Monday, July 23, 2007
ProLifeSearch.com - Is it gone?
It seems that links to prolifesearch.com are no longer working. I am aware of a discussion with Fr. Trigilio last week when he was in St Louis about the "Essential Catholic Classics" which was promoted by ProLifeSearch...Anybody know what happened or is this just an Internet glitch?
Our Government at Work...
US Prison Bureau Suppresses Study Strongly Linking Child Pornography to Child Molesters
From LifeSiteNews:
From LifeSiteNews:
Shocking discovery - more than 85 % arrested for possession or distribution admitted molesting at least one child"Agency approval"? The Department of Justice - working to protect American citizens...
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 20, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Federal Prison Bureau has a new study indicating that 85% of convicted consumers of child pornography may have sexually molested a child. However the New York Times reports that the federal agency has suppressed the publication of the report out of concern that the public will misinterpret its conclusions.
The Times reports that the unpublished research was conducted by psychologists at the Federal Bureau of Prisons and that it constitutes the first in-depth survey done by prison therapists of online sexual offenders' history - everything from indecent touching to rape. The therapists were actively performing treatment.
The report was to be published in the Journal of Family Violence until Judy Garrett, an official with the Prison Bureau, requested in April that it be withdrawn saying the report did not meet "agency approval."
Fresco fragment revives Papal scandal
A fresco painting by a Renaissance master which once decorated the bedroom of Pope Alexander VI in the Vatican has gone on show in Rome.
A leading Italian art historian and curator says he has documentary proof that it was once part of a much larger painting depicting the aged Pope kneeling in front of his youthful mistress, Giulia Farnese.
This is an unusual example of "damnatio memoriae" - a Latin phrase meaning "damnation of memory".
It refers to a custom dating back to antiquity - the attempted removal of a famous person from the historical record for reasons of dishonour.
Roman emperors used to order the destruction or removal of portraits or statues of disgraced members of their family.
Let's not forget that there were very few popes throughout history who were less than ideal shepherds, but then again, Jesus prepared us for this by giving us an example in the selection of Judas as one of the Twelve.
End all wars, Pope pleads
Lorenzago di Cadore, Jul. 23, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) issued an impassioned call for an end to all warfare during his Angelus audience on Sunday, July 22.
Speaking from the town square in Lorenzago di Cadore, the mountain town in northern Italy where he is spending his vacation, the Holy Father said that the peaceful surroundings of the Alpine region made him feel "even more intensely" the impact of the news that he received on "the bloody confrontations and episodes of violence happening in many parts of the world."
Thoughts and Counsels - July 23
We should learn of Jesus Christ to be meek and humble of heart, and ask Him unceasingly for these two virtues. We ought, particularly, to avoid the two contrary vices which would cause us to destroy with one hand what we seek to raise with the other.
-St. Vincent de Paul
_________________________
From Mary, Help of Christians
Compiled by Fr. Bonaventure Hammer, OFM (© 1909, Benziger Brothers)
-St. Vincent de Paul
_________________________
From Mary, Help of Christians
Compiled by Fr. Bonaventure Hammer, OFM (© 1909, Benziger Brothers)
Gospel for Monday, 16th Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial of St. Bridget, religious
Old Calendar: St. Apollinaris, bishop and martyr; St. Liborius, bishop and confessor
From: Matthew 12:38-42
The Sign of Jonah
[38] Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him (Jesus), "Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you." [39] But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign; but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. [40] For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. [41] The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. [42] The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here."
________________________
Commentary:
39-40. This sign the Jews were asking for would have been a miracle or some other prodigy; they wanted Jesus, incongruously, to confirm his preaching--given with such simplicity--by dramatic signs. Our Lord replies by announcing the mystery of his death and resurrection, using the parallel of the case of Jonah: "No sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." Jesus' glorious resurrection is the "sign" "par excellence", the decisive proof of the divine character of his person, of his mission and of his teaching.
When St. Paul (1 Cor 14:3-4) confesses that Jesus Christ "was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures" (words which later found their way into the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, the Creed used in the Mass), he must have had this passage particularly in mind. We can see another allusion to Jonah in the words our Lord spoke shortly before his ascension: "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead" (Lk 24:45-46).
