Grasping for Straws in the Post Conciliar era

I do not think I have ever seriously been tempted or seriously entertained sedevacantism much less conclavism. I remember as a teenager reading in the local daily Newspaper an article around 1980 by an elderly priest who sincerely believed that the real  Paul VI had been imprisoned and that an "imposter" anti-pope had been installed in his place in Rome. He even had photographs to "prove" that the occupant of the see of Peter was NOT Paul VI.

 He went on to use the "prophecy of Lasalette" to further support this theory.  At that time, I had never heard of the sedevacantist theory and the very idea struck fear in my heart. I remember being horrified by the possibility.  I was born in 1966 and had only known the novus ordo and yet I knew almost instinctively that something had gone terribly wrong since the council. That much was obvious to me. I think the malaise in the post conciliar church has left us with grasping for straws to find answers to the mystery of chaos in the church. All Catholics of sincere faith and conviction have for decades been trying to make some sense out of the malaise that has afflicted the Church. Many of us were born into this situation not having known anything else. I think many of us go through different phases in this process of trying to make sense of it all. I no longer believe as I once did that a return to a 'golden era' in the Church (say 1955) is possible nor desireable. Nor do I naively believe anymore that the traditional Mass is a panacea to all that afflicts the Church. I am however convinced that a return to traditional order within the Church is the answer. What I mean by this is a return to an authentic Sensus Catholicus in how the Church has always understood and viewed herself in her liturgy, piety and her very mission. We must cleave to 'eternal Rome' rather than to 'modernist Rome' to use Mgr Lefebvre's words in his 1974 declaration.

The problem with sedevacantism and conclavism is not that they couldn't be plausible theoretically but that they attempt to clarify the malaise in the Church in a simple, black and white fashion. Such theories leave more questions than answers. Conclavists have decided in their various factions to 'elect' a 'true pope'. The most famous being the "Palmarian Church of the Carmelites of the Holy Face" which itself was the result of false apparitions to a false stigmatist and seer Clemente Dominguez y Gomez who made himself "Pope Gregory XVII". His current successor is "Pope Gregory XVIII".  There have been and continue to be a number of anti-popes in the Conciliar era.

                                             anti-pope "Gregory XXII" of the Palmarian Church

                                               anti-pope "Gregory XXIII" current leader of the Palmarian Church


 At the same time, I do not think it wise to ignore, underestimate or completely disregard the prophecies of La Salette, La Fraudais , Anne Catherine Emmerich or Fatima regarding the future of the Church. It is simple to dismiss the sedevacantists and conclavists as nut jobs. Unfortunately, too often it is the case that Catholics are given to extremes about the subject. Some of them become conclavists or sedevacantists on the one hand or they become extreme ultramontanists on the other. We like to believe that prophecies about the crisis in the Church are for another time. Too often we prefer to take the stance of Pope John XXIII after reading the third secret of Fatima that such prophecies do not pertain to our own times. I am often amazed to what lengths some people will go (including and especially churchmen) to convince themselves and others of this. There has been for the most part since Vatican II a wholesale denial of crisis in the Church for the most part.  To be sure in the 1970s and even 80s there were Cardinals, bishops and priests who had been formed in the old school and who were able to discern the signs of the times and help their flocks weather the malaise better and who knew what was at work within the Church to destroy her (think Bishop Graber of Regensburg).   This however has changed in recent decades as the 68ers (those formed in a revolutionary spirit) have come of age and many occupy places of power and influence in the Church. These men see Vatican II as a sort of beginning of a "year zero" in the Church as though nothing existed before. They view the Church's past through the 'lens of Vatican II' rather than the other way around.  There are those in the Church (especially among the liberals and  neo-Catholic ultramontanists) who like to poke fun at any mention of the influence of freemasons within the Church. As though such notions were akin to madness. Neo-Catholics willingly admit the widespread influence of modernism within the post Conciliar church but are also keen to believe that we are in a 'new Spring time'. Often times utterances from Rome seem at odds with what the church has always believed and taught. It can be greatly confusing and disconcerting when this happens. I think Sister Lucy of Fatima described it best as 'diabolical disorientation'.

