.....
this missal is hereafter to be followed absolutely, without any scruple of conscience
or fear of incurring any penalty, judgment or censure, and may freely and
lawfully be used ..... Nor are
superiors, administrators, canons, chaplains, and other secular priests, or
religious, of whatever title designated, obliged to celebrate the Mass
otherwise than as enjoined by Us.
..... Accordingly, no one whatsoever is permitted to infringe or rashly
contravene this notice of Our permission, statute, ordinance, command, precept,
grant, direction, will, decree and prohibition. Should any person venture to
do so, let him understand he will incur the wrath of Almighty God and of the
Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul.
Pope
St. Pius V, Papal Bull, QUO PRIMUM,
Tridentine
Codification of the “received and approved” traditional Roman Rite of the Mass.
First Sunday in Advent
November 30, 2025
The four weeks of Advent are
set apart by the Church to commemorate the ages that intervened between the
fall of our first parents and the birth of Christ which we celebrate at
Christmas. It is a Season of special
prayer and penance mingled with joyful expectation, and calculated to fit our
souls for a worthy keeping of this great solemnity. Advent is also the beginning of the
ecclesiastical year, and as each succeeding year brings us closer to the second
coming of Christ as Judge of the world, this holy time is likewise intended to
make us ready to meet our Judge.
At Christmas Jesus will be
born in our hearts, for at that time the anniversary of His birth will be
celebrated. He refuses nothing, to the
prayer of the Church, His spouse, and thus He will grant to our souls the same
graces which He gave the shepherds and the wise Kings.
Christ will come again also,
at the end of all time, to “condemn the guilty to the flames, and to call the
just with a loving voice to heaven” (Hymn for Matins).
The whole of today’s mass is
a preparation for this double Advent of mercy and justice. Some parts of it can be applied equally to
either (e.g., Introit, Collect, Gradual, Alleluia), while others refer to our
Divine Redeemer’s lowly birth, and others again, (e.g., Epistle and Gospel), to
His coming in the splendor of His power and majesty. The same welcome will be given to us by our
Lord when He comes to judge us, as we give to Him now when coming to redeem
us. Let us prepare for the Christmas
feast by holy prayers and aspirations and by reforming our lives, that we may
be ready for that last great assize upon which depends the fate of our soul for
all eternity. And all this with
confidence, for those “who wait upon the Lord will never be confounded”
(Introit, Gradual, Offertory).
In former times, on this
First Sunday of Advent, all the people of Rome made the station at the Basilica
of St. Mary Major, to assist at the solemn mass which the Pope celebrated,
surrounded by his clergy. This
particular Church was chosen because it is Mary who gave us Jesus and because
relics of the crib in which the Blessed Mother placed her Divine Child are
preserved in this Church.
INTROIT:
Ps. 24. To Thee, O Lord, have I
lifted up my soul. In Thee, O my God, I
put my trust; let me not be ashamed.
Neither let my enemies laugh at me, for none of them that wait on Thee
shall be confounded.
Ps. Show, O Lord, Thy ways to
me, and teach me Thy paths. Glory be,
etc. To Thee, O Lord, etc.
COLLECT:
O Lord, we pray Thee, raise up Thy power and come, that by Thy
protection we may deserve to be rescued from the threatening dangers of our
sins, and be saved by Thy deliverance.
Who liveth and reigneth,
etc.
O God, who wert pleased that Thy Word should, at the message of the
angel, take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant that we, Thy
suppliants, who believe her to be truly the Mother of God, may be helped by her
intercession with Thee. Through our
Lord, etc.
O God, the shepherd and ruler of all the faithful, graciously look upon
Thy servant, Francis, whom Thou hast willed to be the chief pastor of Thy
Church; grant him, we beseech Thee, by word and example, to profit those over
whom he rules, that together with the flock entrusted to him he may attain to
life everlasting. Through our Lord, etc.
EPISTLE: Rom. 13, 11-14.
Brethren, knowing the time, that it is now the hour for us to rise from
sleep: for now our salvation is nearer than when we believed. The night is
past, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness,
and put on the armor of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day: not in
rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and
strife; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.
What does St. Paul teach us in this epistle?
After fully explaining the duties of a Christian life to the Romans who
were converted mainly by St. Peter, he exhorts them to hesitate no longer to
fulfill these duties, and he seeks to move their hearts by this time of grace,
presented them by the Christian dispensation, and by the shortness of the time
of grace.
What is here meant by sleep?
The stupidity and blindness of the soul that, forgetting her God, is
sunk in a lukewarm, effeminate, slothful and lustful life, which, when it is
gone, leaves nothing more than a dream.
Why does St. Paul say, "salvation is nearer"?
He wishes to impress upon the Romans that they now have far greater
hope of salvation than when they first became Christians, and that they should
secure it by a pious life, because death, and the moment on which depended
their salvation, or eternal reward, was drawing near. "What is our
life," says St. Chrysostom, "other than a course, a dangerous course
to death, through death to immortality?"
What is the signification of day and night?
The night signifies the time before Christ, a night of darkness, of
infidelity and of injustice; the day represents the present time, in which by
the gospel Christ enlightens the whole world with the teachings of the true
faith.
What are "the works of darkness"?
All sins, and especially those which are committed in the dark, to shun
the eye of God and man.
What is the "armor of light"?
That faith, virtue and grace, the spiritual armor, with which we battle
against our three enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil, and in which
armor we should walk honestly before all men. A Christian who in baptism has
renounced the devil and all his pomps, must not live
in vice, but must put on Christ Jesus, that is, must by the imitation of
Christ's virtues adorn his soul, as it were, with a beautiful garment. This
text (verse 13) moved St. Augustine to fly from all works of uncleanness in
which he had been involved, and to lead a pure life which he had before thought
difficult.
ASPIRATION: Grant, O Lord, that we may rise by penance
from the sleep of our sins, may walk in the light of Thy grace by the
performance of good works, may put on Thee and adorn our souls with the
imitation of Thy virtues. Amen.
GRADUAL:
Ps. 24. None of them that wait
on Thee shall be confounded, O Lord.
Show, O Lord, Thy ways to me, and teach me Thy paths.
Alleluia, alleluia. Ps. 84. Show us, O Lord Thy mercy, and grant us Thy
salvation. Alleluia
GOSPEL: Luke 21, 25-33.
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: There shall be signs in the
sun, and in the moon, and in the stars: and upon the earth distress of nations,
by reason of the confusion of the roaring of the sea and of the waves, men
withering away for fear and expectation of what shall come upon the whole
world. For the powers of heaven shall be moved; and then they shall see the Son
of man coming in a cloud with great power and majesty. But when these things
begin to come to pass, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption
is at hand. And he spoke to them a similitude: See the fig tree, and all the
trees; when they now shoot forth their fruit, you know that summer is nigh. So
you also, when you shall see these things come to pass, know that the kingdom
of God is at hand. Amen I say to you, this generation shall not pass away till
all things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall
not pass away.
Why does the Church cause the gospel of the Last Judgment to be read on
this day?
To move us to penance, and to induce us to prepare our souls for the
coming of Christ, by placing the Last Judgment before our minds. Should not the
thought of this terrible judgment, when all good and all evil will be revealed,
and accordingly be rewarded or punished in the presence of the whole world‑should not this thought strengthen us in virtue!
What signs will precede the Last Judgment?
The sun will be obscured, the stars will lose their light and disappear
in the firmament (Is. 13:10), lightning and flames will surround the earth, and
wither up every thing; the powers of heaven will be
moved, the elements brought to confusion; the roaring of the sea with the
howling of the winds and the beating of the storms will fill man with terror
and dread. Such evil and distress will come upon the world, that man will
wither away for fear, not knowing whither to turn. Then will appear the sign of
the Son of man in heaven, the holy cross, the terror of the sinners who have
scorned it, the consolation of the just who have loved it (Mt. 24:30).
Why will all this come to pass?
Because as the people love the creatures of God so inordinately, more
than the Creator, and use them only to His dishonor, He will destroy them in
this terrible manner, arming all creatures for vengeance against His enemies
(Wis. 5:8‑24, and showing by the manner of their destruction the evils
which will fall upon all sinners. The darkness of the sun will indicate the
darkness of hell; the blood-red moon, the anger and wrath of God; the
disappearance and falling of the stars, will represent the fall of sinners into
the abyss of hell and their disappearance from earth; and the madness of the
elements, will exhibit the rage of the beasts of hell. Sinners will then
vainly, and too late, repent that they have attached their hearts to things
which will end so horribly, and that only increase their torments.
Why does Christ nevertheless command: "Lift up your heads, for
your redemption is at hand"?
These words are spoken to the just who as long as they live on earth
are like prisoners and exiles, but who at the Last Judgment will be taken body
and soul into their long desired fatherland, the kingdom of heaven: into the
freedom of the children of God. These will have reason to raise their heads,
now bowed in mourning, and to rejoice.
How will the Last Judgment commence?
By the command of God the angels will sound the trumpets, summoning all
men from the four parts of the earth to come to judgment (I Thess. 4:15). Then
the bodies of the dead will unite with their souls, and be brought to the
valley of Josaphat, and there placed, the just on the
right, the wicked on the left (Mt. 25:33). Then the devils as well as the
angels will appear; Christ Himself will be seen coming in a cloud, in such
power and majesty that the sinners will be filled with terror. They will not
dare to look at Him, and will cry to the mountains to fall upon them, and to
the hills to cover them (Lk. 23:30).
How will the judgment be held?
The book of conscience, upon which all men are to be judged, and which
closed with this life, will be opened. All good and evil thoughts, words, deeds
and motives, even the most secret, known only to God, will then be as plainly
revealed to the whole world as if they were written on each one's forehead; by
these each one will be judged, and be eternally rewarded, or eternally
punished. O God! If we must then give an
account of every idle word (Mt. 12:36), how can we stand in the face of so many
sinful words and actions!
Why will God hold a universal public Judgment?
Although immediately after death, a special private judgment of each
soul takes place, God has ordained a public and universal judgment for the
following reasons: First, that it may be clearly shown to all how just has been
His private judgment, and also that the body which has been the instrument of
sin or of virtue may share in the soul's punishment or reward; secondly, that
the justice which they could by no means obtain in this life, may be rendered
before the whole world to the oppressed poor, and to persecuted innocence, and
that the wicked who have abused the righteous, and yet have been considered
honest and good, may be put to shame before all; thirdly, that the graces and
means of salvation bestowed upon each, may be made known; fourthly, that the
blessed providence of God which often permitted the righteous to suffer evil
while the wicked prospered, may be vindicated, and it be shown on that day that
His acts are acts of the greatest wisdom; fifthly, that the wicked may learn
the goodness of God, not for their comfort or benefit, but for their greater
sorrow, that they may see how He rewards even the slightest work performed for
His love and honor; finally, that Christ may be exalted before the wicked on
earth as before the good in heaven, and that the truth of His words may
solemnly be made manifest.
ASPIRATION: Just art Thou O God, and just are Thy
judgments. Ah, penetrate my soul with holy fear of them, that I may be kept
always in awe, and avoid sin. Would that I could say with the penitent St.
Jerome: "Whether I eat or drink, or whatever I do, I seem to hear the
awful sound of the trumpet in my ears: `Arise ye dead, and come to
judgment."
OFFERTORY:
Ps. 24. To Thee have I lifted up
my soul. In Thee, O my God, I put my
trust; let me not be ashamed. Neither
let my enemies laugh at me; for none of them that wait on Thee shall be confounded.
SECRET:
May these sacred rites, O Lord, cleanse us by their potent efficacy,
and bring us with purer hearts to their source and origin. Through
our Lord, etc.
Confirm in our minds, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the mysteries of the
true faith, that we who acknowledge Him who was born of the Virgin to be true
God and true man, may deserve by the saving power of His resurrection to attain
to everlasting joy. Through our Lord,
etc.
Look down favorably, O Lord, we beseech Thee, upon the gifts we have
offered; and let Thy constant protection direct Thy servant Francis, whom Thou hast
chosen to be the chief pastor of Thy Church.
Through our Lord, etc.
COMMUNION:
Ps. 84. The Lord will give
goodness, and our earth shall yield her fruit.
POSTCOMMUNION:
May we receive Thy mercy, O Lord, in the midst of Thy temple, that with
due honors we may prepare for the coming festival of our redemption. Through our Lord, etc.
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that
we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message
of the angel, may by His passion and cross, be brought to the glory of His
resurrection. Through our Lord, etc.
Let the reception of this divine sacrament protect us, O Lord, we
beseech Thee; and may Thy servant Francis, whom Thou hast chosen as the chief
pastor of Thy Church, along with the flock committed to him, derive always from
it protection and strength. Through our
Lord, etc.
Advent is a
penitential season. The world celebrates
during Advent while the Catholic prepares for the coming of Jesus Christ. This coming is not just in the historical
remembrance of the birth of Jesus Christ in the stable in Bethlehem but also
the birth of Jesus Christ in the soul by an increase of grace and love. There is furthermore the future coming of
Jesus Christ as the most just judge.
O Jesus! O Sun of justice! Give
us a clear knowledge of what the world is without Thee; what our understanding
is without Thy light; and what our heart, without Thy divine heat. Open Thou the eyes of our faith; that whilst
seeing with the eyes of the body the gradual decrease of the material light, we
may think of that other darkness, which is in the soul that has not Thee. Then, indeed, will the cry which comes from
the depths of our misery make its way to Thee, and Thou wilt come on the day Thou
hast fixed, dispelling every shadow of darkness by Thy irresistible
brightness.
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, First Sunday of Advent
"Who
governs has received his power from above so that the earthly city be in
service of the heavenly."
St. Gregory the
Great to Emperor Flavius Mauricius Tiberius Augustus
Let those, then, who are not
touched by the tidings of the coming of the heavenly Physician and the good
Shepherd who giveth His life for His sheep, meditate
during Advent on the awful yet certain truth, that so many render the
redemption unavailable to themselves by refusing to co-operate in their own
salvation. They may treat the Child who
is to be born with disdain; but He is also the mighty God, and do they think
they can withstand Him on that day, when He is to come, not to save, as now,
but to judge? Would that they knew more
of this divine Judge, before whom the very saints tremble! Let these, also, use the liturgy of this
season, and they will there learn how much He is to be feared by sinners.
Dom Gueranger, The Liturgical Year, Advent
“Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”
PROPER OF THE SAINTS FOR THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 30th:
Date Day
Feast Rank Color
F/A Mass Time
|
30 |
Sun |
1st Sunday of
Advent |
sd |
V |
|
Mass 9:00 AM; Confession
8:00 AM; Rosary of Reparation before Mass |
|
1 |
Mon |
St. Andrew, Ap (translated from Nov. 30) |
d2cl |
R |
|
Mass 8:30 AM; Rosary of
Reparation before Mass |
|
2 |
Tue |
St. Bibiana,
VM |
sd |
R |
|
Mass 8:30 AM; Rosary of
Reparation before Mass |
|
3 |
Wed |
St. Francis Xavier, C |
dm |
W |
|
Mass 8:30 AM; Rosary of
Reparation before Mass |
|
4 |
Thu |
St. Peter Chrysologus, BpCD St. Barbara, VM |
d |
W |
|
Mass 8:30 AM; Rosary of
Reparation before Mass |
|
5 |
Fri |
Ferial Day St. Sabbas,
Ab FIRST FRIDAY |
|
V |
A |
Mass 8:30 AM; Rosary of
Reparation before Mass; Benediction & Holy Hour of Reparation to the
Sacred Heart after Mass |
|
6 |
Sat |
St. Nicholas, BpC FIRST
SATURDAY |
d |
W |
F/A |
Mass 9:00 AM; Confession
8:00; Benediction & Holy Hour of Reparation with Rosary after Mass |
|
7 |
Sun |
2nd Sunday of
Advent St. Ambrose, BpCD |
sd |
W |
|
Mass 9:00 AM; Confession
8:00 AM; Rosary of Reparation before Mass |
This is
the aim of prayer, this is the purpose of the spiritual marriage, to give birth
to good works and good works alone… Their conception of glory (souls who have
reached the state of divine union) is that of being able in some way to help
the Crucified, especially when they see how often people offend Him, and how
few there are who really care about His honor and are detached from everything
else.
St. Teresa of Avila
Do you wish to
know what foundation our confidence must have?
It must be based on the infinite goodness of God and the merits of the
Passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ, with this condition on our part: a
firm and total resolution to belong wholly to God and to abandon ourselves
entirely and without reservation to His Providence.
St. Francis de
Sales
"Mine are the heavens and
mine is the earth; mine are the people, the righteous are mine, and mine are
the sinners; the angels are mine, and the Mother of God, and all things are
mine; God Himself is mine and for me, because Christ is mine, and all for me. What dost thou, then, ask for, what dost thou
seek, O my soul? All is thine, all is for thee, do not take less, nor rest with the
crumbs which fall from the table of Thy Father.
Go forth and exult in thy glory, hide thyself in it, and rejoice, and
thou shalt obtain all the desires of thy
heart."
St. John of the Cross, Prayer
of the Enamored Soul
As to the numbers who become
Christians, you may understand them from this, that it often happens to me to
be hardly able to use my hands from the fatigue of baptizing: often in a single
day I have baptized whole villages. Sometimes I have lost my voice and strength
altogether with repeating again and again the Credo and the other forms. The
fruit that is reaped by the baptism of infants, as well as by the instruction of
children and others, is quite incredible. These children, I trust heartily, by
the grace of God, will be much better than their fathers. They show an ardent
love for the Divine law, and an extraordinary zeal for learning our holy
religion and imparting it to others. Their hatred for idolatry is marvellous. They get into feuds with the heathen about it,
and whenever their own parents practise it, they
reproach them and come off to tell me at once. Whenever I hear of any act of
idolatrous worship, I go to the place with a large band of these children, who
very soon load the devil with a greater amount of insult and abuse than he has
lately received of honor and worship from their parents, relations, and
acquaintances. The children run at the idols, upset them, dash them down, break
them to pieces, spit on them, trample on them, kick them about, and in short
heap on them every possible outrage.
St. Francis Xavier, Letter
What reverence and awe are
shown to that inner chamber of a king, where he sits in all the majesty of his
power! Therein no man may enter that is
a stranger, or unclean, or unfaithful.
The usages of courts require, that when men came to pay their homage,
everything must be the best, and fairest, and most loyal. Who would go to the palace-gate in rags? Who would go, that knew he was odious to the
prince? So it is with the sanctuary of
the divine Spouse. No one is permitted to
come nigh, but he that is of God’s family, and is intimate, and has a good
conscience, and has a fair name, and leads a holy life. Within the holy place itself God receives but
the Virgin, and spotless virginity.
Hence learn, O Man, to examine thyself: who thou art, and what thou art,
and what merits thou hast. Ask thyself,
after this, if thou mayst dare to penetrate into the
mystery of the birth of thy Lord, or canst be worthy to approach that living
sanctuary, wherein reposes the whole majesty of thy King, and thy God.
St. Peter Chrysologus,
On the Virgin Mary during her expectation.
Within a few blocks around Ss. Peter & Paul Chapel there are
at least five protestant Hispanic churches.
These souls have been lost to the Catholic Church being wholly ignorant
of the doctrinal and moral teachings which must necessarily be believed to save
their souls. December 4 we will begin a
novena to our blessed Mother for the conversion of the Hispanic people of York
to the Catholic Church, outside of which there is no salvation.
Novena to Our
Lady of Guadalupe for the conversion of the Hispanic people of York
(Novena begins December 4th and
ends on December 12th)
Our Lady of Guadalupe, according to your
message in Mexico I venerate you as the Virgin Mother of the true God for whom
we live, the Creator of all the world, Maker of heaven and earth. In spirit I kneel before your most holy image
which you miraculously imprinted upon the cloak of the Indian Juan Diego, and
with the faith of the countless numbers of pilgrims who visit your shrine, I
beg you for this favor: (the conversion of the Hispanic population of York to
the true Church).
Remember, O immaculate Virgin, the words
you spoke to your devout client: “I am a merciful mother to you and to all your
people who love me and trust in me and invoke my help. I listen to their lamentations and solace all
their sorrows and sufferings.” I beg you
to be a merciful mother to me, because I sincerely love you and trust in you
and invoke your help. I entreat you, our
Lady of Guadalupe, to grant my request, if this should be the will of God, in
order that I may bear witness to your love, your compassion, your help and
protection. Do not forsake me in my
needs.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for
us. (Hail Mary three times)
St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra
was one of the three hundred and eighteen bishops, who proclaimed, at Nicaea,
that the Word is consubstantial with the Father. The humiliations of the Son of God did not
scandalize him. Nether the lowliness of the flesh,
which the sovereign Lord of all things assumed to Himself in the womb of the
Virgin, nor the poverty of the crib, hindered him from confessing the Son of
Mary to be Son of God, equal to God; and for this reason, God has glorified
this His servant, and given him the power to obtain, each year, for the
children of the Church, the grace of receiving this same Jesus, the Word, with
simple faith and fervent love.