41-42. Nineveh was a city in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) to which the prophet Jonah was sent. The Ninevites did penance (Jn 3:6-9) because they recognized the prophet and accepted his message; whereas Jerusalem does not wish to recognize Jesus, of whom Jonah was merely a figure. The queen of the South was the queen of Sheba in southwestern Arabia, who visited Solomon (1 Kings 10:1-10) and was in awe of the wisdom with which God had endowed the King of Israel. Jesus is also prefigured in
Solomon, whom Jewish tradition saw as the epitome of the wise man. Jesus' reproach is accentuated by the example of pagan converts, and gives us a glimpse of the universal scope of Christianity, which will take root among the Gentiles.
There is a certain irony in what Jesus says about "something greater" than Jonah or Solomon having coming: really, he is infinitely greater, but Jesus prefers to tone down the difference between himself and any figure, no matter how important, in the Old Testament.
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Old Calendar: St. Apollinaris, bishop and martyr; St. Liborius, bishop and confessor
From: Matthew 12:38-42
The Sign of Jonah
[38] Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him (Jesus), "Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you." [39] But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign; but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. [40] For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. [41] The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. [42] The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here."
________________________
Commentary:
39-40. This sign the Jews were asking for would have been a miracle or some other prodigy; they wanted Jesus, incongruously, to confirm his preaching--given with such simplicity--by dramatic signs. Our Lord replies by announcing the mystery of his death and resurrection, using the parallel of the case of Jonah: "No sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." Jesus' glorious resurrection is the "sign" "par excellence", the decisive proof of the divine character of his person, of his mission and of his teaching.
When St. Paul (1 Cor 14:3-4) confesses that Jesus Christ "was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures" (words which later found their way into the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, the Creed used in the Mass), he must have had this passage particularly in mind. We can see another allusion to Jonah in the words our Lord spoke shortly before his ascension: "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead" (Lk 24:45-46).
41-42. Nineveh was a city in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) to which the prophet Jonah was sent. The Ninevites did penance (Jn 3:6-9) because they recognized the prophet and accepted his message; whereas Jerusalem does not wish to recognize Jesus, of whom Jonah was merely a figure. The queen of the South was the queen of Sheba in southwestern Arabia, who visited Solomon (1 Kings 10:1-10) and was in awe of the wisdom with which God had endowed the King of Israel. Jesus is also prefigured in
Solomon, whom Jewish tradition saw as the epitome of the wise man. Jesus' reproach is accentuated by the example of pagan converts, and gives us a glimpse of the universal scope of Christianity, which will take root among the Gentiles.
There is a certain irony in what Jesus says about "something greater" than Jonah or Solomon having coming: really, he is infinitely greater, but Jesus prefers to tone down the difference between himself and any figure, no matter how important, in the Old Testament.
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
The Priest at Prayer for July 23, Unpriestly Concern for Kith & Kin
The Third Part - Vices and Virtues
Unpriestly Concern for Kith & Kin
First Meditation - Motives for Avoiding it
I. We read a significant example of it in the Gospel. The two brothers, John and James, and their mother were following our Lord. They had just heard Him announce His Passion and Death with all harrowing detail:
The other Apostles did not welcome the request, and the Redeemer Himself, while refusing to comply with the untimely and worldly dreams of the mother and of the sons as well, who seem to have prompted her to ask for them - not only reproaches them for their childish ignorance - you know not what you ask - but promises them a place and a dignity very much at variance with the petition:
II. Let us take next the example of Jesus Christ, an example that baffles our weak understanding and even seems to cut across the tender love we have for His Blessed Mother.
After three days of anguish, Mary has just found her adolescent Boy, the flower of all grace and beauty; and, in the rush of her motherly affection, she gently chides Him:
Another day, while preaching to His disciples and to the crowds, He is interrupted to be told:
At the very moment of dying He reserved for His Mother, who stood at the foot of the Cross - her heart pierced by the sword, as Simeon prophesied, and her whole being drenched in bitter sorrow - only a few words: Woman, behold thy son (John xix, 25); where as from His bloodless and parched lips issued cries of pardon for His executioners and magnificent promises for the repentant thief.