I like to believe that anyone reading this blog is trying to 'work out their salvation in fear and trembling' to the best of their ability and to live, sustain and nurture their Catholic faith in a traditional manner. I like to believe that most of us who would describe ourselves as traditional Catholics have been seeking for decades to make the best out of a very difficult and virtually impossible situation. There exists among many traditional Catholics the sentiment that everything since Vatican II is evil and detrimental to the faith. Sanity and order will be restored in the Church through a restoration of an authentic sensus catholicus and not by a recreation of an ideal time in Church history. The great majority of Catholics practice their faith within a context of discontinuity. The truth of the matter is that most of them have simply been following the lead of heterodox Churchmen for decades. Most have been raised with little or no catechesis, protestantized or even neo pagan liturgies, heterodox or even heretical preaching. The average Catholic parish would be a foreign place for a Catholic who lived and died before Vatican II. Perhaps some of us in the aftermath of the council were fortunate enough to find 'islands' of sanity in a sea of modernism. I for one am grateful for such 'ghettos of Catholicity". I have come to believe that such places of refuge will continue to serve the needs of traditional minded Catholics as things deteriorate steadily in the coming years.  It goes without saying that we must continue to pray for a restoration in the Church of an authentic sensus Catholicus above all by means of Our Lady's rosary. Above all we ought as Catholics to take Blessed Jacinta's words to heart and to make them our own: "Poor holy father we must pray much for him."  

Catholic in Brooklyn: Feast of the Circumcision

Catholic in Brooklyn: Feast of the Circumcision:   Since the debt incurred by the sin of Adam cannot be met by Adam's insolvent progeny and since Christ's blood pays the ransom ...

The Eponymous Flower: "In Every Dictatorship The Past is Censured" -- Fr...

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Et Verbum caro factum est

                                                 Et Verbum caro factum est 

                                              A READING FROM THE ROMAN MARTYROLOGY: 

                                             IN THE 5199th year of the creation of the world, from the time when in 
                                  the beginning God created heaven and earth; from the flood, the 2957th 
                                  year; from the birth of Abraham, the 2015th year; from Moses and the 
                                  going-out of the people of Israel from Egypt, the 1510th year; from the 
                                  anointing of David as king, the 1032nd year; in the 65th week according 
                                  to the prophecy of Daniel; in the 194th Olympiad; from the founding of 
                                  the city of Rome, the 752nd year; in the 42nd year of the rule of Octavian 
                                  Augustus, when the whole world was at peace, in the sixth age of the 
                                  world: Jesus Christ, the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, 
                                  desiring to sanctify the world by His most merciful coming, having been 
                                  conceived by the Holy Ghost, and nine months having passed since His 
                                  conception (A higher tone of voice is now used, and all kneel) was born 
                                  in Bethlehem of Juda of the Virgin Mary, having become man. 

                                  THE NATIVITY of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Father Renzo Lavatori on Angels

Angels exist but do not have wings and are more like shards of light, at least according to a top Catholic Church “angelologist” who says the heavenly beings are now back in vogue thanks to New Age religions.

“I think there is a re-discovery of angels in Christianity,” Father Renzo Lavatori told AFP on the sidelines of a conference on angels in a lavishly-frescoed Renaissance palace in Rome.

“You do not see angels so much as feel their presence,” said Lavatori, adding: “They are a bit like sunlight that refracts on you through a crystal vase.”

The clergyman was taking part in a debate on angelic art by the Fondazione Archivio Storico organised in the Vatican-owned Palazzo della Cancelleria.

He said the popularised image of angels is a necessary result of their being “back in fashion” but is dismissive of all the angel art around Christmas.

“There is space for that, but you have to understand that these are not real representations. Angels do not have wings or look like cherubs,” he said.

The widely-published Catholic clergyman is also a “demonologist” and says angels are more needed than ever because increasing secularisation and materialism in society have left an “open door” for the devil.

“There is a lot more interference from diabolical forces. That is why you see queues of people outside the exorcists’ offices in churches,” he said.