Dom Gueranger,
The Liturgical Year, Feast of St. Nicholas
In whatever town Francis stops,
wherever he even passes by, he acquires such renown as can scarcely be
believed. I do not wish to write about the things which he does; so sublime
that I do not trust myself adequately to describe them on paper. The life of
Master Francis has created such a stir that his name is celebrated through all
India. . . . How I should like to narrate in detail all the wonders which are
related of Master Francis; believe me, my failure to do so pains me more than
it does you. But I assure you in confidence that God is working through his
means such marvelous things as may not licitly be the subject of idle conversation.
Fr. John Vaz,
companion of St. Francis Xavier, Letter, 1548
There are three comings of our
Lord; the first in the flesh, the second in the soul, the third at the
judgment. The first was at midnight,
according to those words of the Gospel: At midnight there was a cry made, Lo,
the Bride-groom cometh! But this first
coming is long since past, for Christ has been seen
on the earth and has conversed among men.
We are now in the second coming, provided only we are such as that He
may thus come to us; for He has said that if we love Him, he will come unto us
and will take up His abode with us. So
that this second coming is full of uncertainty to us; for who, save the Spirit
of God, knows them that are of God? They
that are raised out of themselves by the desire of heavenly things, know indeed
when He comes; but whence He cometh, or whither He goeth,
they know not. As for the third coming,
it is most certain that it will be, most uncertain when it will be; for nothing
is more sure than death, and nothing less sure than the hour of death. When they shall say, peace and security, says
the apostle, then shall sudden destruction come upon them, as the pains upon
her that is with child, and they shall not escape. So that the first coming was humble and hidden,
the second is mysterious and full of love, the third will be majestic and
terrible. In His first coming, Christ
was judged by men unjustly; in His second, He renders us just by His grace; in
His third, He will judge all things with justice. In His first, a lamb; in His last, a lion; in
the one between the two, the tenderest of
friends.
Peter of Blois, taken from The Liturgical Year
When I have finished baptizing
the people, I order them to destroy the huts in which they keep their idols; and
I have them break the statues of their idols into tiny pieces, since they are
now Christians. I could never come to an
end describing to you the great consolation which fills my soul when I see
idols being destroyed by the hands of those who had been idolaters.
St. Francis Xavier, From his
Letters and Instructions, M. Joseph Constelloe, S. J.
I have found just one Brahmin
and no more in all this coast who is a man of learning: he is said to have
studied in a very famous Academy. Knowing this, I took measures to converse
with him alone. He then told me at last, as a great secret, that the students
of this Academy are at the outset made by their masters to take an oath not to
reveal their mysteries, but that, out of friendship for me, he would disclose
them to me. One of these mysteries was that there only exists one God, the
Creator and Lord of heaven and earth, whom men are bound to worship, for the
idols are simply images of devils. The Brahmins have certain books of sacred
literature which contain, as they say, the laws of God. The masters teach in a
learned tongue, as we do in Latin. He also explained to me these divine
precepts one by one; but it would be a long business to write out his
commentary, and indeed not worth the trouble. Their sages keep as a feast our
Sunday. On this day they repeat at different hours this one player: "I
adore Thee, O God; and I implore Thy help for ever."
They are bound by oath to repeat this prayer frequently, and in a low voice. My
friend added, that the law of nature permitted them to have more wives than
one, and their sacred books predicted that the time would come when all men
should embrace the same religion. After all this he asked me in my turn to
explain the principal mysteries of the Christian religion, promising to keep
them secret. I replied, that I would not tell him a word about them unless he
promised beforehand to publish abroad what I should tell him of the religion of
Jesus Christ. He made the promise, and then I carefully explained to him those
words of Jesus Christ in which our religion is summed up: "He who believes
and is baptized shall be saved." This text, with my commentary on it,
which embraced the whole of the Apostles' Creed, he wrote down carefully, as
well as the Commandments, on account of their close connection with the Creed.
He told me also that one night
he had dreamt that he had been made a Christian to his immense delight, and
that he had become my brother and companion. He ended by begging me to make him
a Christian secretly. But as he made certain conditions opposed to right and
justice, I put off his baptism. I don't doubt but that by God's mercy he will
one day be a Christian. I charged him to teach the ignorant and unlearned that
there is only one God, Creator of heaven and earth; but he pleaded the
obligation of his oath, and said he could not do so, especially as he was much
afraid that if he did it he should become possessed by an evil spirit.
St. Francis Xavier, Letter
THE LORD
COMETH FROM AFAR
FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT
PRESENCE of GOD ‑ The
Lord is coming; I place myself in His presence and go to meet Him with all the
energy of my will.
MEDITATION:
I. “The name of the Lord cometh from afar…
. I look from afar, and behold I see the power of God coming…. Go out to meet Him, and say, ‘Tell us if You
are He who shall rule….’” These words are taken from today’s liturgy, and in
reply, it invites us, “Come, let its adore the King, the Lord who is coming!”
(RB)
This coming was expected for long ages; it
was foretold by the prophets, and desired by all the just who were not granted
to see its dawn. The Church commemorates and renews this expectation with each
recurring Advent, expressing this longing to the Savior who is to come. The
desire of old was sustained solely by hope, but it is now a confident desire,
founded on the consoling reality of the Redemption already accomplished.
Although historically completed nineteen centuries ago, this longing should be
actualized daily, renewed in ever deeper and fuller reality in every Christian
soul. The spirit of the Advent liturgy, commemorating the age‑long expectation of the Redeemer, will prepare us to
celebrate the mystery of the Word made Flesh by arousing in each one of us an
intimate, personal expectation of the renewed coming of Christ to our soul.
This coming is accomplished by grace; to the degree in which grace develops and
matures in us, it becomes more copious, more penetrating, until it transforms
the soul into an alter Christus. Advent is a season
of waiting and of fervent longing for the Redeemer: “Drop down dew, ye heavens,
and let the clouds rain the just One!” (ibid.)
2. In today’s Epistle (Rom 13, 11‑14),
St. Paul exhorts us, “Brethren, it is now the hour . . . to rise from sleep.”
During Advent, the “springtime” of the Church, we must arouse ourselves and
bring forth new fruits of sanctity. Even
now, the Apostle shows us the great fruits of Advent: “Let us therefore cast
off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light… put ye on the Lord
Jesus Christ.” If we have been somewhat
drowsy and languid in Our Lord’s service, now is the time to arouse ourselves
to a new life, to strip ourselves generously of our meanness and weakness, and
to “put on Jesus Christ,” that is, His holiness. In order to help us attain this end, Jesus
encourages us by reminding us of His love in coming as our Redeemer. “He comes to meet us with His grace”; it is
infinite mercy that inclines to us.
On the other hand, the Church, in today’s
Gospel (Lk 21, 25-33), puts before us the last coming
of Jesus as supreme Judge, “and then they shall see the Son of Man coming in a
cloud, with great power and majesty.” He came with love to Bethlehem; He comes
with grace into our souls; He will come with justice at the end of the world:
Christ’s triple coming, the synthesis of Christianity, an invitation to a
vigilant, trusting expectation, “Lift up your heads, for your redemption is at
hand!”
COLLOQUY:
O My God, Word of the Father, Word made
flesh for love of us, You assumed a mortal body in order to suffer and be
immolated for us. I wish to prepare for
Your coming with the burning desires of the prophets and the just who in the
Old Testament sighed after You, the one Savior and Redeemer. “O Lord, send Him whom You are going to
send…. As You have promised, come and deliver us!” I want to keep Advent in my
soul, that is, a continual longing and waiting for the great Mystery wherein
You, O Word, became flesh to show me the abyss of Your redeeming, sanctifying
mercy.
O sweetest Jesus, You come to me with Your
infinite love and abundance of Your grace; You desire to engulf my soul in
torrents of mercy and charity in order to draw it to You. Come, O Lord, come! I, too, wish to run to You with love, but
alas! My love is so limited, weak, and
imperfect! Make it strong and generous;
enable me to overcome myself, so that I can give myself entirely to You. Yes, my love can become strong because “its
foundation is the intimate certainty that it will be repaid by the love of God. O Lord, I cannot doubt Your tenderness,
because You have given me proofs of it in so many ways, with the sole purpose
of convincing me of it. Therefore,
trusting in Your love, my weak love will become strong with Your strength. What a consolation it will be, O Lord, at the
moment of death to think that we shall be judged by Him whom we have loved
above all things! Then we can enter Your
presence with confidence, despite the weight of our offenses!” (T. J. Way, 40)
O Lord, give me love like this! I desire it ardently, not only to escape Your
stern eye at Judgment, but especially in order to repay You in some degree for
Your infinite charity.
O Lord, do not, I beseech You, permit that
this exceeding great love which led You to become incarnate for my salvation,
be given in vain! My poor soul needs You
so much! It sighs for You as for a
compassionate physician, who alone can heal its wounds, draw it out of its
languor and tepidity, and infuse into it new vigor, new enthusiasm, new
life. Come, Lord, come! I am ready to welcome Your work with a
docile, humble heart, ready to let myself be healed, purified, and strengthened
by You. Yes, with Your help, I will make
any sacrifice, renounce everything that might hinder Your redeeming work in
me. Show Your power, O Lord, and
come! Come, delay no longer!
Besides these two dangers (in
going to China), there are others much greater which do not affect the people
of the land, and which would take too long to recount, although I will not omit
to mention a few. The first is to cease to hope and confide in the mercy of
God, since it is for His love and service that we are going to manifest His law
and Jesus Christ, His Son, our Redeemer and Lord, as He well knows. Since
through His holy mercy, He gave us these desires, to distrust His mercy and
power now, because of the dangers in which we could see ourselves for His
service, is a much greater danger (for if He is served more, He will protect us
from the dangers of this life) than the evils which can be inflicted upon us by
all the enemies of God, since without God's license and permission, the devils
and their ministers cannot harm us in any way.
And we must also strengthen
ourselves with the saying of the Lord that says: "He that loves his life in
this world will lose it, and he who loses it for the sake of God will find
it," which is in keeping with what Christ our Lord also says: "He who
puts his hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom of
God."
We, considering these dangers to
the soul, which are much greater than those of the body, find that it is safer
and more secure to pass through bodily dangers than to be caught in spiritual
dangers before God. We are consequently determined to go to China by any way
whatever. I hope in God our Lord that the outcome of our voyage will be to the
increase of our holy faith, no matter how much the enemies and their ministers
persecute us, since "if God is for us, who will be victorious over
us?"
St. Francis Xavier, Letter
Nothing indicates better the
nature of self-love, or should make it more hateful to us, than the idea that
it is the rival of the love of God. Homines sunt voluntates,
says St. Augustine: Men are their wills.
We can bestow our whole love on but one only of two objects; God or
self. If we put God first and refer all
things to Him, then His love will make us good and pleasing in His sight,
imparting a supernatural value to all our actions, and perfecting us as we grow
in purity and simplicity. If, on the
other hand, we refer everything to ourselves, our self-love will upset God’s
order in us, rendering us most displeasing to Him, vitiating actions otherwise
holy, and lowering us in proportion to the sway it exercises in our hearts.
John Grou,
S. J., Spiritual Maxim
"My God! I believe so firmly that Thou watchest over all who hope in Thee, and that we can want
for nothing when we rely upon Thee in all things, that I am resolved for the
future to have no anxieties, and to cast all my cares upon Thee."
St. Claude de la Colombiere, S. J.
At other times during the Holy
Sacrifice, he was seen raised from the ground a cubit and more so that while
seeing the greatness of the miracle, the people might acknowledge the sanctity
of the servant of God. At Comorin, when the pagans were not moved by his words,
Xavier asked that a tomb which had been sealed the day before should be opened.
Then indicating that this would be a sign of God's approval of Christianity, he
called to the body to rise. The dead man came to life, with hundreds of natives
embracing the faith as a consequence. In the same city on another occasion,
Francis healed a beggar with ulcerous legs when in a burst of heroism he drank
the putrid water in which the running sores had been washed.
Also in east India, Xavier brought
back to life a young man who had died of a pestilential fever, and was being
carried to the cemetery. In the city of Combutura, a
boy had fallen into a deep well and drowned. His body was later brought up to
the surface. Francis prayed over the dead child and then, taking it by the
hand, ordered it in the name of Jesus Christ to rise. Immediately the boy
returned to life. In Japan, a merchant, blind for years, was given back his
sight when Francis recited the Gospels and made the sign of the cross over his
head. On one occasion, a small crucifix which the missionary had lost in the
ocean was restored to him by a sea crab when he reached the shore.
Urban VIII, Bull of
Canonization of St. Francis Xavier issued by on August 6, 1623, the miracles,
with certifying documentation, make up the bulk of the nineteen pages of the
papal document
For
Catholics, Advent is the Penitential Season of preparation for the celebration
during the seasons of Christmas and Epiphany.
For the modern world, Advent is a season of celebration followed by a
state of drunken stupor, depression and spiritual desolation during Christmas
and Epiphany.
IF our holy mother the Church
spends the time of Advent in this solemn preparation for the threefold coming of
Jesus Christ; if, after the example of the prudent virgins, she keeps her lamp
lit ready for the coming of the Bridegroom; we, being her members and her
children, ought to enter into her spirit, and apply to ourselves this warning
of our Saviour: "Let your loins be girt, and
lamps burning in your hands, and ye yourselves be like unto men who wait for
their Lord !" The Church and we have, in reality, the same hopes. Each one
of us is, on the part of God, an object of mercy and care, as is the Church
herself. If she is the temple of God, it is because she is built of living
stones; if she is the bride, it is because she consists of all the souls which
are invited to eternal union with God. If it is written that the Saviour hath purchased the Church with His own Blood, may
not each one of us say of himself those words of St. Paul, "Christ hath
loved me, and hath delivered Himself up for me"? Our destiny being the
same, then, as that of the Church, we should endeavour
during Advent, to enter into the spirit of preparation, which is, as we have
seen, that of the Church herself.
And firstly, it is our duty
to join with the saints of the old Law in asking for the Messias,
and thus pay the debt which the whole human race owes to the divine mercy. In
order to fulfill this duty with fervour, let us go
back in thought to those four thousand years, represented by the four weeks of
Advent, and reflect on the darkness and crime which filled the world before our
Saviour’s coming. Let our hearts be filled with
lively gratitude towards Him who saved His creature man from death, and who
came down from heaven that He might know our miseries by himself experiencing
them, yes, all of them excepting sin. Let us cry to Him with confidence from
the depths of our misery; for, notwithstanding His having saved the work of His
hands, He still wishes us to beseech Him to save us. Let therefore our desires
and our confidence have their free utterance in the ardent supplications of the
ancient prophets, which the Church puts on our lips during these days of
expectation; let us give our closest attention to the sentiments which they
express.
This first duty complied
with, we must next turn our minds to the coming which our Saviour
wishes to accomplish in our own hearts. It is, as we have seen, a coming full
of sweetness and mystery, and consequence of the first; for the good Shepherd
comes not only to visit the flock in general, but He extends His solicitude to
each one of the sheep, even to the hundredth which is lost. Now, in order to
appreciate the whole of this ineffable mystery, we must remember that, since we
can be pleasing to our heavenly Father only inasmuch as He sees within us His
Son Jesus Christ, this amiable Saviour deigns to come
into each one of us, and transform us, if we will but consent, into Himself, so
that henceforth we may live, not we, but He in us. This is, in reality, the one
grand aim of the Christian religion, to make man divine through Jesus Christ:
it is the task which God has given to His Church to do, and she says to the
faithful what St. Paul said to his Galatians: "My little children, of whom
I am in labour again, until Christ be formed within
you!"
The Liturgical Year, excerpt
from Practice During Advent
Let
us consider the wretched condition of the human race, at the time of Christ’s
coming into the world. The diminution of truths is emphatically expressed by
the little light which the earth enjoys at this season of the year. The ancient
traditions are gradually becoming extinct; the Creator is not acknowledged,
even in the very work of His hands; everything has been made God, except the
God who made all things. This frightful pantheism produces the vilest
immorality, both in society and at large, and in individuals. There are no
rights acknowledged, save that of might. Lust, avarice, and theft, are honoured by men in the gods of their altars. There is no
such thing as family, for divorce and infanticide are legalized; mankind is
degraded by a general system of slavery; nations are being exterminated by
endless wars. The human race is in the last extreme of misery; and unless the
hand that created it reform it, it must sink a prey to crime and bloodshed.
There are indeed some few just men still left upon the earth, and they struggle
against the torrent universal degradation; but they cannot save the world; the
world despises them, and God will not accept their merits as a palliation of
the hideous leprosy which covers the earth. All flesh has corrupted its way,
and is more guilty than even in the days of the deluge; and yet, a second
destruction of the universe would but manifest anew the justice of God; it is
time that a deluge of His divine mercy should flood the universe, and that He
who made man, should come down and heal him. Come then, O eternal Son of God !
give life again to this dread body; heal all its wounds; purify it; let grace
super-abound, where sin before abounded; and having converted the world to Thy
holy law, Thou wilt have proved to all ages that Thou, who camest,
wast in very truth the Word of the Father; for as
none but a God could create the world, so as none but a God could save it from satan and sin, and restore it to justice and holiness.
Dom
Prosper Gueranger, O.S.B., The Liturgical Year: Advent
St.
Bibiana, Virgin & Martyr
In the fourth century, there lived at Rome
a virgin celebrated among the Christians for her beauty and her modesty named Bibiana. Flavian, her father,
was, in the reign of the godless Emperor Julian the Apostate, dispossessed of
all his honors and banished from his country on account of his faith. He ended
his life in misery, a true martyr for Christ's sake. Dafrosa,
her mother, was for the same reason, after her husband's banishment, locked up
in her own house, that she might starve. Bibiana and Demetria, the two daughters, shared their mother's
imprisonment. But as neither the mother nor her daughters became emaciated by
the hunger they, suffered, and, on the contrary, appeared more vigorous than
before, and could not be frightened into denying Christ, the mother, by the
order of the governor Apronianus, was banished from
the country and then beheaded. Bibiana and Demetria were, at the same time, deprived of all their
possessions, in the hope that poverty would cause them to abandon their faith.
But the Christian heroines regarded it as little as those to whom St. Paul
writes: "You have received the loss of your possessions joyfully, because
you know that you have to expect greater goods in heaven." They said
cheerfully: "It is better to lose the temporal goods, which we cannot
possess long, than the eternal." The Governor, after a time, called both
of them, and promised that all that had been taken from them would be restored,
if they would only worship the gods; but if they refused, he threatened them
with imprisonment, a cruel martyrdom and the most painful death.
The Christian virgins were as unmoved
by the flatteries and promises of the tyrant, as by his menaces. "We
worship the true God," said Bibiana, "and
are ready to die rather than to stain our souls by sacrificing to the
gods." Demetria spoke in the same manner, but
hardly had the words left her lips, when she sank down and expired. Bibiana was given into the charge of a wicked and cunning
woman, named Rufina, who was to cause her to abandon
her faith; for, the heathens knew, by experience, that none more easily denied
Christ than those who had lost their purity. Rufina,
the wicked woman, left nothing untried. She represented the pleasures of the
world to Bibiana in such a manner, that she thought
the virgin would surely drink the poison thus put to her lips; but all her
wiles were of no effect. Although the maiden was kept like a prisoner by Rufina and could not escape, yet she remained unharmed by
the fire of temptation. Calling ceaselessly to God for aid and strength, she
was so graciously sustained, that she not only manifested not the least
pleasure at Rufina's wicked behavior, but was more
and more strengthened in virtue. Rufina, enraged at
this, maltreated the innocent virgin by beating her most violently. All that
her rage suggested was employed to gain her end; but the virgin, upheld by the
Almighty, remained true to her resolution, rather to lose her life by the most
cruel martyrdom, than to stain her purity.
When, at length, Rufina
saw that her endeavors were entirely useless, she informed the tyrant Apronianus of her failure, and persuaded him immediately to
sentence Bibiana to death. The tyrant, without delay,
ordered her to be tied to a column, and beaten to death. The order was executed,
and Bibiana repeatedly declared that she regarded it
as a high honor to be thought worthy to die for Christ's sake. With her eyes
raised to heaven, she stood motionless during her martyrdom, until her whole
body was one mass of bloody wounds, and she gave her unspotted soul to the
keeping of her heavenly Bridegroom in the year 363 A.D. According to the
tyrant's command, her holy body was left on the public road, to serve as a prey
to the dogs; but it remained untouched, until a pious priest carried it
secretly away, and buried it beside the grave of her mother and sister. At
present there stands a beautiful church on the spot, built in honor of the holy
martyr, and in commemoration of the sufferings and death of her mother and
sister.
Glorious
apostle of Jesus Christ, St. Francis Xavier, who didst impart His divine light
to the nations that were sitting in the shadows of death ! we, though unworthy
of the name of Christians, address our prayers to thee, that by the charity
which led thee to sacrifice everything for the conversion of souls, thou
wouldst deign to prepare us for the visit of the Saviour,
whom our faith and our love desire. Thou wert the father of infidel nations; be
the protector, during this holy season, of them that believe in Jesus Christ.