Durus est hic sermo, flesh and blood will exclaim; but I do not know, and I doubt whether there can be a holier and more perfect testimony to the value of our immortal souls.
III. The priesthood has its demands, and very heavy demands, the same as those of the doctor and the soldier.
The priest is the man of God appointed to look after the interests of God and of souls. He was raised to his high dignity in order to devote himself exclusively to the things of God, as St. Paul teaches with Christ's example before Him: I must be about my Father's business: The sole reason for ecclesiastical celibacy, with all its inherent difficulties, is precisely that the priest, in the words of the Apostle, may be "concerned with the Lord's claim, intent an holiness, bodily ana spiritual" (1 Cor. vii, 34), that is to say, free from the thousand and one cares and worries arising from married life in order to devote himself single-mindedly and unfettered to the service of God and the welfare of souls.
If, in spite of my celibacy, my life is constantly tied up with the temporal and selfish aspirations of my relations and the rearing of children not my own, what do I gain by remaining celibate? My sacrifice will be to their advantage, but no one else's. I sacrificed having a wife and children to attend to, I freed myself from the burden of having to please a wife; and yet I am foolishly allowing myself to be yoked to the service of a woman and children who do not belong to me, who perhaps even despise my meaningless celibacy, and are out merely to exploit my celibate condition for their own selfish interests.
A sorry sort of celibacy mine is! Sterile for God and the Church! Impotent to prevent my heart from being divided among the multiple vexatious cares of a family and family possessions! What a wretched fate for the most beautiful, radiant, and difficult virtue of the priestly state!
This must not be! O Lord, I choose rather to abide by the Apostle's exhortation:
Resolutions
1. In thought and action I shall be the master of my own house and property, never allowing anyone, not even my own close relations, to administer it independently of me or to treat me as if I were never to be more than a child; and this holds for my parents and brothers and sisters, although I shall not, of course, be mean towards any of them, especially if I am permitted to have them live with me.
2. Apart from my parents or immediate blood relations, whoever serves me will enter into my consideration and treatment as a person hired for services, to whom just wages must be given at the proper times, for instance, each week or once a month. I shall not allow years and years to elapse and wages to accumulate without knowing how much I owe them and without giving them their due; otherwise, besides the countless dangers of a serious moral nature to which I thus expose myself, I enslave myself to a servant who will soon come to think herself the owner of my belongings - and not without some semblance of truth! - with the result that I shall be unable to dismiss her when the need arises or prevent her appropriating what she likes, with or without my knowledge.
Lord, I do not want to merit the reproach administered by St. Paul when he says:
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Unpriestly Concern for Kith & Kin
First Meditation - Motives for Avoiding it
I. We read a significant example of it in the Gospel. The two brothers, John and James, and their mother were following our Lord. They had just heard Him announce His Passion and Death with all harrowing detail:
Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be betrayed to the chief priests and the scribes: and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified. (Matt. xx, 18-19)And then (says the Gospel), at that very moment when the forecast of those impending events was steeping the Heart of Christ in bitterness of grief, the impetuous mother of the two Apostles goes up to Jesus, and with much bowing she begins asking Him for something. Womanly shrewdness, but untimely. What is she going to ask Him for in those circumstances when He is rather to be consoled than asked to be~tow favours upon others?
Say that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left, in thy kingdom.No lack of asking in the dear mother! As the Eternal Father says to the Son: Sit at my right hand; as Pharao said to Joseph: Only in the kingly throne will I be above thee; so the two sons of Zebedee the fisherman should be appointed, thinks their ambitious mother, to the first places in Christ's kingdom.
The other Apostles did not welcome the request, and the Redeemer Himself, while refusing to comply with the untimely and worldly dreams of the mother and of the sons as well, who seem to have prompted her to ask for them - not only reproaches them for their childish ignorance - you know not what you ask - but promises them a place and a dignity very much at variance with the petition:
Can you drink the chalice that I shall drink? My chalice indeed you shall drink. (Matt. xx, 22-23)That is the result of the imprudent mother's hasty request: an infallible announcement of, from a worldly point of view, the tragic fate of her two sons. From that moment, no doubt, the poor mother would keep these words in her heart: not the fulfilment of her dreams, but shafts of burning grief.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways.-(Is. lv, 8)Lord, O Lord, make us deaf to the voice of flesh and blood so as to listen intently to Thy call, even though Thou shouldst promise us only painful sharing in Thy Cross and sips of gall from Thy chalice.