“Pope Francis talks more about the devil than about angels and I think rightly so. But it’s still early, he will get round to the angels too.”

Father Renzo Lavatori

Catholic Collar And Tie: Traditional Believers: Beware!

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Advent Confession

I recently had a conversation with a good friend regarding the practice of a holy confession. I related that I often felt a deep sense of inadequacy in making a confession. I attempt to spend some time in preparing with a proper examen and by praying the seven penitential Psalms etc. Yet I often find during confession that my mind goes blank and I often leave the confessional with rather mixed emotion (grateful for having been shriven but dissatisfied with my own sense of inadequacy).

 My friend related to me that when he went to confession, he simply allowed himself to be embraced by Jesus and to feel His love for him. He speaks directly to Jesus himself just as if He were sitting there and not the priest. He speaks directly to Jesus in his own wretchedness as his greatest love. 

  I have been watching the last few weeks a documentary series on the history of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. A devotion that I have known and loved since my childhood. I have fond memories of sitting in my own parish church as a boy in the darkness which was only illuminated by the flickering of red votive lights before the image of the Sacred Heart and speaking to Him intimately heart to heart. 

Our Lord comes at crucial times to remind us of His great love for us just as he did to St Margaret Mary. Jansenism which stressed the divine justice at the expense of the divine mercy had left many hearts filled with fear or worse with feelings of hopelessness. These vestiges of Jansenistic tendencies are very much alive within the Church (especially here in America and above all among traditional Catholics).  Let us embrace Jesus in holy confession and allow Him to embrace us and to envelope us in His love and mercy in preparation for his birth.  Let us pray for one another that we might all arrive at the feast of Christmas with souls swept clean and prepared to meet our bridegroom. However, let us do this out of love for Him and not out of fear.

How to make a good Confession

1. Examine your conscience.

2. Be sincerely sorry for your sins.

3. Confess your sins to a priest.

4. After your confession, do the penance the priest has given you.

5. Do not forget to thank God for His forgiveness, and ask Him to help you as you try to do better.

“The most precious result of the forgiveness obtained in the Sacrament of Penance is to be found in the reconciliation with God which takes place in the inmost heart of a son who was lost and is found again”.

Blessed John Paul II

Examination of Conscience

For any penitent:

Have I ignored God or excluded Him from my life?
Have I neglected my daily prayers or said them badly?
Is my daily prayer a real conversation with God in mind and heart?
Have I used the name of God, or of Our Lady, in anger or carelessly?
Did I miss Holy Mass on a Sunday or Holyday of Obligation through my own fault?
Did I receive Holy Communion in a state of mortal sin?
Do I observe the one hour fast before receiving Holy Communion?
Do I abstain from meat or perform some other act of penance on Fridays?

For spouses:

Do I pray for my husband or wife?
Am I critical of my spouse, putting them down in public or in private? What efforts have I made to demonstrate and foster the warmth of my love and affection for my spouse?
Do I try to make up whenever there has been a disagreement or do I allow things to fester beneath the surface? Am I too proud to say ‘Sorry’?
Do I mistreat my spouse verbally, emotionally or physically? Have we used artificial means of birth control in order to prevent having children?

For parents:

Have I neglected to teach my children their prayers and give them a Christian education?
Have I set my children a bad example by not bringing them to Holy Mass, or being careless about my religious duties?
Do I take care to ensure that my children do not witness arguments at home? Do I watch over the books they read and the television and videos they watch? Do I take care to ‘befriend’ my children? Am I over strict or over lax with them? Do I explain decisions to them and so help them grow to maturity?

For children:

Have I been disobedient or rude to my parents or teachers? Do I treat my parents with affection and respect? Do I pray for them?
If I live away from home, do I write to my parents and other members of my family in order to keep in touch?
Do I quarrel with my brothers or sisters or other members of my family? Do I study hard at school or college? Am I grateful for the sacrifices my parents have made for me? Do I show my gratitude?