Before thy eyes had contemplated the Lord Jesus, thou didst make Him known to
countless people; now that thou seest Him face to
face, obtain for us that, when He is come, we may see Him with that simple and
ardent faith of the Magi, those glorious first-fruits of the nations to which
thou didst bear the admirable light.
Remember
also, O great apostle, those nations which thou didst evangelize, and where
now, by a terrible judgement of God, the word of life
has ceased to bring forth fruit. Pray for the vast empire of China, on which
thou didst look when dying, but which was not blessed with thy preaching. Pray
for Japan, thy dear garden which has been laid waste by the savage wild beast,
of which the psalmist speaks. May the blood of the martyrs which was poured out
on that land like water, bring it the long-expected fertility. Bless, too, all
the missions which our holy mother the Church has undertaken in those lands
where the cross has not yet triumphed. May the heart of the infidel be opened
to the grand simplicity and light of faith; may the seed bring forth fruit a
hundred-fold; may the number of thy successors in the new apostolate ever
increase; may their zeal and charity fail not; may their toil receive its
reward of abundant fruit; and may the crown of martyrdom, which they receive,
be not only the recompense but the perfection and the triumph of their
apostolic ministry. Recommend to our Lord the innumerable members of that
Association, which is the means of the faith being propagated through the world,
and which has thee for its patron. Pray, with a filial affection and
earnestness, for that holy Society, of which thou art so bright an ornament,
and which reposes on thee its firmest confidence. May it more and more flourish
under the storm of trial which never leaves it at rest; may it be multiplied,
that so the children of God may be multiplied by its labours;
may it ever have ready, for the service of the Christian world, zealous
apostles and doctors; may it not be in vain that it bears the name of Jesus.
Dom
Prosper Gueranger, The Liturgical Year, St.
Francis Xavier
What
is certain is that in ages of crisis, such the one we are experiencing, all of
the baptized have the right to defend their faith, even by opposing
non-compliant Pastors. Authentically orthodox pastors and theologians for their
part, have the duty to study the extent and limits of this right to resistance.
Roberto
de Mattei, Corrispondenza Romana, 11-5-14
Of the saints whose feasts are kept during Advent, five are virgins. The
first, St. Bibiana, whom we honour
to-day, is a daughter of Rome; the second, St. Barbara, is the glory of the
eastern Churches; the third, St. Eulalia of Merida,
is one of Spain’s richest treasures; the fourth, St. Lucy, belongs to beautiful
Sicily; the fifth, St. Odilia, is claimed by France.
These five wise virgins lighted their lamps and watched, waiting for the coming
of the Spouse. Such was their constancy and fidelity, that four of them shed
their blood for the love of Him, after whom they longed. Let us take courage by
this noble example; and since we have not, as the apostle expresses it, as yet
resisted unto blood, let us not think it hard if we suffer fatigue and trouble
in the holy exercises of this penitential season of Advent: He, for whom we do
them all, will soon be with us and repay us.
Dom Gueranger, The Liturgical Year
“Judgment
of the Church”
Whatever, therefore, in things human is in any way of a sacred
character whatever belongs either of its own nature or by reason of the
end to which it is referred, to the salvation of souls or to the worship of
God, is wholly subject to the power and judgment of the Church.
Pope Leo XIII, Immortale
Dei
“If anyone says that the received and approved rites customarily used
in the Catholic Church for the solemn administration of the Sacraments can be
changed into other new rites by any pastor in the Church whosoever, let him be
anathema.”
Council of Trent, Canon 13 on the Sacraments
“If anyone rejects any written or unwritten tradition of the Church,
let him be anathema.”
Second Council of Nicea
“Let everything that conflicts with ecclesiastical tradition and
teaching, and that has been innovated and done contrary to the examples
outlined by the saints and the venerable Fathers, or that shall hereafter at
any time be done in such a fashion, be anathema.”
Second Council of Nicea
In
the message of Fatima the clergy are not martyred, they are slaughtered.
I expect to die in
my bed; my successor will die in prison; and his successor will die a martyr in
the public square. His successor will pick up the shards of a ruined society
and slowly help rebuild civilization, as the Church has done so often in human
history.
Cardinal Francis
George of Chicago
There wholly escapes you the character of the Catholic Church .... You
are like one examining the windows of Chartres from within by candle-light but
we have the sun shining through . . . . For what is the Catholic Church? It is
that which replies, co-ordinates, establishes. It is that within which is right
order; outside the puerilities and the despairs. It is the possession of
perspective in the survey of the world .... Here alone is promise, and here
alone is foundation. Those of us who boast so stable an endowment make no claim
thereby to personal peace; we are not saved thereby alone .... But we are of so
glorious a company that we receive support, and have communion. The Mother of
God is also our own. Our dead are with us. Even in these our earthly miseries
we always hear the distant something of an eternal music, and smell a native
air. There is a standard set for us whereto our whole
selves respond, which is that of an inherited and endless life, quite full, in
our own country. You may say, "all that is rhetoric." You would be
wrong, for it is rather vision, recognition, and testimony. But take it for
rhetoric. Have you any such? Be it but rhetoric, whence does that stream flow?
Or what reserve is that which can fill even such a man as myself with fire? Can
your opinion (or doubt or gymnastics) do the same? I think not! One thing in
this world is different from all others. It has a personality and a force. It
is recognized and (when recognized) most violently hated or loved. It is the
Catholic Church. Within that household the human spirit has roof and hearth.
Outside it is the night.
In haec urbe lux,
sollennis, Ver aeternum, pax perennis, Et aeterna gaudia.
Hilaire Belloc, Defender of the Faith
The Fall of Simon the Magician and his “lying wonders”!
For there shall arise false Christs, etc. Signs, wrought by art magic, by the power of
the devil, whom many heresiarchs have had as a familiar spirit, as I have shown
in I Tim. 4:1. Such was their great
prince Simon Magus (Simon the Magician), who deluded Nero and the Romans, so
that they erected a statue to him at Rome; but at length he himself, flying
through the air by the aid of the devil, was dashed down to the earth by the
prayers of St. Peter, and falling upon a stone, broke his knees “so that he who
had attempted to fly was not able to walk; and he who had taken wings, lost his
legs,” as S. Maximus says (Hom.
5, de SS. Petro et Paulo).
Cornelius a Lapide,
The Great Commentary, Matt 24:24
The Barbarian hopes — and that
is the mark of him, that he can have his cake and eat it too. He will consume
what civilization has slowly produced after generations of selection and
effort, but he will not be at pains to replace such goods, nor indeed has he a
comprehension of the virtue that has brought them into being. Discipline seems
to him irrational, on which account he is ever marvelling
that civilization, should have offended him with priests and soldiers .... In a
word, the Barbarian is discoverable everywhere in this, that he cannot make:
that he can befog and destroy but that he cannot sustain; and of every
Barbarian in the decline or peril of every civilization exactly that has been
true.
Hilaire
Belloc, Defender of the Faith
If God bids us
rather lose our own life than give up the salvation of souls, we are determined
to obey His command, with His own good assistance, and supplied by Him with
strength and courage.
St. Francis
Xavier
Indulgences for the Blue Scapular, (the
Scapular of the Immaculate Conception)
“As for me, I would take all scapulars. But
above all you must know that the scapular of the Immaculate Conception, which
is blessed by the Theatine Fathers, besides all its
partial indulgences, has all the indulgences granted to whatever religious
order, whatever devotion, whatever person there can be. And particularly that
by reciting six times Pater,
Ave, and Gloria, in honor of the Most Holy Trinity and Mary
Immaculate, can be gained each time all the indulgences of Rome, of Portiuncula, of Jerusalem, and of Galicia, which amounts to
533 plenary indulgences, without speaking of partial indulgences, which are
innumerable.”
St. Alphonsus Liguori, Glories of Mary. These indulgences have
been confirmed by Gregory XVI in a decree dated July 12, 18
"But you will say, your punishment compels you to confess that the
end is now approaching, seeing the fulfillment of that which was foretold. For
it is certain there is no country, no place in our time, which is not affected
or troubled. But if those evils which mankind now suffer are sure signs that
our Lord is now about to come, what means that which the Apostle says, For when
they shall say peace and safety. Let us see then if it be not perhaps better to understand the words of
prophecy to be not so fulfilled, but rather that they will come to pass when
the tribulation of the whole world shall be such that it shall belong to the
Church, which shall be troubled by the whole world, not to those who shall
trouble it. For they are those who shall say, Peace and safety. But now
these evils which are counted the greatest and most immoderate, we see to be
common to both the kingdoms of Christ and the Devil. For the good and the evil
are alike afflicted with them, and among these great evils is the yet universal
resort to licentious feasts. Is not this the being dried up from fear, or
rather the being burnt up from lust?"
St. Augustine, commentary on St. Luke, 21:25-33
RATZINGER/HEGELIAN
VERSION OF DOCTRINAL DEVELOPMENT
In contrast to
the Hermeneutic of Continuity/Discontinuity we have the Hermeneutic of Reform.
The nature of Reform lies in the interplay on the different levels between
continuity and discontinuity.
Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger
It must not be held incredible
that in a faithful soul which has already been tried and proved and purged in
the fire of tribulations and trials, and found faithful in love, there should
be fulfilled that which was promised by the Son of God: namely, that, if any
man loved Him, the Blessed Trinity would come to dwell within him and would
abide in him. And this comes to pass when the understanding is divinely
illumined in the Wisdom of the Son, and the
will is made glad in the Holy Spirit, and the Father, with His power and
strength, absorbs the soul in the embrace and abyss of His sweetness.
St. John of the Cross
Novus
Ordo Popes and their “subtle” sins against the
Catholic Faith
Many men sin against Faith in
an even more subtle way through the sins against the Holy Ghost, namely, the
sins of despair, presumption, impenitence, obstinacy, resisting the known truth
and envy of someone else's spiritual good.
The sins against the Holy Ghost are not sins of weakness or
ignorance. They are sins of certain malice. By despair a man rejects God's goodness and
mercy. By presumption he rejects God's
justice. By impenitence he refuses to
turn from sin to God. By obstinacy a man
hardens his will in sin. A man sins in
resisting the known truth because he does so in order to sin more freely. Lastly a man sins by envying someone else's
spiritual good because he hates the increase of God's grace in the world. In all these sins there is great danger for
man because these sins mean that man is deliberately refusing to consider those
truths and motives which would keep him from sin and enable him to turn to
God. It is for this reason that the sins
against the Holy Ghost are said to be unforgivable. It is not that God is unwilling to forgive
any sins. It is rather that in these
sins a man shows that he does not wish forgiveness.
Fr. Walter Farrell, O.P.,
S.T.M., My Way of Life, Pocket edition of St. Thomas
The
‘householder, bringeth forth out of her treasures new
things and old.’
Dogma:
The proximate rule of faith - Old because it is a doctrine revealed by Jesus
Christ; New because it is formally and infallibly defined by the Magisterium.
And now, if a single individual, a scribe instructed in the kingdom of
heaven, be such a householder, how much more the holy Church of Jesus Christ,
headed by the successor of St. Peter! Long before our Saviour
had actually given to St. Peter the supreme charge of his Church Ho asked him,
“Who, thinkest thou, is that faithful and wise
steward whom the Lord hath set over His family, to give them their measure of
wheat in due season?” (Luke 41:42) Whether St. Peter surmised at that time that
he himself was to be raised to that office, as the question addressed to him in
preference to the other Apostles insinuated, we will not discuss at present. So
much, however, was certain: that one was to be set over the whole household of
the Lord by the Lord Himself. In the present parable lie is called “a man that
is a householder”; again he is called “the faithful and wise steward whom the
Lord hath set over his family.” In both cases the individual thus placed above
all others has a treasure to dispose of according to the needs of times and
circumstances. In the parable he is described as one “instructed in the kingdom
of heaven” ; therefore he possesses full knowledge of the teaching and
government of the true Church of God. In the text above quoted he is a
“faithful and wise steward” — faithful to his trust, wise in his government and
dispensation of the goods entrusted to his care. All this perfectly agrees with
what he had said to St. Peter: “I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not,
and thou once converted confirm thy brethren.” “Feed My lambs, feed My sheep”
(or, in the literal translation of the original Greek text: “Be a shepherd of
My lambs, be a shepherd of My sheep” ). Thus we see that Christ conferred on
St. Peter and his successors, 1st, the prerogative of unerring faith,
comprising all the doctrines of Jesus Christ without alteration (“thy faith fail
not ”) ; 2d, the prerogative of the fulness of power
in the dispensation of the means of grace (“their measure of wheat”)—wheat is
nourishment for the body; the nourishment of the soul is divine grace (“life
everlasting”) ; 3d, the prerogative of supreme power of government over clergy
and laity (“feed My lambs, feed My sheep”). These prerogatives were to be
exercised by St. Peter and his successors, not all at once and everywhere
indiscriminately, but according to times and circumstances, as the good of the
Church and the wants of the faithful required (“to give them their measure of
wheat in due season”). But when or wherever they exercised them they acted the
part of the “householder bringing forth out of his treasure new things and
old.” They are new because
newly enacted, declared, defined; they are old because they contain no new
revelation or any assumption of power never granted by Christ, but simply old
truths under new forms, the old power exercised under new circumstances, etc.
The Church of Christ, after existing almost nineteen hundred years, had
as good a right to meet in council in the Vatican at Rome, under the presidency
of Pius IX., the late successor of St. Peter, as it had in the first century of
its existence, when St. Peter presided in person, at the Council of Jerusalem.
Now, as then, it has a right to decide which of the prevailing opinions is in
conformity with the teaching of Jesus Christ and belongs to the sacred deposit
of faith “handed down to the saints,” (Jude 1:3) and which is against it and it
can say with as much truth as the Apostles : “It hath seemed good to the Holy
Ghost and to us.” (Acts 15:28) If it is true the Holy Ghost makes no new
revelation to the Church, nor does He teach her anything which Jesus Christ has
not taught her before; on the contrary, our Saviour
says : “He shall glorify Me : because He shall receive of Mine, and shall show
it to you.” (John 16:14) Hence the dogmatic definitions of the popes and
general councils of the Church are not new revelations, but a new definition,
under the guidance of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of truth, that such a doctrine
belongs to the sacred deposit of faith preached by Jesus Christ, and
consequently is received and approved of by the Church, or that another is
opposed to it, and therefore is rejected and condemned. That same doctrine
belonged to the Church or was opposed to it from the first day when the law of
Christ was promulgated. He Himself revealed the articles of faith, but left to
His Church, presided over by St. Peter and his successors, “whose faith fails
not,” to decide what was in accordance with His teaching when, in the course of
time, errors were started that threatened to subvert it. Thus the Church, as a
good ‘householder, bringeth forth out of her
treasures new things and old.’
Fr. Joseph Prachensky, The Church of the Parables & True Spouse of The Suffering Saviour
There
is no better time to begin THE LITURGICAL
YEAR than at the beginning of the Liturgical Year.
The reader of these words has in his hands the first volume of the greatest and most complete work ever written about the liturgy of the Catholic Church. This is to speak of the liturgy — above all, Holy Mass — as celebrated according to the principal historical rite of the Church in the West, often and incorrectly called the Tridentine.
As is clear from the work itself, it is incorrect to call the rite Tridentine inasmuch as the Church fathers convened in the Council of Trent devised or innovated nothing liturgical. All they did was codify tradition and practices with roots far more ancient than the 16th century. Tracing these roots is part of what endows the fifteen volumes of The Liturgical Year with their unique richness.
That richness is owed still more, however, to the genius and overarching vision of the volumes author, Dom Prosper Guéranger. It is true that when he died in 1875, the work was unfinished; it had to be completed by the monks of Solesmes. Yet, the monks were Dom Guéranger’s spiritual sons. Besides having his notes, they knew his mind, it was he who had trained them in scholarship as well as liturgical practice. In short, they were as one. As a result, it is impossible to discern where he left off and they took up the work. The finished product certainly does not read like that of a committee. It is nothing like the compendious religious works to which we have become accustomed in recent decades, such as The Catechism of the Catholic Church, which usually are the product of a committee, and read like it.
The Church in France in the 19th century required a man of genius and great vision like Don Guéranger to do all that he accomplished. After all, it was less than fifteen years before his birth in 1805 that a revolutionary government had actually made the Church illegal and thousands of priests and religious sisters paid with their lives or were driven into exile for not abjuring the Faith. Four years after his birth, a French ruler, Napoleon Bonaparte, did not scruple to make a prisoner of a pope, Pius VII, holding him in captivity until 1814.
If little could look less promising than a career in the Church when Dom Guéranger was ordained in 1827, the task he set himself in 1831 seemed simply impossible. It was nothing less than re-establishing the Benedictine Order in France, with the little priory of St. Peter in Solesmes as its center. Yet, by September, 1837, a mere four years after Dom Guéranger and four other priests took up residence, Pope Gregory XVI elevated the priory into an abbey, constituting it the head of the French Congregation of the Order of Saint Benedict.
It was a struggle at times simply to keep the abbey open, but in the end, the work begun in the 1830s did not merely prosper. So flourishing did it become that by the end of the 20th century, monks of a French daughter-house of Solesmes, Notre Dame de Fontgombault, would found a monastic community in our own country. Now the beautiful tones of Gregorian Chant can be heard in the Oklahoma night.
There was another of Dom Guéranger’s achievements— probably the one that mattered most to him. When he was ordained, France was a hodge-podge of diocesan rites, the legacy of too many years of rampant Gallicanism, and pure Gregorian Chant no longer existed. Dom Guéranger fought to have the Roman liturgy substituted for the diocesan ones and lived long enough to see his efforts rewarded with total success.
Less successful were his literary labors. He did complete some works, but others were left unfinished or planned ones never begun because his gifts as a polemicist were often needed defense of the Church’s position in the numerous conflicts that arose between her and the French state all during the 19th century — conflicts that would culminate in the years 1901-06 with the expulsion from the country of all religious orders, including the Benedictines, the closure of Catholic schools and confiscation of Church property. (If the Benedictines have long since returned to Solesmes, foreigners among them are instructed to keep their passports — just in case history repeats itself.)
That so much of his other literary work was left unfinished must make Catholics who come to know The Liturgical Year all the more grateful to have it. This is especially the case since the work becomes for many an important part of their spiritual reading not simply for years, but for life. This is possible due to the way the volumes are organized. Even with daily reading, not everything in all fifteen can be read in a year. Beyond that, there is no end to the material, especially when it comes to the lives of the saints, that asks to be reread, and then reread again. Dom Guëranger’s volumes resemble great music in this respect. Which music- lover has not heard a piece repeatedly only to hear it, with one more listening, as if for the first time? The Liturgical Year is like that when it is made a part of ones life.
There is a dimension of the work that can surprise the American reader. Political is the only fit word for that dimension. This is to speak of politics, not in terms of parties or elections, but simply as the means whereby the life of a society is regulated or governed. Dom Guéranger believed the means should be Christian because he believed society itself should be. We Americans may believe our society is fundamentally Christian, or used to be, but every school-boy knows we have never had Christian government. That would be exclusionary.
As a consequence, we feature that the real target of modern revolutionaries, whether in France in 1789 or Russia in 1917, has been the Christian Faith — that they have overthrown governments in order to get at it.
Dom Guéranger knew this view was wrong, that it was backwards. He saw what had really happened: that the revolutionaries began their march to power in the I 8th century by first undermining religious belief, including belief in the very existence of God and, above all, His Incarnation, in order to dethrone Christ as King of Society. The Christian political order, not the Christian religion, was their real target. They were determined to replace Christ with themselves. Instead of Christian government, there would be government according to their lights.
To put this another way: If God could be shown as not to exist — and this was the work of the encyclopedists and philosophes of the 18th century — He could hardly be seen, let alone recognized, as the Head of society.
So far have the revolutionaries succeeded that virtually everywhere today in the formerly Christian West, the generality of men, including ones who still call themselves Christian, believe God rules over nothing but Heaven. They prove it whenever they say, as they do incessantly, that Christ’s kingdom is not of this world. Apparently it does not occur to them that if Christ does not rule this world, He simply is not God.
Read faithfully, The Liturgical Year can at least serve as an aid to the salvation of individuals. If everything the volumes have to say is taken truly to heart, the work can also be a guide to the restoration of Christendom whenever God decides the time for that is arrived.
Gary Potter, Introduction to The
Liturgical Year, Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, 2000 jubilee edition
What I set out to do was to
virtuously and justly administer the authority given to me. And to do it with wisdom for without wisdom
nothing is worthwhile. It has always
been my desire to live honorably and to leave my descendents my memory in good
works. For each man, according to the
measure of his intelligence must speak what he can speak and do what he can do.
Alfred the Great, Catholic King
of Wessex and first King of all the Anglo-Saxons
849-899, anointed as king by Pope Leo IV in Rome when he was four years of
age. The father of Catholic English
state that was destroyed by Henry VIII.
We honour the relics of the martyrs, that we
may adore Him, whose martyrs they are.
We honour the servants, that the honour of the servants may redound to the Lord, who says,
"He that receiveth you, receiveth
Me. St. Jerome
The
Problem? The English & Anglican historians have done their best to bury the
fact that King Alfred was a most Catholic King who helped establish a most
Catholic kingdom! Now they want to find his remains, which they desecrated, to
give him, like Richard III, a Protestant burial!