II. Let us take next the example of Jesus Christ, an example that baffles our weak understanding and even seems to cut across the tender love we have for His Blessed Mother.
After three days of anguish, Mary has just found her adolescent Boy, the flower of all grace and beauty; and, in the rush of her motherly affection, she gently chides Him:
Son, why hast thou done so to us? (Luke ii, 48).The only explanation and consolation He gives is to answer with the words:
How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father's business?That is the standard which should govern our dealings with our kith and kin, not excluding our parents. We owe a primary allegiance to the interests and concerns of our Heavenly Father; parents come after.
Another day, while preaching to His disciples and to the crowds, He is interrupted to be told:
Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand outside, seeking thee. (Matt. xii, 47)Our Lord takes occasion from this to expound His lesson still further:
Whoever shall do the will of my Father that is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister; and mother.There was something dearer and more precious to Him than Mary's divine Motherhood: the nobility of souls who are docile to His precepts, as Mary was herself.
At the very moment of dying He reserved for His Mother, who stood at the foot of the Cross - her heart pierced by the sword, as Simeon prophesied, and her whole being drenched in bitter sorrow - only a few words: Woman, behold thy son (John xix, 25); where as from His bloodless and parched lips issued cries of pardon for His executioners and magnificent promises for the repentant thief.
Durus est hic sermo, flesh and blood will exclaim; but I do not know, and I doubt whether there can be a holier and more perfect testimony to the value of our immortal souls.
III. The priesthood has its demands, and very heavy demands, the same as those of the doctor and the soldier.
The priest is the man of God appointed to look after the interests of God and of souls. He was raised to his high dignity in order to devote himself exclusively to the things of God, as St. Paul teaches with Christ's example before Him: I must be about my Father's business: The sole reason for ecclesiastical celibacy, with all its inherent difficulties, is precisely that the priest, in the words of the Apostle, may be "concerned with the Lord's claim, intent an holiness, bodily ana spiritual" (1 Cor. vii, 34), that is to say, free from the thousand and one cares and worries arising from married life in order to devote himself single-mindedly and unfettered to the service of God and the welfare of souls.
If, in spite of my celibacy, my life is constantly tied up with the temporal and selfish aspirations of my relations and the rearing of children not my own, what do I gain by remaining celibate? My sacrifice will be to their advantage, but no one else's. I sacrificed having a wife and children to attend to, I freed myself from the burden of having to please a wife; and yet I am foolishly allowing myself to be yoked to the service of a woman and children who do not belong to me, who perhaps even despise my meaningless celibacy, and are out merely to exploit my celibate condition for their own selfish interests.
A sorry sort of celibacy mine is! Sterile for God and the Church! Impotent to prevent my heart from being divided among the multiple vexatious cares of a family and family possessions! What a wretched fate for the most beautiful, radiant, and difficult virtue of the priestly state!
This must not be! O Lord, I choose rather to abide by the Apostle's exhortation:
"I appeal to you by God's mercies to offer up your bodies as a living sacrifice, consecrated to God and worthy of his acceptance; this is the worship due from you as rational creatures."-(Rom. xii, 1)Lord, I will keep my chastity and keep it whole and entire for Thee; no, not to increase the material well-being of my father on earth or of my father's children.
Resolutions
1. In thought and action I shall be the master of my own house and property, never allowing anyone, not even my own close relations, to administer it independently of me or to treat me as if I were never to be more than a child; and this holds for my parents and brothers and sisters, although I shall not, of course, be mean towards any of them, especially if I am permitted to have them live with me.
2. Apart from my parents or immediate blood relations, whoever serves me will enter into my consideration and treatment as a person hired for services, to whom just wages must be given at the proper times, for instance, each week or once a month. I shall not allow years and years to elapse and wages to accumulate without knowing how much I owe them and without giving them their due; otherwise, besides the countless dangers of a serious moral nature to which I thus expose myself, I enslave myself to a servant who will soon come to think herself the owner of my belongings - and not without some semblance of truth! - with the result that I shall be unable to dismiss her when the need arises or prevent her appropriating what she likes, with or without my knowledge.