For any penitent:

Am I careful to set my friends a good example, especially in matters of behaviour, attendance at Holy Mass and moral issues? Do I realise that my support might help them live up to their Christian calling?
Have I been impatient, angry or jealous?
Have I taken part in, or encouraged, an abortion or any other means of taking human life?
Did I get drunk, use drugs, or give bad example to others?
Have I placed myself in danger of sin by reading or looking at what was indecent or pornographic?
Have I sinned against the virtue of purity by myself or with others?
Have I been dishonest by stealing or cheating?
Have I been lazy at my work or at home?
Have I been uncharitable or unkind in thought, word, or deed?
Have I told lies? Do I judge others rashly?

THINGS TO REMEMBER

•    If it is a long time since your last confession you can ask the priest to help you.
•    Don’t make the mistake of putting off Confession – that never solves anything.
•    Try to go to confession frequently – at least once a month.
•    Sin is any deliberate thought, word, action or omission which would be against the Commandments of God.
•    We have to be truly sorry for our sins, and to have the sincere intention of trying to improve our lives, for our sins to be forgiven.
•    We are bound to include in our confession every serious (or mortal) sin of which we are aware.
•    The conditions for a sin to be serious (or mortal) are:
1.    The offence must be serious.
2.    We must know that we are committing a mortal sin.
3.    There must be full consent of our will to the action.

At Confession

1. Begin by saying, “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It is …………weeks (or months, or years) since my last confession”.
2. Then tell the priest the sins you remember since the last confession. (If any sins are serious, you should say how many times you have committed them).
3. When you have finished your confession, just say, “I am sorry for these sins, and all the sins of my past life”.
4. The priest may give you some advice, then he will give you the Penance (to be said later); and then he will ask you to recite an Act of Contrition. This is a common one: O my God, because you are so good, I am very sorry that I have sinned against you, and by the help of your grace I will try not to sin again.
5. The priest then gives you the Absolution (in these words), through which your sins are forgiven:
   
6. God the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son,  and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
7. The priest may add this prayer:
8. May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of all the Saints, whatever good you do and suffering you endure, heal your sins, help you to grow in holiness, and reward you with everlasting life. Amen.

DIOCESE OF SALFORD

Carrying Our Lady Through Advent

There exists in German-speaking Europe a very praiseworthy custom during Advent known in German as, "Frauen Tragen" or "Carrying of Our Lady". It is a custom that we would do well to introduce here in North America. Above all to introduce authentic Marian piety to Catholic families and introduce the nightly family Rosary. 

Carrying Our Lady in Advent


"Carrying Our Lady - an old custom" - what is it? 

The "Carrying of Our Lady" is an old Christian Advent custom. The festive season is all about the path of renewal and pilgrimage: Mary and Joseph are traveling to Bethlehem, the shepherds search for the child. God and man are coming toward each other. The search for shelter, the biblical account in Luke 2.7 is: "because there was no room in the inn for them."


In the period from the first Sunday of Advent until December 24 Catholic parishes in December there is the opportunity with an image of the pregnant Virgin Mary represented along the lines of "Bogensberger Madonna" to be offered a place to stay in Parish family's homes or in their apartments.
The image of the Holy Virgin is passed during the Advent season from family to family. Our Lady remains emblematic in every family one day. In the evening the image of Our Lady is brought by the family to the next family. Upon arrival There will be an Advent devotional. The next day the statue is passed on to the next family. Or if there is no place to be found, Our Lady remains longer in that household until another family is found. The image can also visit in a kindergarten or day care center for carol singing for a day or a few hours and then brought back to the family for the evening.

Those families wishing to house the image of Our Lady in their homes, place their names on a designated list in November in the parish office. For a day - or more - this gives ample time for personal conversation with Our Lady, and on the other hand, there is the possibility for the family, to invite friends and family to an Advent rosary together.

The blessing and sending of the image of Our Lady takes place on first Sunday of Advent in the parish church, and on 24 December, the Mother of God is brought in procession to be received in the Christmas midnight Mass.

