper has explained, to the Serbian ambassador before the Holy See, Vladeta Jankovic, received by the Pope on February 21, only four days after the proclamation of independence by Pristina.

It is truly very important to defend the rights of Christians under siege in Kosovo.

Catholics and Politics:Papal reminders The foremost duty of rulers

The foremost duty ... of the rulers of the State should be to make sure that the laws and institutions, the general character and administration of the commonwealth, shall be such as of themselves to realize public well-being and private prosperity. This is the proper scope of wise statesmanship and is the work of the rulers.

Now a State chiefly prospers and thrives through moral rule, well-regulated family life, respect for religion and justice, the moderation and fair imposing of public taxes, the progress of the arts and of trade, the abundant yield of the land - through everything, in fact, which makes the citizens better and happier. Hereby, then, it lies in the power of a ruler to benefit every class in the State, and amongst the rest to promote to the utmost the interests of the poor; and this in virtue of his office, and without being open to suspicion of undue interference - since it is the province of the commonwealth to serve the common good. And the more that is done for the benefit of the working classes by the general laws of the country, the less need will there be to seek for special means to relieve them.

There is another and deeper consideration which must not be lost sight of. As regards the State, the interests of all, whether high or low, are equal. The members of the working classes are citizens by nature and by the same right as the rich; they are real parts, living the life which makes up, through the family, the body of the commonwealth; and it need hardly be said that they are in every city very largely in the majority. It would be irrational to neglect one portion of the citizens and favor another, and therefore the public administration must duly and solicitously provide for the welfare and the comfort of the working classes; otherwise, that law of justice will be violated which ordains that each man shall have his due.

To cite the wise words of St. Thomas Aquinas: "As the part and the whole are in a certain sense identical, so that which belongs to the whole in a sense belongs to the part." Among the many and grave duties of rulers who would do their best for the people, the first and chief is to act with strict justice - with that justice which is called distributive - toward each and every class alike.

Leo XIII
Rerum Novarum

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relevant news may be posted at any moment.