Hampshire & Isle of
Wight
Alfred the Great body search
in Winchester church 5 February 2013
An unmarked grave in a Winchester church could be exhumed in the hunt for
the remains of King Alfred the Great. The University of Winchester has applied
for permission to examine the grave at St Bartholomew Church. It is thought the
bones of the Saxon king could have been buried there in the 19th Century,
having been removed from the ruins of Hyde Abbey.
The application comes after
the remains of Richard III were found under a car park in Leicester. The
University of Winchester is seeking permission from a diocesan advisory panel
of the Church of England, which will consult English Heritage before a judge
makes a final decision. (It's a) 'Long
shot.' Alfred's remains are known to have been moved several times since he was
buried in the city's old minster in 899 AD. They were moved in 904 to a new
church to be alongside his wife and children, before being moved again to Hyde
Abbey in 1110. The abbey was destroyed during the dissolution of the
monasteries in 1539 and studies indicate the tomb was robbed.
Hyde Abby -
Monastery that was established by King Alfred the Great and built by his son,
King Edward, as a Sepulchre for his family eventually
became as magnificent a structure as the Cathedral of Winchester.
At length, in an age of domineering
impiety, the establishment and resting place of the deliverer of England, and
the founder of its constitution (King Alfred the Great), became a prey to
sacrilegious avarice; and its revenues, instead of invigorating the surrounding
country, and supporting the general cause of literature and piety, now
impoverished the peasantry, in order to swell the pride of two or three
worthless courtiers. The king’s vicar-general in spiritual matters, Cromwell,
had certainly no cause to complain of the intractableness of the abbot of Hyde,
whose name was Salcot, alias Capon ; or to tamper
with any of the private monks, to become his agents in effecting a surrender of
the common property ; as Capon was himself a base time-serving courtier, who
made the views and passions of a wicked prince the only rule of his conduct. He
had been exceedingly industrious in engaging the University of Cambridge, of
which he was a member, to declare the lawfulness of Henry’s putting away his
queen, and marrying again. In return for this service, he had been promoted to
the See of Bangor, which he was allowed to hold, in commendam, with the abbey of Hyde. On the other hand, as
Henry, whilst he executed Catholics as traitors [.....] Dr. Capon had no
objection to become his agent also in these scenes of blood. [....] In a word,
this last abbot of Hyde not only signed, on his own part, a formal surrender of
the abbey to the commissioners; but also, by the advantages which his situation
gave him, procured to this instrument the signatures of his community,
consisting of twenty-one monks, without mentioning novices and servants. In
reward of this conduct, he was the next year promoted to the vacant see of
Salisbury. Concerning this transaction, the learned Protestant, from whom we
have borrowed a great part of the history of Dr. Capon, has the following
remark :—
"What wonder that, in a depraved age, surrenders should be so universal, when the betrayers of their trust, the sacrilegious Judases, were made bishops; and those who had the conscience and courage to assert the rights of the church, that is, the possessions given to God, were sure to be rewarded with a halter."
Upon the dissolution of Hyde abbey (next to Winchester Cathedral) by Henry VIII, many of its best estates, particularly the manors of Micheldever and Stratton, were obtained by Henry, Lord Wriothesley, afterwards earl of Southampton; from whose family they passed by marriage to that of the Russells, which was already gorged with church property. The site of the church and monastery was granted to Richard Bethel, after the term of a lease made to the aforesaid Lord Wriothesley. What the intent of that lease was we may easily judge; namely, that he might have leisure to dispose of whatever was saleable upon the premises. In conformity with this plan, he was in such haste to pull down this magnificent fabric, that Leland, when he visited the city, a very few years after, spoke of the abbey as of a fabric that had existed, but then existed no longer. In Camden’s time the ruins of it were still magnificent; but the author of the Monasticon complains that, when he wrote, the very ruins of it had perished. It is plain that, on the destruction of the church, at the time above-mentioned, the tombs of the illustrious dead which it contained, were broken into; since we are assured that two little tables of lead, inscribed with the names of Alfred and his son Edward, were found in the monument which contained their remains. What became of these we are not informed: most likely they were left amongst the ruins; as to shew any particular respect to them in the reign we are speaking of, would have been equivalent to condemning the suppression of the abbey, which was founded to be their mausoleum.
The present age being unhappily no less distinguished (such is the state of its morals) for the erection of gaols and bridewells (N.B. from St. Bride's Well which was a London jail, thus, any jail), than many past ages have been for the building of churches and monasteries; amongst other sacred spots which have been chosen for these receptacles of guilt, has been the exact site of the most sacred part of Hyde abbey, namely, the church and choir. Thus miscreants couch amidst the -ashes of our Alfred's and Edwards; and where once religious silence and contemplation were only interrupted by the bell of regular observance, and the chanting of devotion, now alone resound the clank of tie captive’s chains and the oaths of the profligate! In digging for the foundations of that mournful edifice, at almost every stroke of the mattock or spade, some ancient sepulchre was violated; the venerable contents of which were treated with marked indignity. On this occasion a great number of stone coffins, were dug up; with a variety of other curious articles, such as chalices, patina, rings, buckles, the leather of shoes and boots, velvet and gold lace belonging to chasubles and other vestments: as also the crook, rims, and joints of a beautiful crosier, double gilt.
Nothing now remains of this magnificent edifice, once judged worthy to form a cathedral, except some ruinous out-houses, and a large barn, once probably the abbot’s hail, which seems to bespeak the workmanship of the 12th century. The adjoining gate-way, with a flat arch and a canopy, supported by the busts of Alfred and Edward, is probably of a later date by three centuries.
Bishop John Milner, D.D., F.S.A. (1752-1826), History and Survey of the Antiquities of Winchester, (1809) N.B. Bishop Milner was known in
his day as the English St. Athanasius because, in opposition to the great
majority of the Catholics in the hierarchy, he helped convince the English and
Irish Catholics to reject the removal of the Penal Laws against Catholics on
the condition that they agree to the government being given the right to Veto
the appointment of any bishop which they did not approve.
Saint
Andrew Novena Prayer
What is the
Saint Andrew Novena?
It is a devotion, also known as the Christmas Anticipation Prayer, that
starts on the feast day of St Andrew the Apostle, November 30, and ends on
Christmas Eve – December 24. It consists in reciting the prayer found below 15
times each day of the novena period. Its exact origin is unknown, but it is
believed to have begun in Ireland during the 19th century. This is a very
meditative prayer that brings about graces, increases our awareness of the real
focus of Christmas and prepares us spiritually for His coming.
Novena
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was
born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in the piercing cold.
In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, O my God, to hear my prayer and grant
my desires, [here mention your request] through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen.
Recite the above prayer 15 times a day from November 30 to December 24
Another “sign of the times” is the fact that pornography is now
normalized. In the past it was largely isolated, confined to the “red light”
districts in our cities. If you wanted to indulge in pornographic materials and
shows, you trekked to that place and purchased its wares. These sites were
sleazy and clearly marked as unsavory. By insulating and isolating the red
light districts, communities signaled that pornography was not something common
and good, that they might not be able to stop it, but they can damn sure limit
it and surround it with a sense of the marginal and the shameful. We now live in a shameless age. Everything is
revealed. There are no barriers of privacy any longer—that barrier was breached
a long time ago. Ironic, is it not, that those violating the privacy that
should protect the human body from public glare and misuse evoke “privacy” in
order to degrade and to display that very body? But one of the many bizarre
realities of our cultural moment.
Jean Elshtain, writing the forward in the
book, The Social Costs of Pornography: A
Statement of Findings and Recommendations,
by James Stoner and Donna Hughes
The Death of Frédéric François Chopin
The Countess Delphine Potocka, who was
present, was much distressed; her tears were flowing fast when he observed her
standing at the foot of his bed, tall, slight, draped in white, resembling the
beautiful angels created by the imagination of the most devout among the
painters. Without doubt, he supposed her to be a celestial apparition; and when
the crisis left him a moment in repose, he requested her to sing; they deemed
him at first seized with delirium, but he eagerly repeated his request. Who
could have ventured--to oppose his wish? The piano was rolled from his parlor
to the door of his chamber, while, with sobs in her voice, and tears streaming
down her cheeks, his gifted countrywoman sang. Certainly, this delightful voice
had never before attained an expression so full of profound pathos. He seemed
to suffer less as he listened. She sang that famous (Magnificat)
Canticle to the Virgin, which, it is said, once saved the life of Stradella. "How beautiful it is!" he exclaimed.
"My God, how very beautiful! Again--again!" Though overwhelmed with
emotion, the Countess had the noble courage to comply with the last wish of a
friend, a compatriot; she again took a seat at the piano, and sung a hymn from
Marcello. Chopin again feeling worse, everybody was seized with fright--by a
spontaneous impulse all who were present threw themselves upon their knees--no
one ventured to speak; the sacred silence was only broken by the voice of the
Countess, floating, like a melody from heaven, above the sighs
and sobs which formed its heavy and mournful earth-accompaniment. It was the
haunted hour of twilight; a dying light lent its mysterious shadows to this sad
scene--the sister of Chopin prostrated near his bed, wept and prayed--and never
quitted this attitude of supplication while the life of the brother she had so
cherished lasted.
His condition altered for
the worse during the night, but he felt more tranquil upon Monday morning, and
as if he had known in advance the appointed and propitious moment, he asked to
receive immediately the last sacraments. In the absence of the Abbe * * *, with whom he had been very intimate since their
common expatriation, he requested that the Abbe Jelowicki, one of the most distinguished men of the Polish
emigration, should be sent for. When the holy Viaticum was administered to him,
he received it, surrounded by those who loved him, with great devotion. He
called his friends a short time afterwards, one by one, to his bedside, to give
each of them his last earnest blessing; calling down the grace of God fervently
upon themselves, their affections, and their hopes,--every knee bent--every
head bowed-- all eyes were heavy with tears--every heart was sad and
oppressed--every soul elevated.
Attacks more and more
painful, returned and continued during the day; from Monday night until
Tuesday, he did not utter a single word. He did not seem able to distinguish
the persons who were around him. About eleven o'clock on Tuesday evening, he
appeared to revive a little. The Abbe Jelowicki had never left him. Hardly had he recovered the
power of speech, than he requested him to recite with him the prayers and
litanies for the dying. He was able to accompany the Abbe
in an audible and intelligible voice. From this moment until his death, he held
his head constantly supported upon the shoulder of M. Gutman,
who, during the whole course of this sickness, had devoted his days and nights
to him.
A convulsive sleep lasted
until the 17th of October, 1849. The final agony commenced about two o'clock; a
cold sweat ran profusely from his brow; after a short drowsiness, he asked, in
a voice scarcely audible: "Who is near me?" Being answered, he bent
his head to kiss the hand of M. Gutman, who still
supported it-- while giving this last tender proof of love and gratitude, the
soul of the artist left its fragile clay. He died as he had lived--in
loving.
Franz Liszt, Life of Chopin
Pope Leo:
Don’t let tension between tradition, novelty become ‘harmful polarizations’
EWTN | Victoria Cardiel | October 27, 2025
Pope Leo XIV said at a Mass on Sunday that
no one in the Church “should impose his or her own ideas” and asked that
tensions between tradition and novelty not become “ideological contrapositions
and harmful polarizations.”
“The supreme rule in the Church is love. No one is called to dominate;
all are called to serve,” Leo said in St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 26.
“No one should impose his or her own ideas; we must all listen to
one another,” he continued. “No one is excluded; we are all called to
participate. No one possesses the whole truth; we must all humbly seek it and
seek it together.” [.....]
COMMENT: The problem is this: the love of novelty is an
ideology, Tradition along with sacred Scripture is divine revelation. The
Church always and everywhere has condemned novelty until Vatican II and the
Novus Ordo Church of Novelty embraced it. The
conflict between novelty and tradition is the conflict between God's revelation
and demonic lies; the conflict between the Church and the World. Those who are
faithful to tradition do not "impose their own ideas" but defend
God's revealed truth against the novelty of the world. The Novus Ordo Novelty Church is "seeking truth"; the
Church of Jesus Christ possesses it. Pope Leo like his predecessor likes to
characterize tradition as rigid and dead and the novelty of modernism as mature
and hopeful. This was once an intensely debated matter but, at this time, after
all the wreckage of the last 50 years all tradition has to do is to point at
the fruit of Vatican II novelty. Both Leo and his predecessor Francis worked in
South America. The total population of South and Central America is about 600
million. Since Vatican II about 300 million have apostatized from the Catholic
Church. These last two popes have personally presided over the greatest
apostasy over the shortest period of time in the history of the Catholic
Church. Anything Leo has to say, as long as he is not sitting in the Chair of
Peter, must be examined in light of this record.
Fruit
of Vatican II - Apostasy
In Honduras, the country of the once most powerful man in the Roman
Curia under Francis/Bergoglio, Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga, a personally
corrupt and immoral man who had been a bishop in the capital since 1978, first as auxiliary then
as Archbishop for 30 years, the hierarchy led by him managed the amazing feat of transforming that country
in the first Catholic-minority nation in Central America, a vertiginous fall
from 94% to 46% in the same period - and the same happened in
Uruguay, across the Rio de la Plata from (Bergoglio's
home) Buenos Aires.
Rorate Caeli
Data Collapse of Catholic Faith in Latin America from 2014 presided
over by Pope Leo/Provost and his predecessor Francis/Begoglio
Remember in your charity:
Remember the welfare of our expectant mother: Cecilia Zepeda, Victoria Dimmel, Vanessa LoStrocco, and
Elizabeth Allen,
Mary Lou Loftus' aunt, Susan Hendricks, who is gravely ill after emergency surgery,
Monica Bandlow petitions
our prayers for her friend, Patricia Messineo, who has not long to live,
Rev.
Nicholas DeProspero, a faithful Ruthenian Eastern rite Catholic priest recently
hospitalized, for his welfare,
Fred Holder,
for his
spiritual and physical welfare,
Thomas Soul,
a
nursing home patient who has suffered a stroke,
Donna Kallal, a dear friend of the Schiltz
family who is dying,
Philip Thees requests our
prayers for the heath of Mary Glatz and Lenny
and Agnus Messineo,
For the welfare of Aaron, a York resident in need of conversion,
For the spiritual welfare of Margaret Connelly is the petition of Camilla Meiser,
Linda Boyd, for her health,
Pete Schiffbauer, a cousin of Monic Bandlow who is gravely ill,
Joan R.
Barr,
the widow of F. Donald Barr who died March 7, they were married 70 years
Cole
Schneider, prayers for his welfare are requested by Camilla Meiser,
JoAnn Niekrewicz, for her recovery from a recent fall and shoulder
injury,
The Drews ask prayers for
the spiritual and physical welfare of Robert
Carballo,
Conversion of Jack
Gentry, the nephew of Camilla Meiser,
For Sr.
Maria Junipera, who took her final vows as a
nun with the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Richmond, New Hampshire
April 8,
Stephen
Bryan,
the brother of a devout Catholic religious, for his spiritual welfare,
Marie
Kolinsky,
for her health and spiritual welfare is the petition of her family,
Gene Peters requests our prayers for the conversion
of Shirley Young and Carl Loy who are dying, and the
conversion of Dawn Keithley,
Rev. Leo Carley, an eighty-nine year old priest faithful to Catholic tradition, who is
seriously ill,
For the recovery of Hayden Yanchek, the grandson of
Francis Yanchek, injured in a farming accident,
Maureen Nies, for the recovery of her health is the petition of
Camilla Meiser,
Daniel Vargs, for his health is the petition of his parents,
Art Noel, for the restoration of his
health,
For the welfare of Peg Berry and her husband, Bill,
Marianne Connelly asks prayers for Chris Foley, who is gravely ill,
and the welfare of his wife, Mary
Beth,
The spiritual welfare of the Sal & Maria Messineo family is
the petition of the Drew’s,
Liz Agosta, who is seriously ill, for her spiritual and temporal
welfare,
Warren
Hoffman, a
long time member of our Mission who is in failing health,
Patrick
Boyle,
for the recovery of his health and his spiritual welfare,
For the spiritual welfare of the Drew children,
Monica Bandlow request our
prayers for the welfare of Ray who
is recovering from a MVA, and his daughter, Sonya, and Tera Jean Kopczynski, who is in failing health, and for a
good death for Mr. Howald, Kathy
Simons, Regina Quinn, James Mulgrew, Ruth Beaucheane, John Kopczynski,
Roger & Mandy Owen
The health and spiritual welfare of Nate Schaeffer is the petition
of Gene Peters,
Peg Berry requests our prayers for her brother, William Habekost,
For the recently widowed, Maike Hickson, and her children,
For the spiritual welfare of the Carmelite nuns in Fairfield, PA,
Geralyn Zagorski, recovery of her health
and spiritual welfare and the conversion of Randal Pace is the
petition of Philip Thees,
For the grandson of
Joe & Liz Agusta,
Fr. Waters requests our
prayers for the health and spiritual welfare of Elvira Donaghy,
For the health and
conversion of Stephen Henderson,
Fr. Paul DaDamio requests our prayers for the welfare of Rob
Ward, and his sister, Debra Wagaman,
For the health and
spiritual welfare of Peggy Cummings, the neice
of Camila Meiser, who is
gravely ill,
Kaitlyn McDonald, for the recovery of her
health and spiritual welfare,
Roco Sbardella, for his health and spiritual welfare,
The Vargas’ request our prayers for the spiritual
welfare of their son, Nicholas,
Family, for the welfare of Lazarus Handley, his mother, Julia, and his brother, Raphael, with Down’s Syndrome,
Fr. Waters requests prayers for the spiritual and
physical welfare of Frank McKee,
Nancy
Bennett, for the recovery of her
health,
For the spiritual welfare of Mark Roberts, a Catholic faithful to tradition,
Joe Sentmanet request
prayers for Scott Nettles
(who is in need of conversion), who is gravely ill,
Michael Brigg requests our prayers for the health of John Romeo,
The health and welfare of Gene Peters and his sons,
Conversion of Anton
Schwartzmueller, is the paryer
request of his children,
Christine Kozin, for her health and spiritual welfare,
Teresa Gonyea, for her conversion and health, is the petition of
her grandmother, Patricia McLaughlin,
For the health of Sonya Kolinsky,
Jackie Dougherty asks our prayers for her brother, John Lee, who is gravely ill,
For the health and spiritual welfare, Meg Bradley, the granddaughter
of Rose Bradley,
Timothy
& Crisara, a couple from Maryland have requested our
prayers for their spiritual welfare,
Celine Pilegaard, the seven year old daughter of Cynthia Pilegaard, for her recovery from burn injuries,
Rafaela de Saravia, for her health and welfare,
Mary Mufide, requests our
prayers for her family,
Abbe Damien Dutertre, traditional Catholic priest arrested by Montreal
police while offering Mass,
Francis
(Frank) X. McLaughlin, for the recovery of his
health,
Nicholas
Pell,
for his health and spiritual welfare is the petition of Camilla Meizer,
Mary Kaye Petr, her health and welfare is petitioned by Camilla Meizer,
The welfare of Excellency Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò,
The welfare of Rev.
Fr. Martin Skierka, who produces the
traditional Ordo in the U.S.,
For the health and welfare of Katie Wess, John Gentry, Vincent Bands,
Todd Chairs, Susan Healy and James O’Gentry
is the petition of Camilia,
Marieann Reuter, recovery
of her health, Kathy Kepner, for her health, Shane Cox, for his health, requests of Philip Thees,
The Joseph
Cox Family, their spiritual welfare,
Luis Rafael Zelaya, the brother of Claudia Drew, spiritual welfare,
For the health of Kim Cochran, the daughter-in-law of Joseph and Brenda
Cochran, the wife of their son Joshua,
Louie Verrecchio, Catholic apologist, who has a health problem,
John Minidis, Jr. family, for help in their spiritual
trial,
Joann DeMarco, for her health and spiritual
welfare,
Regina (Manidis) Miller, her spiritual welfare and health,
Melissa
Elena Levitt, her conversion, and welfare of her children,
For the grace of a holy death, Nancy Marie Claycomb,
Conversion of Annette
Murowski,
and her son Jimmy,
Brent Keith from Indiana has petitioned our prayers
for the Keith Family,
The welfare of the Schmedes Family, and the Mike and Mariana Donohue Family,
The spiritual welfare Robert Holmes Family,
For the spiritual and temporal welfare of Irwin Kwiat,
Fr. Waters asks our prayers for Elvira Donaghy,
Kimberly Ann, the daughter of John and
Joann DeMarco, for her health and spiritual welfare,
Mufide Rende, a traditional Catholic from India has asked our
prayers for her welfare and he family members, living and deceased,
Mary Glatz, her health and the welfare of her family,
Barbara
Harmon,
who is ill, and still cares for her
ailing parents,
Jason Green, a father of ten children,
recovery of his health,
For the health and welfare of Sorace family,
Fr. Waters asks our prayers for the health and
spiritual welfare of Brian Abramowitz,
Thomas Schiltz family, in grateful appreciation for their contribution to
the beauty of our chapel,
Welfare of Bishop
Richard Williamson, for strength and courage in the greater battles to
come,
John Rhoad, for his health and spiritual welfare,
Kathy Boyle, requests our prayers for
her welfare,
Joyce Laughman and Robert Twist, for their conversions,
Michael J.