Variants

It is not known in how many parishes carry on the tradition of "carrying of Our Lady" which in other areas is also known as a "search for shelter for Our Lady". There is Evidence that it is common in any case in parts of Bavaria, Austria and more recently in the Rhineland. The custom is practiced in families, day care centers and other parish houses, there are different variants. The Marian image, which corresponds to the "Bogensberger Mother of God" and the pregnant Virgin as portrayed, in the 18th and 19 Century in many "common than Pilgrimage statues" (see Lechner, p 119). But there were e.g. and representations of the "Visitation", the visit of Mary to Elizabeth carried around.

Austria

One of the customs of the early 1990s from circulating letters from Linz states that "Seeking Shelter" begins nine days before Christmas. The magazine recommends:... "It is Best when we have a reception of the Image of Our Lady on December 16 in the church. Then during the midnight Mass the image is brought in procession back to the Church on Christmas Eve, it must be ensured that artistically acceptable images are selected, the image is not picked up by the next family but brought to it by the previous one in expectation. Along the way the family prays ideally the first two decades of the Joyful mysteries Rosary (aloud or silently), or sings Advent carols. " Vienna in 1990/91 there was a poll that showed the result that 59% of Catholic parishes practiced this tradition of "seeking a shelter for Mary".

Background Info

Web Links
Report on women wearing, introduced in a Catholic parish in Schäftlarn 2003, see

Documents, literature
Lechner, Gregory M.: The Bogensberger miraculous image of "Mary in the hope". In: Mary Everywhere. Landshut 1999, pp. 113-122.
Wolf, Helga Maria: The custom book. Old traditions, new traditions, customs, anti. Vienna 1992

Venerable Bernhard Lehner of Herrngiersdorf (1930 - 1944)

Venerable Bernhard Lehner of Herrngiersdorf (1930 - 1944)

"Little Bernhard," as he is called by his many admirers affectionately, was born on the 4th of January 1930, the son of a carpenter in the Lower Bavarian village of Herrngiersdorf, near Regensburg. In baptism he received the name of the great mystic, St.. Bernard of Clairvaux. Even before his birth, he had been consecrated by his pious mother, Anna, to the Mother of God in Altötting. The large family lived in modest, but quite harmonious proportions. Even in primary school, he attended Holy Mass almost daily in the neighboring parish church in Semerskirchen. He made His first Confession and First Communion on the 16th of  April 1939 which were for him an important experience. This Probably germinated in him already the deeply felt desire: "I want to be something in order to get to heaven." To achieve this lofty goal, the little boy strove daily. So grew in Bernhard the desire to become a priest. His pastor was able to write in good conscience in his application for admission for the episcopal boy's seminary in Obermünster in Regensburg: ". Bernhard Lehner has the inclination and aptitude for the priesthood" After overcoming time-related difficulties - the wretched Nazi regime indeed which held Bavaria firm in its grip - the boy came on the 21st of September 1941 to Regensburg to visit as a seminarian the old school of the cathedral city. In his aspiration, he lived according to the principle: in the praying to be the most pious, the most diligent in studying and in recreation the most cheerful. The pious, fresh boy was loved by all. When he was allowed to receive the sacrament of Confirmation in 1942, he recorded in his diary a yellow star - the day meant to him the pinnacle of his short earthly life. Beginning in December 1943 Bernhard  fell ill of septic diphtheria. Hurriedly he was admitted to the urban children's hospital. Around Christmas, his condition deteriorated rapidly. The soft palate paralysis followed diaphragmatic paralysis.