Brigg & his family, who have helped with the needs of the Mission,
Nancy Deegan, her welfare and conversion to the Catholic Church,
Francis Paul
Diaz,
who was baptized at Ss. Peter & Paul, asks our prayers for his spiritual
welfare,
The conversion of Rene McFarland, Lori Kerr, Cary Shipman
and family, David Bash, Crystal and family, Larry Reinhart, Costanzo
Family, Kathy Scullen, Marilyn Bryant, Vicki Trahern and Time Roe are the petitions of
Gene Peters,
For the conversion of Ben & Tina Boettcher family, Karin Fraessdorf,
Eckhard Ebert, and Fahnauer
family,
Fr. Waters requests our prayers for Br. Rene, SSPX who has been ill,
and for Fr. Thomas Blute,
For the health and conversion of Kathryn Lederhos, the aunt of
David Drew,
For the welfare of Fr. Paul DaDamio and Fr. William T. Welsh,
The Drew’s ask our prayers for the welfare of Joe & Tracey Sentmanat
family, Keith & Robert Drew, Christy Koziol &
her children, Fred Nesbit and Michael Nesbit families, and Gene Peters Family, the John Manidis
Family, the Sal Messinio Family, Michael Proctor Family,
Ryan Boyle grandmother, Jane Boyle, who is failing health,
Mel Gibson
and his family, please remember in our prayers,
Rev. Timothy A. Hopkins requested our prayers for the
welfare of his Fr Jean-Luc Lafitte,
Ebert’s request our prayers for the Andreas & Jenna Ortner
Family,
Joyce Paglia has asked
prayers for George Richard Moore Sr.
& his children, and her brother, George Panell,
Philip Thees asks our
prayers for his family, for McLaughlin
Family, the welfare of Dan
& Polly Weand, the conversion of Sophia Herman, Tony Rosky,
the welfare Nancy Erdeck,
the wife of the late Deacon Erdeck, John
Calasanctis, Tony
Rosky, James Parvenski,
Kathleen Gorry,
health of mind and body of Cathy
Farrar.
Pray for the
Repose of the Souls:
Thomas Soul,
died
November 8 after receiving the last rites of the Church,
Etta Van Der Werken, a dear friend of Barbara Taffe, died 10-21-2025,
Gary Potter, Catholic writer and
apologist and great long time defender of Catholic doctrine and tradition, died
9-9-2025,
Elizabeth Gorska, who died September 9, a relative of Lidia Gjec,
Camilia Meiser
request our prayers for the souls of Peggy
Cummings and Elizabeth Genter,
Thomas A.
Nelson, founder of TAN Books and
Publishers, died August 16,
Juan D.
Gonzalez,
our former sacristan, choir director, and dear friend, died July 23,
Sal Messineo, a faithful traditional Catholic, died Augsut 14,
Patricia
Askew, a
friend of Camilla Meiser, died July 3,
Joseph Kerney, a young man whose family provided the statues of the Sacred
Heart, Mary and Joseph in our sanctuary, died May 30,
Louis
Richard Ajlouny, the father of Randa Sharpe, died May 15,
Rene Guidicessi, died April 25, an old friend of the Drews,
F. Donald
Barr, died
March 7 at 94 years of age, co-founder of Robert Francis Religious Goods, in
Philadelphia,
Dr. David
Allen White, a well known defender of the Catholic faith, died February 11,
Bishop
Richard Williamson, a renowned defender of the Catholic faith and most charitable gentleman,
died January 29,
Rodolfo
Alberto Lacayo, a cousin of Claudia Drew,
died January 4,
Genieve Wallace, died Christmas day,
Ruth Marion Beaucheane, died December 8, is the
petition of Monica Bandlow,
Ana Maria Salcedo, the sister of Mario Fiol,
died November 26,
Fr. Johin
Cardaro, a traditional Catholic priest who was found
dead in his home November 2,
Robert Carballo
asks that we remember his parents, Roberto & Aida Carballo,
and his friend, David Duclos, who died April 15,
Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais who may have been responsible for preventing the SSPX's public reconciliation with Rome in 2012, died October 8,
Lorna
Edwards, our
dear friend and loyal supporter of this Mission, died August 10,
Lois Petti, died July 28 two hours after receiving the Last
Sacraments from Fr. Waters,
Wolfgang
Smith, a
renowned Catholic scholar, mathematician, scientist, philosopher, who helped
the Kolbe Center for the Study of Creation, died July 19,
Willaim Glatz, a good and faithful Catholic, died July 17,
Alicio Gonzalez, a Catholic who asked for the
sacrament of Extreme Unction, unfortunately did not receive, died July 9,
John Zavodny, a faithful
Catholic who died wearing the scapular of Mt Carmel on the first Saturday of
May, requested by Phyllis Virgil,
Catherine
Martel, a lapsed Catholic, received
the last sacraments in a good disposition from Fr. Waters on March 25 and died
on April 4,
Father Basilio Méramo, a faithful priest, died
March 5, removed from the SSPX for opposing their accommodation with Rome,
Julia
McDonald,
the mother of Kyle McDonald, died March 1,
Agnus Melnick, died February 28, a long time faithful Catholic and
mother of eight children, including a traditional priest,
Kathryn
(Drew) Lederhos, of Wellesley, MA, died February
3, 2024,
Chris Foley, the
brother of Mary Lou Loftus, died February 1,
Louis Zelaya, the brother of Claudia Drew, died January 30,
Fr. James
Louis Albert Campbell, a faithful priest who died December 18 at 91 years of age, and her
mother and father, Teresa and Thomas
Maher,
Charles
Harmon,
the father of Tracey Sentmanet, died October 1, after
receiving the rites of the Church,
Fr. Waters requests prayers for Elvira Donaghy, his friend and
former secretary a for Bishop Gerado Zendejas, died September 9,
Robert Hickson, a faithful Catholic apologist who died Septembber 2,
Monica Bandlow requests
prayers for her parents, Thomas &
Teresa Maher, her husband, William
Bandlow, her brother-in-law, Richard Bandlow,
her sister, Mary Maher, Fr. Christopher Darby, SSPX, who died March 17, Robert Byrne, Michelle Donofrio McDowell,
her cousin, Patricia Fabyanic, the Prefect of Our Lady’s Sodality, March
8, for John Pfeiffer who died
August 20, Theresa Hanley, died
July 23, Fr. Juan-Carlos Iscara, SSPX, who died December 20, John Kinney, died December 21, Willaim Price, Jr., and Robert Arch Ward,
died January 10, and Myra,
killed in a MVA June 6,
John Sharpe,
Sr.,
died July 20,
Maria
Paulette Salazar, died June 6,
Dale Kinsey requests prayers for his wife, Katherine Kinsey, died May 17,
Richard
Giles,
who died April 29, the father of Traci Sentmanat who
converted to the Catholic faith last All Saints' Day,
Joseph
Sparks,
a devout and faithful Catholic to tradition died February 25,
Joyce Paglia, died January 21, and Anthony Paglia,
died January 28, who were responsible for the beautiful statuary in our chapel,
Joe Sentmanet request
prayers for Richard Giles and
Claude Harmon who converted
to the Catholic faith shortly before their deaths,
Rodolfo Zelaya, the brother of Claudia Drew,
died January 9,
Elizabeth Agosta petitions
our prayers for Joseph Napolitano,
her brother, who died January 2,
Michael Dulisse, died on December 26,
Michael
Proctor, a close friend of the Drews, died November 9,
Richard Anthony
Giles,
the father-in-law of Joe Sentmanat converted to the
Catholic faith on All Saints Day, died November 5,
Robert
Kolinsky,
the husband of Sonja, died September 18,
Gabriel Schiltz, the daughter of Thomas & Gay Schiltz, died August 21,
Mary Dimmel, the mother –in-law of
Victoria Drew Dimmel, died July 18,
Michael
Nesbit,
the brother-in-law and dear friend of the Drew's, died July 14,
Thomas Thees, the brother of Philip, died
June 19,
Carmen Ragonese,
died June 22,
Juanita Mohler, a friend of Camella Meiser, died June 14,
Kathleen
Elias, died February 14,
Hernan Ortiz, the
brother of Fr. Juan Carlos Ortiz, died February 3,
Mary Ann
Boyle,
the mother of a second order Dominican nun, a first order Dominican priest, and
a SSPX priest, died January 24,
John DeMarco, who attended this Mission in
the past, died January23,
Charles
O’Brien, the father of Marlene Cox,
died December 30,
Mufide Rende
requests our prayers for the repose of the souls of her parents, Mehmet & Nedime,
Kathleen Donelly, died December 29 at 91 years of age, ran the CorMariae website,
Matthew
O'Hare,
most faithful Catholic, died at age 40 on November 30,
Rev. Patrick
J. Perez, a Catholic priest faithful to
tradition, pastor Our Lady Help of Christians, Garden Grove, CA, November 19,
Elizabeth Benedek, died December 14, requested by her niece, Agnes Vollkommer,
Dolores
Smith and Richard Costello, faithful Catholics, died
November,
Frank D’Agustino, a friend of Philp Thees, died November 8,
Fr.
Dominique Bourmaud, of the SSPX, Prior of St.
Vincent in Kansas City, died September 4,
Pablo Daniel
Silva, the brother of Elizabeth
Vargas, died August 18,
Rose Bradley, a
member of Ss. Peter & Paul, died July 14,
Patricia Ellias, died June 1, recently
returned to the Church died with the sacraments and wearing the brown scapular,
Joan Devlin, the sister-in-law of Rose
Bradley, died May 18,
William Muligan, died April 29, two days after
receiving the last sacraments,
Robert Petti, died March 19, the day after
receiving the last sacraments,
Mark
McDonald, the father of Kyle, who died
December 26,
Perla Otero, died December 2020, Leyla Otero, January 2021, cousins of
Claudia Drew,
Mehmet Rende, died December 12, who was the
father of Mary Mufide,
Joseph Gravish, died November 26, 100 year
old WWII veteran and daily communicant,
Jerome
McAdams,
the father of, died November 30,
Rev. James
O’Hara, died November 8, requested by
Alex Estrada,
Elizabeth Batko, the sacristan at St. John the
Baptist in Pottstown for over 40 years, died on First Saturday November 7
wearing the brown scapular,
William Cox, the
father of Joseph Cox, who died September 3,
James Larson, Catholic
apologists, author of War Against Being
publication, died July 6, 2020,
Hutton
Gibson, died May 12,
Sr. Regina Cordis, Immaculate Heart of Mary religious for sixty-five
years, died May 12,
Leslie Joan Matatics, devoted Catholic wife and
mother of nine children, died March 24,
Victoria Zelaya, the sister-in-law of Claudia
Drew, died March 20,
Ricardo DeSilva, died November 16, our prayers requested by his
brother, Henry DeSilva,
Rev. Fr.
Joseph F. Collins, died April 27, 2019 to whom we are indebted for establishing our
traditional pre-Bugnini Holy Week in all its beauty,
Roland H.
Allard,
a friend of the Drew’s, died September 28,
Stephen Cagorski and John Bogda, who both died wearing the brown scapular,
Cecilia LeBow, a most faithful Catholic,
Rose Cuono, died Oct 23,
Patrick Rowen, died March 25, and his brother, Daniel Rowen,
died May 15,
Sandra
Peters, the
wife of Gene Peters, who died June 10 receiving the sacraments and wearing our
Lady’s scapular,
Rev. Francis
Slupski, a priest who kept the Catholic faith and its
immemorial traditions, died May 14,
Martha Mochan, the sister of Philip Thees,
died April 8,
George
Kirsch,
our good friend and supporter of this Mission, died February 15,
For Fr.
Paul J. Theisz, died October 17, is the
petition of Fr. Waters,
Fr. Mecurio Fregapane, died Jan 12, was not a
traditional priest but always charitable,
Fr. Casimir Peterson, a priest who often offered the Mass in our
chapel and provided us with sound advice, died December 4,
Fr.
Constantine Bellasarius, a
faithful and always charitable Eastern Rite Catholic Melkite
priest, who left the Roman rite, died November 27,
Christian
Villegas,
a motor vehicle accident, his brother, Michael, requests our prayers,
John Vennari, the former editor of Catholic Family News, and for
his family’s welfare, April 4,
Mary Butler, the aunt of Fr. Samuel
Waters, died October 17,
Joseph DeMarco, the nephew of John DeMarco,
died October 3,
John Fergale, died September 25 after receiving the traditional sacramental rites of
the Church wearing the brown scapular,
John Gabor, the brother of Donna Marbach, died September 9,
Fr. Eugene
Dougherty,
a faithful priest, fittingly died on the Nativity of the BVM after receiving
the traditional Catholic sacraments,
Phyllis Schlafly, died September 5,
Helen Mackewicz, died August 14,
Mark A. Wonderlin, who died August 2,
Fr. Carl Cebollero, a faithful priest to tradition who was a friend of
Fr. Waters and Fr. DeMaio,
Jessica
Cortes,
a young mother of ten who died June 12,
Frances Toriello, a life-long Catholic faithful to tradition, died
June3, the feast of the Sacred Heart, and her husband Dan, died in 1985,
John
McLaughlin, a friend of the Drew’s, died May 22,
Angela
Montesano,
who died April 30, and her husband, Salvatore,
who died in July 3, 2013,
Charles Schultz, died
April 5, left behind nine children and many grandchildren, all traditional Catholics,
Esperanza Lopez de Callejas,
the aunt of Claudia Drew, died March 15,
Fr. Edgardo Suelo, a faithful priest
defending our traditions who was working with Fr. Francois Chazal
in the Philippines, died February 19,
Conde McGinley, a
long time laborer for the traditional faith, died February 12, at 96 years,
The Drew family requests
your prayers for Ida Fernandez and Rita Kelley,
parishioners at St. Jude,
Fr. Stephen
Somerville,
a traditional priest who repented from his work with the Novus Ordo English translation, died December 12,
Fr. Arturo DeMaio, a priest that helped this Mission with the
sacraments and his invaluable advice, died December 2,
J. Paul Carswell, died October 15, 2015,
Solange Hertz, a great defender of our Catholic
faith, died October 3, the First Saturday of the month,
Paula P. Haigh, died October 22, a great defender of our Catholic
faith in philosophy and natural science,
Gabriella Whalin, the mother of Gabriella Schiltz,
who died August 25,
Mary Catherine
Sick, 14
year old from a large traditional Catholic family, died August 25,
Fr. Paul Trinchard, a traditional Catholic priest, died August 25,
Stephen J. Melnick, Jr., died on August 21, a long-time faithful
traditional Catholic husband and father, from Philadelphia,
Patricia
Estrada,
died July 29, her son Alex petitions our prayers for her soul,
Fr. Nicholas
Gruner, a devoted priest & faithful defender of Blessed
Virgin Mary and her Fatima message, died April 29,
Sarah E. Shindle, the grandmother of Richard Shindle,
died April 26,
Madeline Vennari, the mother of John Vennari,
died December 19,
Salvador
Baca Callejas, the uncle of Claudia Drew, died December 13,
Robert Gomez, who died in a motor vehicle
accident November 29,
Catherine
Dunn,
died September 15,
Anthony
Fraser,
the son of Hamish Fraser, died August 28,
Jeannette Rhoad, the grandmother of Devin Rhoad,
who died August 24,
John Thees, the uncle of Philip Thees,
died August 9,
Sarah
Harkins, 32 year-old mother of four
children, died July 28,
Msgr. Donald
Adams, who
offered the Indult Mass, died April 1996,
Anita Lopez, the aunt of Claudia Drew,
Fr. Kenneth
Walker,
a young traditional priest of the FSSP who was murdered in Phoenix June 11,
Fr. Waters petitions our prayers for Gilberte Violette,
the mother of Fr. Violette, who died May 6,
Pete Hays petitions our prayers for his brothers, Michael, died May 9, and James, died October 20, his
sister, Rebecca, died March17, and his mother, Lorraine Hayes who died May 4,
Philip Marbach, the father of Paul Marbach
who was the coordinator at St. Jude in Philadelphia, died April 21,
Richard Slaughtery, the elderly sacristan for the SSPX chapel in Kansas
City, died April 13,
Bernedette Marie Evans
nee Toriello, the daughter of Daniel Toriello
, died March 31, a faithful Catholic who suffered many years with MS,
Natalie Cagorski, died march 23,
Anita Lopez
de Lacayo, the aunt of Claudia Drew, who died March 21,
Mario Palmaro, Catholic lawyer, bioethicist and professor,
apologist, died March 9, welfare of his widow and children,
Daniel Boyle, the
uncle of Ryan Boyle, died March 4,
Jeanne DeRuyscher, who died on January 25,
Arthur
Harmon,
died January 18,
Fr. Waters petitions our prayers for the soul of Jeanne DeRuyscher,
who died January 17,
Joseph
Proctor,
died January 10,
Susan Scott, a devote traditional
Catholic who made the vestments for our Infant of Prague statue, died January
8,
Brother
Leonard Mary, M.I.C.M., (Fred Farrell), an early supporter and friend of Fr. Leonard
Feeney, died November 23,
John Fergale, requests our prayers for his sister Connie, who
died December 19,
Jim Capaldi, died December 15,
Brinton Creager, the son of Elizabeth Carpenter, died December 10,
Christopher Lussos, age 27, the father of one child with an expecting
wife, died November 15,
Jarett Ebeyer, 16 year old who died in his sleep, November 17, at
the request of the Kolinsky’s,
Catherine Nienaber, the mother of nine children, the youngest three
years of age, killed in MVA after Mass, 10-29,
Nancy Aldera, the sister of Frances Toriello,
died October 11, 2013 at 105 years of age,
Mary Rita Schiltz, the mother of Thomas Schiltz,
who died August 27,
William H.
(Teddy) Kennedy, Catholic author of Lucifer’s Lodge, died August 14, age 49, cause of
death unknown,
Alfred
Mercier,
the father of David Mercier, who died August 12,
The Robert Kolinsky asks our prayers for his friend, George Curilla,
who died August 23,
John Cuono, who had attended Mass at our Mission in the past,
died August 11,
Raymond
Peterson,
died July 28, and Paul Peterson,
died February 19, the brothers of Fr. Casimir
Peterson,
Margaret Brillhart, who died July 20,
Msgr. Joseph
J. McDonnell, a priest from the diocese of Des Moines, who died June 8,
Patrick
Henry Omlor, who wrote Questioning The Validity of the Masses using
the New, All English Canon, and for a series of newsletters which were
published as The Robber Church, died May 2, the feast of St Athanasius,
Bishop
Joseph McFadden, died unexpectedly May 2,
Timothy
Foley,
the brother-in-law of Michelle Marbach Folley, who died in April,
William
Sanders,
the uncle of Don Rhoad, who died April 2,
Gene Peters ask our prayers for the repose of the
soul of Mark Polaschek,
who died March 22,
Eduardo
Gomez Lopez, the uncle of Claudia Drew, February 28,
Cecelia Thees, died February 24,
Elizabeth
Marie
Gerads, a
nineteen year old, the oldest of twelve children, who died February 6,
Michael
Schwartz,
the co-author with Fr. Enrique Rueda of “Gays, Aids,
and You,” died February 3,
Stanley W.
Moore,
passed away in December 16, and Gerard (Jerry) R. Pitman, who died January 19,
who attended this Mission in the past,
Louis Fragale, who died December 25,
Fr. Luigi
Villa, Th.D. author of Vatican II About
Face! detailing the heresies of Vatican II, died November 18 at the age of 95,
Rev. Michael
Jarecki, a faithful traditional Catholic priest who died
October 22,
Jennie Salaneck, died September 19 at 95 years
of age, a devout and faithful Catholic all her life,
Dorothy Sabo, who died September 26,
Cynthia
(Cindy) Montesano Reinhert, the mother of nine
children, four who are still at home, died August 19,
Stanley Spahalski, who died October 20, and his wife, Regina Spahalski,
who died June 24, and for the soul of Francis
Lester, her son,
Julia
Atkinson,
who died April 30,
Antonio P.
Garcia,
who died January 6, 2012 and the welfare of his teenage children, Andriana and Quentin,
Helen Crane, the aunt of David Drew who
died February 27,
Fr. Timothy
A. Hopkins,
of the National Shrine of St. Philomena, in Miami, November 2,
Frank Smith, who died February 7, and
the welfare of his wife, Delores,
Eduardo Cepeda, who died January 26,
Larry Young, the 47 year old father of
twelve who died December 10 and the welfare of his wife Katherine and their
family,
Sister Mary
Bernadette, M.I.C.M., a founding member of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, died
December 16,
Joeseph Elias, who died on September 28,
William, the brother of Fr. Waters,
who died September 7,
Donald Tonelli, died August 1,
Rev. Fr.
Gregory Hesse, of Austria, a great defender of Catholic
Truth, died January 25, 2006,
Emma Colasanti, who died May 29,
Mary Dullesse, who died April 12, a Catholic convert who died
wearing our Lady’s scapular,
Ruth Jantsch, the grandmother of Andre Ebert, who died April 7,
Derrick and Denise Palengat, his godparents,
Philip D.
Barr,
died March 5, and the welfare of his family,
Judith Irene
Kenealy, the mother of Joyce Paglia,
who died February 23, and her son, George Richard Moore, who died May 14,
For Joe Sobran who died September 30,
Fr. Hector
Bolduc,
a great and faithful priest, died, September 10, 2012,
James &
Jean Rowan
and their sons, Patrick & Daniel,
John Vennari asks our
prayers for Dr. Raphael Waters
who died August 26,
Stanley Bodalsky, the father of Mary Ann Boyle who died June 25,
Mary Isabel Kilfoyle Humphreys, a former York resident and friend of the
Drew’s, who died June 6,
Rev. John
Campion,
who offered the traditional Mass for us every first Friday until forbidden to
do so by Bishop Dattilo, died May 1,
Joseph Montagne, who died May 5,
For Margaret
Vagedes, the aunt of Charles Zepeda, who died
January 6,
Fr. Michael
Shear, a
Byzantine rite Catholic priest, died August 17, 2006,
Fr. James
Francis Wathen, died November 7, 2006, author of The Great Sacrilege and Who Shall Ascend?, a great defender of
dogma and liturgical purity,
Fr. Enrique Rueda, who died December 14, 2009, to whom our Mission is
indebted,
Fr. Peterson asks to remember, Leonard Edward Peterson, his cousin, Wanda, Angelica Franquelli, and the six
priests ordained with him.
Philip Thees petitions our
prayers for Beverly Romanick, Deacon Michael Erdeck,
Henry J. Phillips, Grace Prestano, Connie DiMaggio,
Elizabeth Thorhas, Elizabeth Thees,
Theresa Feraker, Hellen Pestrock, and James & Rose Gomata,
and Kathleen Heinbach,
Fr. Didier Bonneterre, the author of The Liturgical Movement, and Fr. John
Peek, both were traditional priests,
Brother
Francis, MICM, the superior of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in
Richmond, NH, who died September 5,
Rodolfo Zelaya Montealegre, the father of Claudia Drew,
who died May 24,
Rev. Francis
Clifford,
a devout and humble traditional priest, who died on March 7,
Benjamin Sorace, the uncle of Sonja Kolinsky.
The
“received and approved rites of the Catholic Church, accustomed to be used
in the solemn administration of the sacraments”:
…..Because, as we will see, Catholics must celebrate only the “received and approved rites” of the Church as a matter of Divine Law.
God revealed this truth in Scripture through St. Paul. Before St. Paul
teaches the Corinthians liturgical and theological details concerning the Holy
Mass (consecration formula, Real Presence), he prefaces his teaching by
affirming: “For I have received
of the Lord that which I also delivered
unto you…” (I Cor 11:23). St. Paul says
again: “For I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received” (1Cor
15:3). In these and other verses, St. Paul emphasizes that we must believe and
practice only what we have “received” from Christ and the apostles which has
been “delivered” unto us, and which includes the liturgical rites of the
Church. This is a divinely revealed truth and a matter of Faith.
The Church has taught this divine truth throughout her history. For
example, in the Papal Oath of Coronation, which originates at least as far back
as Pope St. Agatho in 678 A.D. (and which was set
aside by Paul VI), every Pope swore to change nothing of the “received
tradition.” Pope Pius IV’s Tridentine
Profession of Faith, which is binding on the souls of all Catholics, likewise
expresses this principle by requiring adherence to the “received and approved rites of the Catholic Church used in the
solemn administration of the sacraments.” The “received and approved rites of the Church” originate from the
Spirit of Christ and the traditions of the apostles which have been handed down
to us through the ages.
Because the “received and approved rites” are part of the Church’s infallible
expression of the unchanging Deposit of Faith, as inspired and nurtured by the
Holy Ghost, they cannot be set aside or changed into new rites. This is why the
Ecumenical Council of Trent (1545-1563) infallibly declared:
“If anyone says that the received and approved rites
of the Catholic Church, accustomed to be used in the administration of the
sacraments, may be despised or omitted by the ministers without sin and at
their pleasure, or may be
changed by any pastor of the churches to other new ones, let him be anathema.”
Because the Council declares anathema (that is, condemned, or severed
from the Body of Christ) anyone who would set aside or change into new rites
the already “received and approved
rites” of the Church, proves that adherence to the “received and approved rites” is a matter of Divine Law. The
absolute necessity to preserve the substance of the Church’s ancient liturgical
rites is a requirement of the Faith because the rites preserve and express that
Faith. To hold that the Church’s rites can change implies a belief that the
Church’s doctrines can change, because the rites preserve and express the
doctrines. Hence, those who do not preserve the Church’s rites (by omitting or
changing them) are objectively anathema
because they sin against the Faith itself.
In light of the foregoing
condemnation, the Holy Council of Trent directed that the Roman Missal be
restored so that the faithful would know once and for all what is the “received and approved rite” of Mass.
To that end, Pope St. Pius V issued his papal bull Quo Primum Tempore to
legally codify “the decrees of the Holy
Council of Trent” and render a definitive application of the Divine Law
dogmatized by the Council. This judgment mandated a single usage of the Roman
rite for the Latin Church, with some minor exceptions for usages greater than
200 years old, “in order that what has
been handed down by the most holy Roman Church, the Mother and Teacher of the
rest of the churches may be accepted and observed by all everywhere.”
Hence, the sainted Pope declared the oft-called “Tridentine Mass” to be the “received and approved rite” of the
Church, and which precluded the creation of any “new rite” of Mass in the
future. Further, because Quo Primum is an infallible application of Divine
Law (that is, we must use only the “received
and approved rites”), St. Pius V rightly declared the decree to be irreformable and valid forever.
This brings us to the inevitable and
troubling question: Is the Novus
Ordo a “new rite” of Mass that comes
under the anathema
of the Council of Trent, as definitively interpreted by St. Pius V in Quo Primum? The name of the rite itself (Novus Ordo
which means “new order” or “new ordinary” of the Mass) certainly suggests the
same. More importantly, so do the words of Pope Paul VI. In his November 19,
1969 General Audience address, Paul VI refers to the Novus Ordo
as a “new rite” of Mass several times, for example: “We wish to draw your
attention to an event about to occur in the Latin Catholic Church: the
introduction of the liturgy of the new
rite of the Mass.” He also says, “In the new rite you will find the
relationship between the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the
Eucharist...”
We also consider the statements of
the members of Paul VI’s liturgical commission that created the New Mass, such
as the secretary and head of the commission, Fr. Annibale
Bugnini, who said: “It is not simply a question of
restoring a valuable masterpiece, in some cases it will be necessary to provide
new structures for entire rites…it
will truly be a new creation.”
Bugnini’s assistant, Fr. Carlos Braga, also stated
that the New Mass has “an entirely new
foundation of Eucharistic theology” and whose “ecumenical
requirements” are “in harmony with the Church’s new positions.” Fr. Joseph Gelineau, one of the most influential members of the
commission, also said: “To tell you the truth, it is a different liturgy of the
Mass. This needs to be said without ambiguity: the Roman rite as we knew it no longer exists.”
Therefore, both Paul VI and his appointed authors of the Novus Ordo admitted that the New Mass is not the rite “received”
from tradition, but rather a rite created by innovation – an entirely
unprecedented act in the history of the Church.
But we should not rely on these
statements alone. While they may reveal the intent of the innovators, it is
still necessary to look at the substance of the Novus Ordo rite
itself. As we have seen, the Council of Trent and St. Pius V intended to
preserve the substantial identity of the Roman rite forever. If the New Mass
does not preserve this identity, then it cannot be considered the “received and approved rite” of the Catholic
Church no matter what anyone says. Even the Second Vatican Council, which did
not (and could not) mandate the creation of a new rite of Mass, recognized this
truth by directing that the rites “be
revised carefully in the light of sound tradition” with “due care being taken to preserve their substance.”
The Council of Trent’s condemnation
of omitting or changing the “received
and approved rites” into “new rites”
is best understood by referring to one of the oldest maxims of the Church’s
sacred theology: “legem credendi statuit lex orandi.”
This is a Latin phrase which means “the rule of prayer determines the rule of
faith” (often referred to as “lex orandi, lex credendi”). In
other words, the way we pray determines what we believe. If a liturgical
tradition which expresses a doctrine of the Faith is altered or removed
altogether, the underlying doctrine will necessarily be compromised. This is
why the “received and approved rites”
must be faithfully preserved and never transformed into “other new ones” as declared by Trent.
…… However, the Novus Ordo Missae deviates
from the Roman Missal of St. Pius V to such an extent that it no longer retains
the substantial identity of the Roman rite. Even before the introduction of
such abuses as audible canons, vernacular and versus populum (toward
the people) celebrations, lay ministers, Communion under both species,
Communion in the hand to standing communicants and the like, Cardinals Ottaviani and Bacci advised Paul
VI that “the Novus Ordo represents,
both as a whole and in its details, a striking departure from the Catholic
theology of the Mass as it was formulated in Session XXII of the Council of
Trent.” Consequently, Cardinal Ottaviani (who, as
head of the Holy Office, was responsible for safeguarding the doctrine of the
Faith), in his famous intervention, concluded that the Novus Ordo was indeed a different rite of Mass.
For example, Ottaviani
says: “To abandon a liturgical tradition
which for four centuries stood as a sign and pledge of unity in worship, and to replace
it with another liturgy which, due to the countless liberties it
implicitly authorizes, cannot but be a sign of division – a liturgy which
teems with insinuations or manifest errors against the integrity of the
Catholic Faith – is, we feel bound in conscience to proclaim, an
incalculable error.” He also says,
“It is obvious that the New
Order of Mass has no intention of presenting the Faith taught by the
Council of Trent. But it is to this Faith that the Catholic
conscience is bound forever.” Accordingly, Ottaviani
appealed to Paul VI “not to deprive us
of the possibility of continuing to have recourse to the integral and fruitful Missal of St. Pius
V, so highly praised by Your Holiness, and so deeply venerated by
the whole Catholic world.” Therefore, both the critics and the creators of the New Mass,
including Paul VI himself, agree that the Novus
Ordo differs in substance from the Tridentine Missal and, hence, constitutes a “new rite” of Mass.
John
Salza, J.D., The
Novus Ordo Mass and Divine Law, excerpt from
Catholic Family News
He
failed on two occasions, 1942 & 1952, to consecrate Russia to the
Immaculate Heart of Mary as our Lady requested!
He contributed his share in liturgical destruction by establishing the liturgical
commission under Bugnini in 1948 and having Bea, his
personal confessor, undertake a new Latin translation of the Psalms.
“I am concerned about the messages of the Virgin to the little Lucia of
Fatima. This persistence of the Good Lady in face of the danger that threatens
the Church is a divine warning against the suicide that the alteration of the
Faith, in its liturgy, its theology, and its soul, would represent. I hear
around me innovators who wish to dismantle the Sacred Chapel, destroy the universal
flame of the Church, reject her ornaments, and make her remorseful for her
historical past.”
Pope Pius XII, 1933
And
now, addressing the “false prophets that exploit fear and hopelessness to sell
magical formulas of hate and cruelty,” Pope Francis again insults the Catholic
Faith as known and practiced by all our forefathers!
COMMENT: Pope Francis often referenced St. Vincent of Lérins as if his understanding of Tradition is in accord with
that of the great Church Father. It most
certainly was not which is evident to anyone familiar with his writings. This
corruption can only be attributed to malice.
Francis the Lutheran and St. Vincent the Catholic did not profess the
same Faith and only one of them is the Faith without which it is impossible to
please God. Francis characterized
faithfulness to the revelation of God as “rigidity” which was itself attributed
to deeper psychological and moral failings of traditional Catholics. “Love is not
rigid,” claimed Francis while he counseled the overthrow of God’s commandments,
but St. John the Apostle of Love and devotee of the Sacred Heart reports a very
different Gospel of Jesus Christ:
· If you love me, keep my commandments. John 14:15
· If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love; as I also have
kept my Father’ s commandments, and do abide in his love. John 15:10
· He that hath my commandments, and keepeth
them; he it is that loveth me. And he that loveth me, shall be loved of my Father: and I will love
him, and will manifest myself to him. John 14:21
· Jesus answered, and said to him: If any one love me, he will keep my
word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him, and will make our
abode with him. John 14:23
· In this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God, and
keep his commandments. 1 John 5:2
· And by this we know that we have known him, if we keep his
commandments. 1 John 2:3
Love is never lax or slothful in its pious attention to duty. The laxism and sloth
of Pope Francis was because without Faith, he had no true love of God.
In Pascendi, St. Pius X’s condemnation of the
heresy of Modernism, the word novelty
occurs twelve times always in a severely critical sense. After the 50th
anniversary of the Modernist Novus Ordo Missa, Paul VI was right in that “This novelty is no small thing.”
“We must prepare for this many-sided
inconvenience. It is the kind of upset caused by every novelty that breaks in on our habits. We
shall notice that pious
persons are disturbed most, because they have their own respectable way
of hearing Mass, and they will feel shaken out of their usual thoughts and
obliged to follow those of others. Even priests may feel some annoyance in this
respect. So what is to be done on this special and historical occasion? First
of all, we must prepare ourselves. This novelty is no small thing.”
Pope Paul VI, Changes in Mass for Greater
Apostolate, General Audience, November 26, 1969
ADVENT
is a season of Penance in preparation for Christmas! Penance is the
distinguishing mark of the Catholic, that is, the Catholic faithful to
Tradition!
PILATE, having renounced his power and right to administer justice,
yields to the will and passions of the multitude. The sentence of death is
pronounced, and received with fiendish pleasure by the multitude. Their prayer
is granted, their thirst for innocent blood about to be satiated. The cross,
the instrument of shame and torture, is already prepared. Jesus welcomes it;
henceforth it shall be the trophy of His victory over sin and hell, the badge
of His elect, the standard to be borne before him as He advances in great power
and majesty to judge all men.
Jesus receives the cross. He embraces it with love and tenderness,
placing it with His own hands upon His bleeding and mangled shoulders! If the
holy Apostle St. Andrew, as it is related in the history of his martyrdom, was
so overjoyed at the sight of the cross on which he was to die that he cried
out: “Hail, O precious cross, so long desired, and at last prepared for my
craving heart! Give me back to Christ, my Master, who has hung on thee!”—if
this was so with the servant, how much more did Jesus Christ cherish the cross,
since “the disciple is not above the Master”! Is not the love of this holy
cross a distinguishing characteristic of the one true Catholic Church,
particularly when compared with the modern sects? They have altogether
discarded it; they have torn it from the steeples of churches, and broken it
into pieces when they demolished Catholic altars. They have trampled it under
foot, in order to gain access to pagan nations for the purpose of traffic, as
we see by the conduct of the Dutch in Japan.
The sects, moreover, teach that Christ suffered for us, in order that
we might be free from punishment; they therefore reject the necessity of
penitential works and ridicule the conduct of Catholics, who consider it a duty
to chastise themselves and carry their cross with Jesus Christ. What reasons
can a pious Protestant, then, have to love suffering, to love the cross of
Christ, when he is taught that his sufferings avail him nothing, as Christ
Himself alone has undergone all the salutary suffering? But not so with a good
Catholic; he loves his sufferings for the sake of Jesus Christ, because the
Divine Word teaches him that if he “has suffered with Christ, he also shall be
glorified with Him.” He knows that it is
not sufficient to repent of his sins, he must likewise do penance for them;
for, says Christ: “Except you do penance, you shall perish all together.” If
the good Catholic glories in anything it is in the cross of Jesus Christ—that
is to say, in the amount of suffering which has been allotted to him to bear
for the love of his Divine Master. And even if, like Simon of Cyrene, he is
forced to carry the cross after Jesus, he will make a virtue of necessity, and
bear his sufferings cheerfully and without complaint as long as God wills it,
remembering those words of Christ: “If any man will come after Me, let him deny
himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.”
Where is there, or ever was there, one pious Protestant who, like St.
Teresa, would ask our Lord: “Aut pati,
aut mori”—either to suffer
or to die; or like St. Magdalen de Pazzi: “Pati et non mori”— let me suffer and not die; or with St. Francis
Xavier, when he saw in a vision numberless crosses coming down upon him from
heaven, signifying how much he should have to suffer in India and Japan: “Amplius, Domino, amplius”—Yet
more, O Lord! yet more? It is only the Catholic Church that teaches her
children “to glory in the cross of Jesus Christ.” To those who are outside her
pale this cross will be always a “stumbling-block and a folly.” When the Divine
Victim arrives at the summit of Calvary “they offer him wine mingled with
myrrh.” This was intended to intoxicate Him and stupefy the senses, in order to
render the pains of crucifixion less sensible; but our Lord, having tasted,
refused to drink. He did not seek to avoid the least pain, but endured the
extremity of agony. Wine mixed with gall is the only comfort which the world,
delicate to excess in its own pleasures, has to offer its dying Saviour. The pleasures of the world are intoxicating they
are never pure, and only too often are mixed with the gall of bitterness and
disappointment;
they stupefy the senses, it; is true, and make men forget that they are
destined not to seek a paradise on earth, but the cross as the surest and
safest means to attain the everlasting paradise of heaven. “They who are
Christ’s have crucified their flesh with its concupiscences.”
They shun worldly pleasures, centre their affections on heaven, and place their
treasure in the commandments of the Most High. No wonder that we see thousands
of both sexes in the Catholic Church renouncing the world and all its
allurements to embrace a crucified and laborious life in some religious order
or other, which they know to be a state much despised and calumniated by the
sects! Rev. Joseph Prachensky,
S.J., The Church of the Parables and The
True Spouse of the Suffering Saviour
Catholic
Truth against Modernist ERRORS:
“Science… cannot be successfully studied without final reference
to God's place in it.”
We deny that God is unknown by the light of
human reason. He is known by means of the visible things He has made. We set
against Modernism the trenchant words of St. Paul to the Gentiles, which apply
to their Modernist followers, in the paths of agnosticism. 'What is known of
God is manifested in them. For the invisible things of God, from the creation
of the world, are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made:
His eternal power also and His Divinity, so that they are inexcusable. Because
when they knew God they did not glorify Him as God . . . but became vain in
their thoughts . . . Professing themselves wise (Philosophers), they became
fools' (Rom. i. 20, 21, 22). God can never be
excluded from the domain of science, so the Modernist dogma that science is
atheistic is inadmissible. We can no more leave God out of the sciences than we
can shut out the light of the sun from our earth. Every branch of science,
directly or indirectly, manifests in its own way the Divine Mind that is its
ultimate end. As the whole of Nature, so the science of Nature is like a stream
flowing from God, the Ocean of all truth and of all knowledge. Science, then,
is not atheistic, it cannot be successfully studied without final reference to
God's place in it. 'Vain is the mind of man in which is not found the knowledge
of God' (Wisdom).
Rev. Norbert Jones, C.R.L., Old Truths, Not Modernist Errors
“One must
resist the Pope who openly destroys the Church.”
St. Cajetan
“When a
foulness invades the whole Church, we must return to the Church of the
past.”
St. Vincent of
Lerins
“Just as it is
licit to resist a Pontiff who attacks the body, so it is licit to resist him
who attacks souls, or who disturbs the civil order, or, above all, him who
tries to destroy the Church. It is licit
to resist him by not doing what he orders and by impeding the execution of his
will.”
St. Robert Bellarmine
“They (the
keys of authority given Jesus Christ to St. Peter) will never cease to be
durable, they will last forever and they will never break.”
God the Father
to St. Catherine of Siena
“We have had
enough of exhortations to be silent! Cry
out with a hundred thousand tongues. I
see that the world is rotten because of silence.”
St. Catherine
of Siena
“The devil is
always discovering something novel against the truth.”
Pope Leo the
Great
Leo
the Homosexual following in the way of Francis the Homosexual.
Pictured
below is Leo and Francis both greeting homosexual "married" couples
for public photo-ops. The other pictures are Francis and Leo both slumming
around with the pervert James Martin.
The
Vatican is in the hands of the Homosexual Lobby. We must pray to God to purge
His Church of this gross perversion.
Preaching
to the DEAF!
You gather here today, present-day
apostles, as the Church and, therefore, the world stand perched on the edge of
a cliff. And yet you who are entrusted with the keeping of souls choose to
speak not a word of the spiritual danger which abounds. Today we stand on the cusp of all
that has been prophesied about the Church and the abominations which would come
forth in these times, a time when all of hell attacks the Church of Jesus
Christ, and a time when the fallen angels of hell no longer seek entry into her
sacred halls but instead stand inside, peeking out of her windows and unlocking
doors to welcome in more diabolical destruction.
Do you not know that Our Lord will send forth His
avenging angels to heap coals of fire upon the heads of those who were called
to be His apostles and who have not guarded what He has given unto them?
And yet almost all of you, my brothers, stood by
silently watching as the Synod on Synodality took place, an
abomination constructed not to guard the Deposit of Faith, but to dismantle it,
and yet few were the cries heard from you – men who should be willing to die
for Christ and His Church.