Bravely, patiently, even cheerfully he endured all the pain. After a bout of weakness on the 16th of January 1944 he seemed to have come to an end. He asked for the last sacraments, and said to his family: "., Let me die: Who will cry when they get to heaven!" Finally, he died on 24 January 1944 to the last fully conscious. All who witnessed his death, had the impression that he had gone home like a saint. Even then his seminary director said: "Now we have an advocate in heaven" when he learned of the death of Bernard; Years later he said: "He was the best seminarian, I had in my 35-year seminary time" On 27 January 1944, a harsh winter day,many of the faithful came including countless children and young people, for burial in the small cemetery of Herrngiersdorf. This was not, of course, apart from the weather, because at that time in 1944 the Bavarian population had truly other problems. The sufferings of the war, Nazi harassment, bombings, food crisis and an uncertain future occupied the people. But at the funeral was a touching feeling of emotion. The participants, relatives, villagers, classmates, seminarians, teachers and seminary directors, they all felt, here's a little 14-year-old boy, whose only desire was to become a priest, was found ready for eternity before God: he was perfected early, he was spared the arduous earthly pilgrimage. In the life of Bernard no striking or even outstanding achievements of holiness stand out. Rather, his holiness came from a conscientious, persevering faithfulness in everyday duties: a "little way" ie, similar to the little St Therese of the Child Jesus.

Also Bernhard had a healthy, natural, fresh, happy and pious presence. But above all, his fine and compassionate, always helpful childlike quality is attractive, who sincerely took an interest in all suffering of those he encountered. The source of this is to be found in his generous love towards God's will and His commandments. Also noteworthy was his ardent devotion to the dear Mother of God, which was expressed in devout faithfulness to the rosary among other things. So he was in his lifetime and even after his death a silent role model for children and adolescents. The boy was, however, only during his serious illness, and on his death bed able to grow beyond himself. "Holy," he seemed to everyone who knew him and were allowed to visit him. His life, suffering and death, especially his love for God and neighbor left a strong and lasting impression. After the war the reputation of Bernhard spread by leaps and bounds as an intercessor at the throne of God, first in his immediate homeland, then in Bavaria and far beyond. The Regensburg Bishop Michael Buchberger (1927 - 1961) was prompted by that fact to initiate the process of beatification from 1950 to 1951. On 14 September 1952 the mortal remains were carried in a solemn transfer and burial of the Servant of God in a tomb of the Herrngiersdorf parish church. About 20,000 of the faithful attended. Since then, the beatification process in Rome is pending and in the meantime was also the basic question of whether one can already speak of heroic virtue in children, has been positively resolved. Thus the conditions for the continuation of the process are present .1994/95, also a necessary addition process has been performed.

There continues to be amazingly great devotion among the Catholic people in continually trust in his intercession. Thousands of answers to prayer are not to be overlooked. During the audience granted by the Prefect of the Congregation of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato, of 2 April 2011 authorized Pope Benedict XVI. the Congregation to promulgate the decree on the heroic virtues of Bernhard Lehner. The church confirmed that: Bernhard lived the Christian virtues of his age and level in  an exceeding manner. He can now be referred to as "venerable servant of God." It is hoped, assuming a detectable miracle that the venerable servant of God Bernhard Lehner will be given the honors of the altar.  Therefore, all the faithful are invited to bear their petitions through his intercession before God in prayer alongside their own concerns. A help and inspiration to offer the following prayer. 

prayer for the beatification of the Venerable Servant of God Bernhard Lehner 

Triune God, the crown of all holiness! You always awaken new saints in your church. We ask that you let your servant Bernhard Lehner, who has to you and neighbor out of love all his duties conscientiously fulfilled, will soon be raised to the honors of the altar, that he may be to all the faithful, especially the children and young people, a model of Christian life and so that you, almighty God, are glorified by him all the more so where you live and reign for ever. Amen.

self-absorbed promethean neopelagianism

Is this directed at traditionalists (from Evangelii Gaudium)?


"The other is the self-absorbed promethean neopelagianism of those

 who ultimately trust only in their own powers and feel superior to 

others because they observe certain rules or remain intransigently 

faithful to a particular Catholic style from the past. A supposed 

soundness of doctrine or discipline leads instead to a narcissistic 

and authoritarian elitism, whereby instead of evangelizing, one 

analyzes and classifies others, and instead of opening the door to 

grace, one exhausts his or her energies in inspecting and verifying.

 In neither case is one really concerned about Jesus Christ or others.



These are manifestations of an anthropocentric immanentism. It is 

impossible to think that a genuine evangelizing thrust could emerge

 from these adulterated forms of Christianity."