The Synod’s final document has been released,
yet with the sleight of hand which is so characteristic of the
Francis-controlled Vatican. By drawing attention to the issues which
worried many, they have slipped in what was always their real goal without
anyone even noticing. What they were after in the first place was the
dismantling of Christ’s Church by replacing the structure of the Church as
Our Lord instituted it with a diabolically-inspired new structure of
“synodality” which in actuality is a new church that is in no way Catholic.
Bishop
Joseph Strickland, former bishop of Tyler, TX who was removed from his office
by Pope Francis the Diabolical for preaching Catholic truth, addressing the
U.S. bishops gathered at their annual meeting
British Public
Indoctrination – England’s “seeds of future destiny” are now evident – in one
generation from the world’s greatest power to a rotten little lonely island
buried under usury!
The poor in Townshend’s day (Sir Charles Townshend, 2nd
Viscount Townshend, British statesman, leader of Whig faction, 1714) were
illiterate. Therefore, so long as they were not educated at all, there was no
necessity to educate them wrong. As a result there remained among them a
strange and clouded memory that there had been good times in the past before
the dissolution of the monasteries. This memory was quite unconnected with any
present Catholic sympathies: it came from the fact that it was the coining of
the monastic plate (i.e.: the sacred vessels melted down and coined) that
started the rise in prices.
“I’ll tell thee
what, good fellow,
Before the friars
went hence
A bushel of the
best wheat
Was sold for
fourteen pence,
And forty eggs a
penny
That were both
good and new,”
sings Ignorance in the Percy (Protestant, Rev. Thomas Percy) Ballad of
Plain Truth (the Protestant) and Blind Ignorance (the Catholic). And, though
‘Truth’ is made to win the theological debate, he specifically refuses even to
try to refute Ignorance’s economic history. The Rev. C. L. Marson (Protestant,
d. 1914) in 
his book on Glastonbury (King Arthur was
buried at Glastonbury Abbey) tells how the Somerset labourers in the last
century (18th) still spoke of the Glastonbury monks as a “wonderful
good class of people served terrible bad”. It has taken but two generations of
compulsory education and text-book history to make the poor as ignorant as the
rich. […..]
Meanwhile, Dr. (Matthew) Arnold, the founder of the public-school
system, when appointed Regius Professor of History at Oxford, was telling his
biographer, Stanley, that he “could not bear to plunge (himself) into the very
depths of that noisome cavern”, the Middle Ages, “and to have to toil through
centuries of dirt and darkness” —centuries in which, as Thorold Rogers was to
show, the poor were
materially some six times better off than they were in Dr. Arnold’s England.
In preference to such a painful theme the doctor would prefer to dwell on “the
deep calm of the first seventy years of the eighteenth century . . as
containing within itself the seeds of our future destiny.”
Christopher Hollis, The Two Nations, A Financial Study of
English History, 1935
Latae sententiae crimes in the external forum require a determination of guilt!
“A
sentence declaratory of the offence is always necessary in the forum externum,
since in this tribunal no one is presumed to be excommunicated unless convicted
of a crime that entail such a penalty.”
Pope
Benedict XIV, De syndod, X, I, 5
COMMENT: Recently a group of young men and women
missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) were
doing their required missionary work in central city York. A friendly
theological discussion took place on the steps of our Mission chapel. The
friendly exchanged ended and the climate cooled when the question about the
exact number of Joseph Smith's and Brigham Young's wives was brought up.
Mormons believe that Jesus Christ founded one Church. They believe that that
Church became corrupted and God abandoned it. God then, centuries later,
reconstituted His Church when the angel Moroni lead the illiterate Joseph Smith
to a hidden book and provided him with mystical spectacles permitting him to
read it. When you ask a Mormon how is it that Jesus Christ promised to be with
His Church until the end of time and taught that marriage is between one man
and one woman until death, why is it that they believe Joseph Smith or Brigham
Young and not believe Jesus Christ? They answer by walking away. Jesus Christ
uses the metaphor of marriage to describe His relationship with His Church and
with each of the faithful individually. Every man-made heretical and schismatic
sect eventually repudiates marriage because they cannot abide the metaphor.
Luther permitted bigamy. The Orthodox permit divorce and remarriage three
times. Joseph Smith had "up to forty wives" and Brigham Young had
"fifty-six wives, twenty-one had never been married before;
seventeen were widows; six were divorced; six had living husbands; and the
marital status of six others is unknown. Nine of his wives had previously been
plural wives of Joseph Smith, and Young was sealed to them as a proxy for
Smith" (WIKI). The first clue to the Mormons that they were being lead into a spiritual desert was
polygamy but some like the desert. Mormons claim that Brigham Young saw the
light and abandoned the practice for the Latter Day Saints but this occurred
only after the U.S. government told they to give it up or get out. Although
Mormons are no longer polygamists, they permit divorce and "temple"
remarriage which is just serial polygamy. These "missionaries" now
know that Jesus Christ did not abandon His Church and will not do so no matter
how corrupt churchmen become. The Catholic Church alone offers the possibility
of salvation.
It’s Official: Mormon Founder Had Up to 40 Wives...
Mormon leaders have acknowledged for the first time that the church’s
founder and prophet, Joseph Smith, portrayed in church materials as a loyal
partner to his loving spouse Emma, took as many as 40 wives, some already
married and one only 14 years old.... The biggest bombshell for some in the essays is that Smith married women
who were already married, some to men who were Smith’s friends and followers.
Efforts must therefore
be made to bring about an organization of society in which the life of the
people will not be subordinate to and at the mercy of Stock Exchange operations
and financial coups by the few. Already, in the great Encyclical Rerum
Novarum, May 15th, 1891, Pope Leo XIII had alluded to the havoc wrought by
usury. “For the ancient working-men's guilds were abolished in the last century
and no other organization took their place. Public institutions and the very
laws have set aside the ancient religion. Hence, by degrees, it has come to
pass that workingmen have been surrendered, all isolated and helpless, to the
hard-heartedness of employers and the greed of unchecked competition. The
mischief has been increased by rapacious usury, which, although more than once
condemned by the Church, is nevertheless, under a different guise, but with the
like injustice still practiced by covetous and grasping men. To this must be added
… the concentration of so many branches of trade in the hands of a few
individuals, so that a small number of very rich men have been able to lay upon
the teeming masses of the laboring poor a yoke little better than that of
slavery itself.”
Rev. Denis Fahey, The
Kingship of Christ According to the Principles of St. Thomas
Blessed Margaret Mary received from our Divine Lord another
communication relative to Charity. He showed her the soul of a deceased person
who had to undergo but a light chastisement, and he told her that among all the
good works which this person had performed in the world, He had taken into
special consideration certain humiliations to which she had submitted in the
world, because she had suffered them in the spirit of charity, not only without
murmuring, but even without speaking of them. Our Lord added, that, in
recompense, He had given her a mild and favorable judgment.
Fr. Paul Sullivan, O.P., How to Avoid Purgatory
And, lastly, to sum all up in a word. As the Incarnation is God’s Book
of Life, the knowledge of his Sacred Heart is the interpretation and the
unfolding of that Book. The whole mystery of God and of man, and the relations
of God and man in grace and in glory, are all written in the Sacred Heart. They
that know the Sacred Heart know God; they that love the Sacred Heart love God;
and they that are made like to the Sacred Heart are made like to God. It is the
compendium of the whole science of God, of the whole way of salvation, of the
whole gospel of eternal life.
Cardinal Henry Edward Manning, The
Sacred Heart, God's Way of Love
Religious
Liberty from Vatican II has its root in the Americanist Heresy
On every side the dread phantom of war holds
sway: there is scarce room for another thought in the minds of men. The
combatants are the greatest and wealthiest nations of the earth; what wonder,
then, if, well provided with the most awful weapons modern military science has
devised, they strive to destroy one another with refinements of horror. There
is no limit to the measure of ruin and of slaughter; day by day the earth is
drenched with newly-shed blood, and is covered with the bodies of the wounded
and of the slain. Who would imagine as we see them thus filled with hatred of
one another, that they are all of one common stock, all of the same nature, all
members of the same human society? ....We implore those in whose hands are
placed the fortunes of nations to hearken to Our voice. Surely there are other
ways and means whereby violated rights can be rectified. Let them be tried
honestly and with good will, and let arms meanwhile be laid aside.
Benedict XV, Ad beatissimi apostolorum, November 1, 1914
“We consider the establishment of our
country’s independence, the shaping of its liberties and laws, as a work of
special Providence, its framers ‘building better than they knew,’ the
Almighty’s hand guiding them. We believe that our country’s heroes were the
instruments of the God of nations in establishing this home of freedom; to both
the Almighty and to His instruments in the work we look with grateful
reverence. And to maintain the inheritance of freedom which they have left us,
should it ever–which God forbid—be imperiled, our Catholic citizens will be found
to stand forward as one man, ready to pledge anew ‘their lives, their fortunes,
and their sacred honor.’”
Archbishop (soon to be Cardinal) James
Gibbons, addressing the American bishops at the Third Plenary Council of
Baltimore, 1884 attended by 14 archbishops and 61 bishops.
Moved to the very depths of our hearts by the
stirring appeal of the President of the United States, and by the action of our
national Congress, we accept whole-heartedly and unreservedly the decree of
that legislative authority proclaiming this country to be in a state of war.
Inspired neither by hate nor fear, but by the holy sentiments of truest
patriotic fervor and zeal, we stand ready, we and all the flock committed to
our keeping, to cooperate in every way possible with our President and our
national government, to the end that the great and holy cause of liberty may
triumph and that our beloved country may emerge from this hour of test stronger
and nobler than ever. Our people, as ever, will rise as one man to serve the nation.
Pledge of U.S. Catholic Archbishops, April
18, 1917; sent to President Woodrow Wilson by Cardinal James Gibbons,
Archbishop of Baltimore, the leading Catholic prelate in the United States.
“The primary duty of a citizen is loyalty to
country. It is exhibited by an absolute and unreserved obedience to his
country’s call.”
Cardinal James Gibbons, Archbishop of
Baltimore (1877-1921), April 1917 in support of the U.S. declaration of war
against Germany and Austria-Hungary. The Balfour Declaration agreement
committed the British to deliver Palestine into Jewish hands in return for the
Jews bringing the United States into WWI in support of the British. Cardinal
James Gibbons was the chief propagator of the heresy of Americanism which
became settled Novus Ordo doctrine after Vatican II (religious liberty)
primarily by the work of Fr. John Courtney Murray who greatly admired Cardinal
Gibbons. Gibbons did his best to align American Catholics with Jewish interests
to bring the United States into the Great War. In doing so Gibbons worked
directly to undermine the peace plans of Pope Benedict XV. Pope Benedict
devised a generous peace plan and contacted Cardinal Gibbons to do what he
could to influence the United States government to back his offer of a
negotiated peace. Gibbons did nothing of the sort. While giving lip service to
the Pope's peace plan six months too late, he in fact never contacted President
Wilson or any official of the government to even mention Pope Benedict's peace
plan. Gibbons was too busy building the National Catholic War Council (NCWC)
and supporting the call of universal military service. The purpose of the NCWC
as Gibbons said in a letter to all American bishops was to form “the mental and
moral preparation of our people for the war.”
To
Congar's credit, he at least told the truth about what he helped destroy!
“It cannot be denied that the
Declaration on Religious Liberty does say materially something else than the
Syllabus of 1864; it even says just about the opposite of Propositions 15 and 77 to 79 of this
document..... I collaborated on the final paragraphs which left me less
satisfied. It involved demonstrating
that the theme of religious liberty was already contained in Scripture. Now, it
isn't there.”
Cardinal Yves Marie Joseph Congar, O.P., forbidden to teach by
the Church and whose books were suppressed in the early 1950s, made a peritus
at Vatican II by Novus Ordo St. John XXIII, and is considered by many to have
been the most influential of all the periti. He was raised to the cardinalate
by Novus Ordo St. John Paul II. He rejected the dogmatic teaching of Trent
which his teacher and mentor, Fr. Marie-Dominique Chenu, O.P., derisively called “Baroque
theology”.
Excerpts
from the Diary of Msgr. Joseph Fenton:
·
“He
[Cardinal Ottaviani] remarked that we were on the eve of the Council, and that
no one knew who the Council’s theologians were to be.” (Sept. 28, 1962)
·
“It is a
crime that we did not take the Anti-Modernist Oath. Poor O[ttaviani] must have
failed to have our own profession passed by the central commission. It
contained his condemnation of [Fr. John Courtney] Murray [the Americanist
heretic who structured the Council teaching on Religious Liberty].” (Oct. 9,
1962)
·
“I had
always thought that this council was dangerous. It was started for no
sufficient reason. There was too much talk about what it was supposed to
accomplish. Now I am afraid that real trouble is on the way.” (Oct. 13,
1962)
·
“I
started to read the material on the Liturgy, and I was shocked at the bad
theology. They actually have been stupid enough [to say] that the Church
is ‘simul humanam et divininam, visibilem et invisibilem’ [at the same
time human and divine, visible and invisible]. And they speak of the Church
working ‘quousque unum ovile fiat et unus pastor’ [until there be one fold
and one shepherd], as if that condition were not already achieved.” (Oct. 19,
1962)
·
“I do not
think that any little work on our part is going to bring good to the Church. We
should, I believe, face the facts. Since the death of [Pope] St. Pius X the
Church has been directed by weak and liberal popes, who have flooded the
hierarchy with unworthy and stupid men. This present conciliar set-up makes
this all the more apparent. [Fr.] Ed Hanahoe, the only intelligent and
faithful member of [Cardinal] Bea’s secretariat has been left off the list of
the periti. Such idiots as [Mgr. John
S.] Quinn and the sneak [Fr. Frederick] McManus have been put on. [Fr. George]
Tavard is there as an American, God help us. From surface appearance it
would seem that the Lord Christ is abandoning His Church. The thoughts of many
are being revealed. As one priest used to say, to excuse his own
liberalism, which, in the bottom of his heart he knew was wrong, ‘for the
last few decades the tendency in Rome has been to favor the
liberals.’ That is the policy now. We can only do what we can to
overt an ever more complete disloyalty to Christ.” (Oct. 19, 1962)
·
“[Fr.] Ed
Hanahoe gave me two books on Modernism. In one of them I found evidence that the
teaching in the first chapter of the new schema on the Church [that became the
Vatican II dogmatic constitution Lumen
Gentium] and the language are those of [the excommunicated Modernist Fr.
George Tyrrell [who died outside the Catholic Church and was denied
ecclesiastical burial]. May God preserve His Church from that chapter. If it
passes, it will be a great evil. I must pray and act.” (Sept. 24, 1963)
Paul
VI declared Novus Ordo Saint. So just what is a “Novus Ordo Saint”?
A Novus Ordo Saint is a man-made saint. Contrasted with Catholic saints
who are God-made saints. In virtue of their union with God they are sanctified,
and therefore, Catholic Saints exhibit heroic virtue in their lives. God
confirms their sanctity by working miracles through their intercession and
thus, a cult of veneration (dulia) develops and spreads throughout the Church.
The Church recognizes God's evidence that they are saints and declares this
fact to the universal Church. Contrary to this, Novus Ordo Saints are man-made
saints and their elevation to the title of sainthood is for the purpose of
promoting the human ideology exemplified in their lives. There is no real cult
of veneration (dulia) among the faithful to Novus Ordo Saints. Since God does not
work true miracles through the intercession of man-made saints, only man-made
miracles are required for the beatification of man-made Novus Ordo Saints.
Finally, the Novus Ordo beatification process does have a promotor fidei,
the so-called “devil’s advocate,” although his role has been change as the promotor ideologiae. The greatest
difference between Catholic Saints and Novus Ordo Saints is that the former are
in heaven and the latter, very well may not be.
COMMENT
ON THE MODERN MIND DEVOID OF GOD’S GRACE
“But
instead of a mind, universal literacy has given [the common man] a rubber
stamp, a rubber stamp inked with advertising slogans, with editorials, with
published scientific data, with the trivialities of tabloids and the
profundities of history, but quite innocent of original thought. Each man's
rubber stamp is the twin of millions of others, so that when these millions are
exposed to the same stimuli, all receive identical imprints. [...] The amazing
readiness with which large masses accept this process is probably accounted for
by the fact that no attempt is made to convince them that black is white.
Instead, their preconceived hazy ideas that a certain gray is almost black or
almost white are brought into sharper focus. Their prejudices, notions, and
convictions are used as a starting point, with the result that they are drawn
by a thread into passionate adherence to a given mental picture.”
Edward
Bernays, from his book, The Minority
Rules, 1927. Bernays was a Jewish double nephew of Sigmund Freud and a
pioneer in public relations and propaganda. He was called "the father of
public relations" in his obituary. Bernays was named one of the 100 most
influential Americans of the 20th century by Life Magazine. He was the subject
of a full-length biography called The Father of Spin (1999) and later an
award-winning 2002 documentary for the BBC called The Century of the Self. (Wiki)
"Pray for
the conversion of Russia." Blessed Virgin Mary at Fatima
Your must understand. The leading Bolsheviks who took over Russia were
not Russians. They hated Russians. They hated Christians. Driven by ethnic
hatred they tortured and slaughtered millions of Russians without a shred of
human remorse. The October Revolution was not what you call in America the
"Russian Revolution." It was an invasion and conquest over the
Russian people. More of my countrymen suffered horrific crimes at their
bloodstained hands than any people or nation ever suffered in the entirety of human
history. It cannot be understated. Bolshevism was the greatest human slaughter
of all time. The fact that most of the world is ignorant of this reality is
proof that the global media itself is in the hands of the perpetrators. We
cannot state that all Jews are Bolsheviks. But: without Jews there would have
been no Bolshevism. For a Jew nothing is more insulting than the truth. The
blood maddened Jewish terrorists murdered sixty-six million in Russia from 1918
to 1957.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008), Noble Prize winning novelist,
historian and victim of Jewish Bolshevism
American
Catholic Apostasy: PEW POLE 2025
29% of U.S. Catholics say they attend Mass weekly.
59% of Catholics say abortion should be legal.
76% U.S. Catholics say society should be accepting of
homosexuality.
61% U.S. Catholics support legal homosexual
"marriage."
80% of Catholics view Pope Francis favorably.
84% of U.S. Catholics say they have a favorable view of Leo although 67% say they know little about Leo, and 25% know nothing at all.
Pope Leo XIV commemorates
Nostra Aetate anniversary with interfaith celebrations
Catholic
NewsAgency | Vatican City |Kridina Millare
| Oct 29, 2025
Pope
Leo XIV joined faith leaders on Tuesday to commemorate the 60th anniversary of
Nostra Aetate, the Church’s declaration on building relationships with
non-Christian religions.
Approximately
300 representatives of world religions and cultures joined the Holy Father for
an evening ecumenical prayer service for peace organized by the Community of
Sant’Egidio and held at the Colosseum in Rome.
“Peace
is a constant journey of reconciliation,” the Holy Father said at the Oct. 28
event.
Thanking
religious leaders for coming together in Rome, he said their interfaith meeting
expressed their shared “conviction that prayer is a powerful force for
reconciliation.”
“This is our witness: offering
the immense treasures of ancient spiritualities to contemporary humanity,” he
said.
“We
need a true and sound era of reconciliation that puts an end to the abuse of
power, displays of force, and indifference to the rule of law,” he added.
“Enough of war, with all the pain it causes through death, destruction, and
exile!”
In his remarks, the pope urged
people not to be indifferent to the “cry of the poor and the cry of the earth”
in their pursuits for peace in countries scarred by ongoing conflict and
injustice.
“In
the power of prayer, with hands raised to heaven and open to others, we must
ensure that this period of history, marked by war and the arrogance of power,
soon comes to an end, giving rise to a new era,” he said.
“We cannot allow this period to continue. It
shapes the minds of people who grow accustomed to war as a normal part of human
history,” he continued.
Pope
Leo and other religious leaders lit candles to symbolize their shared prayer
and renewed commitment to engage in interfaith dialogue.
Several
people waved small blue banners with the word “peace” in different languages
while Pope Leo and the other religious leaders lit candles to symbolize their
shared prayer and renewed commitment to engage in interfaith dialogue.
After the prayer gathering at Rome’s iconic landmark, the Holy Father
returned to the Vatican to join colorful celebrations jointly organized by the
Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and the Dicastery for Promoting Christian
Unity.
To mark the 60th anniversary of Nostra
Aetate, several
multicultural music and dance performances were held inside the Vatican’s Paul
VI Audience Hall as well as a presentation highlighting papal initiatives to
promote the Church’s dialogue with other religions since the pontificate of
Pope Paul VI.
Pope
Leo’s appearance and special address toward the end of the two-hour gathering
highlighted the Church’s reverence for all people and its desire to collaborate
with others for the common good.
“We belong to one human family,
one in origin, and one also in our final goal,” he said. “Religions everywhere
try to respond to the restlessness of the human heart.”
“Each in its own way offers
teachings, ways of life, and sacred rites that help guide their followers to
peace and meaning,” he said.
Emphasizing the common mission
shared among people of different religions to “reawaken” the sense of the
sacred in the world today, the Holy Father encouraged people to “keep love
alive.”
“We
have come together in this place bearing the great responsibility as religious
leaders to bring hope to a humanity that is often tempted by despair,” Leo
said.
“Let
us remember that prayer has the power to transform our hearts, our words, our
actions, and our world,” he said.
COMMENT: Now for the third time in his short pontificate Leo/Provost
quotes Leonard Boff's Cry of the Earth,
Cry of the Poor. Boff is a former Franciscan priest who was censored by the
liberal Cardinal Ratzinger when he headed the Congregation for the Doctrine of
the Faith under the liberal JPII for his extreme Marxist liberation theology.
Boff is famous for his development of an integrated theology of Marxism, Gaia
cult earth worship and "social justice." He was admired by
Francis/Bergoglio and he is admired thrice as much by Leo/Provost. The picture
with its Satanic imagery was reportedly published by the Vatican. Leo/Provost,
like Francis/Bergoglio, wants to restore native American culture and religious
traditions. It should be remembered that Christopher Columbus encountered
cannibalism on his second voyage of exploration and ritual murder was
widespread not only among the Aztecs and Incas but in smaller tribes across
both North and South America as reported by Jesuit missionaries. In the
interfaith celebrations at the Vatican a young native American boy half dressed
paraded an image of a snake into the assembly before Leo/Provost. Is this the
native American tradition that the Vatican wants to recover?
Doctrinal Note on Marian
titles: Mother of the faithful, not Co-redemptrix
The document of the
Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, approved by Pope Leo XIV, offers
clarifications on titles applied to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and calls for
special attention to the use of the expression, “Mediatrix of all graces.”
Vatican News
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith
on Tuesday, 4 November 2025, published Mater populi fidelis (“The Mother of the
Faithful People”), a Doctrinal Note “On Some Marian Titles Regarding Mary’s
Cooperation in the Work of Salvation.” Signed by the Prefect, Cardinal Víctor
Manuel Fernández, and the Secretary for the Dicastery’s Doctrinal Section,
Monsignor Armando Matteo, the Note was approved by the Pope on 7 October.
Mater
populi fidelis (MPF) is the fruit of a long and complex collegial effort. It is
a doctrinal document on Marian devotion, centred on the figure of Mary, who is
associated with the work of Christ as Mother of believers. The Note provides a
significant biblical foundation for devotion to Mary, as well as marshalling
various contributions from the Fathers, the Doctors of the Church, elements of
Eastern tradition, and the thought of recent Popes.
In
this positive framework, the doctrinal text analyses a number of Marian titles,
encouraging the adoption of some of those appellations and warning against the
use of others. Titles such as “Mother of Believers,” “Spiritual Mother,”
“Mother of the Faithful” are noticed with approval in the Note. Conversely, the title of
“Co-redemptrix” is deemed inappropriate and problematic. The title of “Mediatrix”
is considered unacceptable when it takes on a meaning that excludes Jesus
Christ; however, it can used appropriately so long as it expresses an inclusive
and participatory mediation that glorifies the power of Christ. The titles
“Mother of Grace” and “Mediatrix of All Graces” are considered acceptable when
used in a very precise sense, but the document also warns of particularly broad
explanations of the meaning of the terms.
Essentially,
the Note reaffirms Catholic doctrine, which has always emphasised that
everything in Mary is directed towards the centrality of Christ and His
salvific work. For this reason, even if some Marian titles admit of an orthodox
interpretation through correct exegesis, Mater populi fidelis says it is
preferable to avoid them.
In
his presentation of the Doctrinal Note, Cardinal Fernández expresses
appreciation for popular devotion but warns against groups and publications
that propose a certain dogmatic development and raise doubts among the
faithful, including through social media. The main problem in interpreting
these titles applied to Our Lady, he says concerns the way of understanding
Mary's association with Christ's work of redemption (paragraph 3).
Co-redemptrix
Regarding
the title “Co-redemptrix,” the Note recalls that “some Popes have used the
title “without elaborating much on its meaning.” Generally, it continues, “they
have presented the title in two specific ways: in reference to Mary’s divine
motherhood (insofar as she, as Mother, made possible the Redemption that Christ
accomplished) or in reference to her union with Christ at the redemptive Cross.
The Second Vatican Council refrained from using the title for dogmatic,
pastoral, and ecumenical reasons. Saint John Paul II referred to Mary as
‘Co-redemptrix’ on at least seven occasions, particularly relating this title
to the salvific value of our sufferings when they are offered together with the
sufferings of Christ, to whom Mary is united especially at the Cross” (18).
The
document cites an internal discussion within the then-Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith, which in February 1996 had discussed the request to
proclaim a new dogma on Mary as “Co-redemptrix or Mediatrix of all graces.”
Then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was opposed to such a definition, arguing, “the
precise meaning of these titles is not clear, and the doctrine contained in
them is not mature. […] It is not clear how the doctrine expressed in these
titles is present in Scripture and the apostolic tradition.”
Later,
in 2002, the future Benedict XVI expressed himself publicly in the same way:
“The formula ‘Co-redemptrix’ departs to too great an extent from the language
of Scripture and of the Fathers and therefore gives rise to misunderstandings…
Everything comes from Him [Christ], as the Letter to the Ephesians and the
Letter to the Colossians, in particular, tell us; Mary, too, is everything that
she is through Him. The word ‘Co-redemptrix’ would obscure this origin.”
The
note clarifies that Cardinal Ratzinger did not deny the good intentions behind
the proposal, nor the valuable aspects reflected in it, but nonetheless
maintained that they were “being expressed in the wrong way” (19).
Pope
Francis also expressed his clear opposition to the use of the title
Co-Redemptrix on at least three occasions.
Tuesday’s
Doctrinal Note concludes: “It is always inappropriate to use the title
‘Co-redemptrix’ to define Mary’s cooperation. This title risks obscuring
Christ’s unique salvific mediation and can therefore create confusion and an
imbalance in the harmony of the truths of the Christian faith. […] When an
expression requires many, repeated explanations to prevent it from straying
from a correct meaning, it does not serve the faith of the People of God and
becomes unhelpful” (22).
Mediatrix
The
Note emphasises that “the biblical statement about Christ’s exclusive mediation
is conclusive. Christ is the only Mediator” (24).
At
the same time, MPF recognises “the fact that the word ‘mediation’ is commonly
used in many areas of everyday life, where it is understood simply as
cooperation, assistance, or intercession. As a result, it is inevitable that
the term would be applied to Mary in a subordinate sense. Used in this way, it
does not intend to add any efficacy or power to the unique mediation of Jesus
Christ, true God and true man” (25).
Further,
“it is clear that Mary has a real mediatory role in enabling the Incarnation of
the Son of God in our humanity” (26).
Mother of believers and
Mediatrix of all graces
Mary’s
maternal role “in no way obscures or diminishes” the unique mediation of
Christ, “but rather shows its power […] Understood in this way, Mary’s
motherhood does not seek to weaken the unique adoration due to Christ alone
but, rather, seeks to enkindle it.”
Therefore, the Note states, “one
must avoid titles and expressions that present Mary as a kind of ‘lightning
rod’ before the Lord’s justice, as if she were a necessary alternative before
the insufficiency of God’s mercy” (37b).
Thus,
the title “Mother of Believers” “enables us to speak of Mary’s role in our
relation to our life of grace”. However, MPF goes on to urge caution concerning
the use of expressions that may convey “less acceptable notions” (45).
“Cardinal Ratzinger already
affirmed” for example, “that the title ‘Mary, Mediatrix of All Graces’ was not
clearly grounded in Revelation.” So, the Note continues, “in line with this
conviction, we can recognize the difficulties this title poses, both in terms
of theological reflection and spirituality” (45). In fact, “no human person —
not even the Apostles or the Blessed Virgin — can act as a universal dispenser
of grace. Only God can bestow grace, and he does so through the humanity of
Christ” (53).
“Some titles, such as ‘Mediatrix
of All Graces,’ have limits that do not favour a correct understanding of
Mary’s unique place,” MPF explains, adding, “In fact, she, the first redeemed,
could not have been the mediatrix of the grace that she herself received”
(67).
Nonetheless,
the Doctrinal Note acknowledges that “the term ‘graces,’ when seen in reference
to Mary’s maternal help at various moments in our lives, can have an acceptable
meaning. The plural form expresses all the aids — even material — that the Lord
may grant us when He heeds His Mother’s intercession” (68).
COMMENT: Amazing
to hear these apostates chirping about the lack of "precise meaning"
of theological terms while obscurity in definition is, and has been since
Vatican II, the calling card of the Novus Ordo theologian and prelates. They
like to muddle what is clear. Let's start with the title, "Mother of
Believers" and "Mother of the Faithful." These are, in fact,
worthy titles of the Mother of God and frequently occur in St. Mary of Agreda's
City of God, yet the Novus Ordo clerics would never be found offering a precise
definition and meaning for the term "faithful" and then identify
exactly who the "faithful" are.
The
term "faithful" has a precise Catholic definition. It refers to those
who have been baptized into the Catholic Church and profess the one, holy,
catholic and apostolic faith. By virtue of this incorporation by baptism they
have become "children of God." They faithfully believe all the truths
that God has revealed on the authority of God the Revealer. Only those who have
become thus members of the Mystical Body of Christ share by participation in
His divine nature and become brothers and sister of Jesus Christ and therefore,
sons of His Mother. This definition excludes all heretics, schismatics, Jews,
pagans, and any other form of idolaters. Novus Ordo clerics heretically teach
that everyone is a child of God by virtue of the Incarnation. Everyone by
nature is a creature of God created in His image and likeness with the
spiritual soul with the powers of reason and free will, but every creature is
born in original sin and cut off from the friendship of God. He is only a
"child of God" in potentia.
Without the sacrament of Baptism and the Catholic faith they can never become
"children of God." This obscurity of definition as to who is a child
of God and thus a child of the Blessed Virgin Mary ultimately obscures what is
necessary as a necessity of means to obtain salvation.
The
title Mediatrix of all grace is long established and of sound and precise
theological understanding. Those that pretend otherwise are ignorant, proud,
and deceitful. They have no excuse. 'The law of prayer determines the law of
belief' is, as affirmed by St. Pius X in Pascendi,
a canon of faith from the time of Celestine I, that is, a dogma of the Catholic
Church. The immemorial Roman rite has a Mass in honor of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, Mediatrix of all grace celebrated on May 31 established by Pope Benedict
XV. Regarding this feast, Dom Gaspar Lefebvre, O.S.B. of the Abby of St. Andrew
teaches:
"The
will of God is that we should have everything through Mary," says St.
Bernard. The Father has sent us His Son, but His will was to make His coming
depend upon the Fiat of the Virgin, which He commanded to the angel Gabriel to
solicit on the day of the Annunciation.
The
Father and the Son send us the Holy Ghost, but it is through Mary that He comes
down to men. On the day of Pentecost, according to an ancient Tradition, the
heavenly fire which descended on the Cenacle first rested on Mary, and then on
the apostles. This is a figure of what happens every day in the Church where
the Holy Ghost is sent invisibly into our souls. "All the gifts of the
Holy Ghost are distributed by Mary to those whom she chooses, whenever she
wishes and as much as she wishes," says St. Bernardine of Siena.
The
graces which the Holy Ghost pours down on us are due to the merits of Christ on
Calvary; but in order that God may bestow them on the world, it is necessary
that Mary should intervene. Having cooperated by her divine maternity and by
her sufferings at the foot of the Cross in the Incarnation and Redemption, she
has deserved to co-operate when they are continually applied to creatures by
the most High. "By the communion of sorrows and of will between Christ and
Mary," says St. Pius X, "she has deserved to become the dispenser of
all the blessings which Jesus acquired for us by His blood" (Encyclical
2-2-1904). Such is His will, but it is essential that she should constantly
intercede for each one of us. This she does, relying on the blood of Christ by
whom she was herself saved, and who alone saves us. This actual intervention of
Mary plays a preponderating part in the salvation of the world. It is important
that we should realize this, and it is the object of the feast of Mary
Mediatrix of all Graces. A clear idea of the fact may be obtained by simple
reading the texts of the Mass and Vespers.
"Through
the Virgin," says St. Bernardine of Siena, "life-giving graces flow
from Christ, who is the head, into His mystical body." "Through
her," adds St. Antoninus, "come from heaven all the graces granted to
the world." "What all the saints united to thee may obtain for us by
their intercession," writes St. Anselm, "thy pleading alone may
obtain without the help of their prayers." The maternal solicitude of Mary
for the whole human race is therefore continual, and it is because of this that
unceasingly, through the Mass, the sacraments, the hierarchy and other channels
of grace, the merits of Calvary are applied to our souls. "We may
affirm," declared Pope Leo XIII, "that by the will of God, nothing is
given to us without Mary's mediation, in such a way that just as no one can approach the almighty
Father but through His Son, so no one, so to speak, can approach Christ but
through His Mother" (Encyclical, 9-22-1891).
Let
us therefore not consider as of small importance the efforts made to establish
this point of doctrine of Mary's mediation, since this doctrine enables us to
understand the divine plan, and clearly manifests the mediation of the Son of
God of which it is a corollary.
St. Mary of Agreda at
the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Heaven, writes that Jesus
Christ addressed the entire heavenly assembly of angels and saints saying:
"My Father and
eternal God, this is the Woman, that gave Me my human form in her virginal
womb, that nourished Me at her breast and sustained labors for Me, that shared
in my hardships and co-operated with Me in the works of Redemption. This is
She, who was always most faithful and fulfilled our will according to our
entire pleasure; She, pure and immaculate as my Mother, through her own works,
has reached the summit of sanctity according to the measure of the gifts We
have communicated to Her; and when She had merited her reward and could have
enjoyed it forever, She deprived Herself of it for Our glory and returned to
attend to the establishment, the government, and instruction of the Church
militant; and We, in order that She might live in it for the succor of the
faithful, deferred her eternal rest, which She has merited over and over again.
In the highest bounty and equity of our Providence it is just, that my Mother
should be remunerated for her works of love beyond all other creatures; and
toward Her the common law of the other mortals should not apply. If I have
merited for all infinite merits and boundless graces, it is proper that my
Mother should partake of them above all the others who are so inferior; for She in her conduct
corresponds to our liberality and puts no hindrance or obstacle to our infinite
power of communicating our treasures and participating them as the Queen and
Mistress of all that is created."
Sanctifying grace is
the created participation in the divine nature. The Blessed Virgin is the
"Queen and Mistress of all that is created." In this Mass the Church
prays:
" O Lord Jesus
Christ, our Mediator with the Father, who hast appointed the most blessed
Virgin, Thy mother, to be our mother also and our mediatrix before Thee: Grant
that whosoever draweth nigh to Thee to beseech any benefit, may receive all
things through her and rejoice.
Rev. Gregory
Alastruey's theological work titled, The
Blessed Virgin Mary, says that, "There are five principle titles and offices due Mary, the Mother
of God, by reason of her cooperation in redemption: Mediatrix, Co-redemptrix, Mother
of Christians, Patroness or Advocate, and Queen and Mistress of the universe.
I would recommend those who deny this proper honor to the Mother of God obtain
a copy of the book and have their stupidity erased. I do not say, ignorance
erased because willful ignorance is stupidity. Fr. Alastruey affirms that "Mary is truly mediatrix
of the human race and this doctrine pertains to the deposit of faith."
He then draws from Scripture, the Fathers, and theologians in support of this
truth. He proves from the Church Fathers that the word "mediatrix"
was explicitly used by St. Ephrem, St. Epiphanius, St. John Chrysostom, St.
Basil of Seleucia, St. Andrew of Crete, St Germanus of Constantinople, St. John
Damascene, St Theodore, St. Antoninus and Denis the Carthusian. He draws richly
from the divine liturgy from both Eastern and Roman traditions. The errors of
the Protestant heretics are addressed and exposed which are curiously the same
as expressed by the Novus Ordo popes.
Lastly, it is worth asking
Why do the Novus Ordo popes hate these proper titles of the Mother of God? The
answer is simple. The Blessed Virgin asked the three children at Fatima on June
13, 1917, "Are you
willing to offer yourselves to God to bear all the sufferings He wills to send
you, as an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended, and of
supplication for the conversion of sinners?" To which question all
answered, "Yes, we are willing." The Mother of God said on July 13
after the children had seen a vision of Hell, "Sacrifice yourselves for
sinners, and say many times, especially whenever you make some sacrifice: O
Jesus, it is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation
for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary." On August 19
(the apparition did not occur on the August 13 because the children were in
prison) the Mother of God continued saying, "Pray, pray very much, and
make sacrifices for sinners; for many souls go to hell, because there are none
to sacrifice themselves and to pray for them." The Blessed Virgin is
asking the children to be co-redemptors and co-mediators of grace with her in
union with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the conversion and salvation of
sinners. If the title of Co-Redemtrix and Mediatrix of all Grace can be taken
away from the Mother of God then no one is responsible to do penance for their
own sins or the sins of others. This falls back to the Protestant heresy on the
dogma of justification and the very nature of our incorporation into the divine
nature in the Mystical Body of Christ. Leo/Provost, like his predecessor
Francis/Bergoglio, believes that proselytism is "solemn nonsense."
They attack the titles to excuse their own faithless sloth. They are working to
obscure the very means of salvation. As Jesus Christ said: "But woe to you
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites; because you shut the kingdom of heaven
against men, for you yourselves do not enter in; and those that are going in,
you suffer not to enter" (Matt 23:13).
Pope Leo is just another
heretic who denies the Blessed Virgin Mary her just titles of Mediatrix of all
Grace and Co-Redemtrix. Only a few days ago, he celebrated with heretics,
schismatics, Jews, Moslems, and a variety of idolaters a shared communion
praying to their common god a united petition for peace in the world. He
continues to ignore the peace plan offered by the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mediatrix of all Grace, at Fatima. Pope Leo will soon learn that those who
insult the Mother have made an enemy of the Son.
It was the opening of the three-day
“Raising Hope for Climate Justice” conference organised by the Laudato si’
Movement in collaboration with ecclesial and institutional partners. 
If
the ice block is 20,000 years old then the Genesis creation account and the
global flood of Noe is reduced to mythology and not divine revelation. The fact
is, ancient mythology ended with the Christian revelation of Jesus Christ but
the modern scientific world is doing its best to resurrect the cult of
mythology. The world likes to talk about the scientific fables of Big Bang,
primordial soups with lightening bubbling forth proteins that congeal into
cellular life with the teleological purpose of producing the DNA of Darwinian
man. These fables are believed and shamelessly pandered by our neo-modernists
popes. The absurdity is that the neo-modernists popes have embraced the myths
of scientology when science itself has discredited their claims. Scientists
have been predicting global flooding of coastal areas for the last fifty years
with no evidence of rising sea levels. Global warming is not science. It is
liberal ideology applied to climatology that always calls for a one-world
governance to enforce its dictatorial and anti-Catholic mandates. The alleged
global warming is always without exception a man made assault on Mother Earth
that requires the ritual murder of 6.5 billion people for a world
"sustainable" population of 500 million for expiation. Never is it
considered in their calculus that the
Here's
a particularly forlorn historical date: More than 100 years ago, between the
19th and 20th of December 1917, in the midst of the Bolshevik revolution and
civil war, Lenin signed a decree calling for the establishment of The
All-Russian Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and
Sabotage, also known as Cheka. 
“My
reaction was a silent cry of horror, indignation, and sorrow,” the auxiliary of
Astana, Kazakhstan, said regarding the Vatican’s approval of an LGBT-themed
“pilgrimage” on its Jubilee website, in an interview with Diane Montagna, a
journalist in Rome.
He pointed out that in doing so, Pope Leo
XIV broke with the precedent of all popes before Francis, who “neither received
officially nor posed for photographs with those who, by word or deed, openly
rejected the doctrinal and moral teaching of the Church.”
The 'Western Wall' (Wailing Wall) in
Jerusalem is held by Jews as a remnant of Herod's Temple destroyed by the
Romans in 72 A.D. Yet, Jesus prophesized not only that the Temple would be
destroyed but also that there would not remain a "stone upon a
stone." So how is it that there remains a large wall on the western side
at the south end of the 'Temple Mount'? Some Catholics claim the prophecy of
Jesus was referring only to the edifice itself and not the entire foundation
for the Temple. Jesus words must be taken in literally unless there it is
clearly manifest that the metaphorical sense is intended exclusively. Therefore,
the 'Wailing Wall' where the Jews worship is not a remnant of the ancient
Temple, and the 'Temple Mount', on which is currently situated the Al-Aqsa
mosque and the "Dome of the Rock", is not the location of the Temple
destroyed in 72 A.D. The 36 acre 'Temple Mount' is actually the location of the
Roman fortress Antonia built by Herod.
Carlo Alberto Capella was
Vatican diplomat who was convicted by a Vatican tribunal of possessing and
sharing child pornography. Capella admitted guilt to the charges. He is the
only one who has served a prison sentence in the Vatican jail for this crime or
for any sexually related crime against minors.