Lord, I do not want to merit the reproach administered by St. Paul when he says:
"If a man has not learned how to manage his own household, will he know how to govern God's church?" (l Tim. iii, 5)_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Ramblings about the St Louis Review
A month ago a letter to the editor concerning the 2007 Farm Bill making its way through Congress appeared in the St Louis Review, the archdiocesan newspaper. And while I have always been supportive of and inclined to lobby for the benefit of family farms and those whose livelihood depends on the success of family farms, something about the letter struck a nerve with me.
The letter (http://www.stlouisreview.com/article.php?id=13184) begins:
Fundamentally, I can support all of the above except the last one, where the limit of an adjusted gross income $200K, which seems low even for the small to intermediate family farm. Since I'm not 'clued in', as it were, to the precise details, or where the good sister obtained her information suggesting this level, I must rely, instead, on common sense and experience.
But let's move on:
Now this is where prudence and responsibility, at least in my mind, has been abandoned. Sr. Jennings could have avoided contaminating her letter had she excluded her last sentence and her affiliation with Network. At the very least, it seems to me that the "Editor" at the Review, as is his/her prerogative, could have invoked editorial discretion and excised the 'offending' or potentially scandalous portions of the letter.
However, since this was certainly not the first time such questionable items have appeared in the Review, I fired off the following letter:
In the Nation and World news section of the July 20th edition of the St. Louis Review, readers are presented the following article (from Catholic News Service), titled:
Catholic online group shows war opposition, and which includes such "notable" groups as Chris Korzen's 'Catholics United', Pax Christi USA, and, of course, Network.
In the article (http://www.stlouisreview.com/article.php?id=13336), CNS states that:
The unfortunate reality is that, by printing these articles which promote dissident and heterodox groups, the St Louis Review gives, at a minimum, tacit approval of these groups and their agendas. And in so doing, as the Review is the communication arm of the Archdiocese, that approval appears to be coming from the Archbishop - and that defies logic and rational thinking.
Given the nature of some of the articles that the Review has chosen to cover and print, one wonders if the roots of dissent are really present at the office of the archdiocesan paper and if so, how deep and embedded are they? Or is this type of 'editorial oversight' due to a lack of understanding. Or am I overly sensitive because so many could be scandalized or unduly influenced by such groups?
The letter (http://www.stlouisreview.com/article.php?id=13184) begins:
Editor:-------------
Farm bills aren’t just for farmers.
Shortly after July 4, Congress will finalize this nation’s most important piece of food and farm legislation — the 2007 Farm Bill.
This comprehensive piece of legislation affects our health and nutrition, rural development, conservation and relationship with our neighbors throughout the world for the next five years.
I urge all readers to contact their representatives in Congress and speak up for this issue, specifically to:
Enhance food stamps and school lunch programs so that more fruits and vegetables will be affordable to these recipients.
Provide incentives and grants for rural areas that truly help farmers and towns rather than new suburbs which the present bill is often doing, as reported in the Washington Post on April 6.
Appropriate dollars for important conservation programs that protect water, soil and air.
Curtail government subsidies to farms whose gross adjusted income is greater than $200,000 and use the $55 billion savings for the above listed programs and to help small and middle-size family farms.
Fundamentally, I can support all of the above except the last one, where the limit of an adjusted gross income $200K, which seems low even for the small to intermediate family farm. Since I'm not 'clued in', as it were, to the precise details, or where the good sister obtained her information suggesting this level, I must rely, instead, on common sense and experience.
But let's move on:
...For Catholics, who turn to the Scripture and Church teaching for guidance, and for all believers, these questions and choices have fundamental ethical and human dimensions."------------
Check the website of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, www.ncrlc.com, or NETWORK, www.networklobby.org, for full information.
Sister Barbara Jennings, CSJ
Regional field organizer
NETWORK organization
St. Louis
Now this is where prudence and responsibility, at least in my mind, has been abandoned. Sr. Jennings could have avoided contaminating her letter had she excluded her last sentence and her affiliation with Network. At the very least, it seems to me that the "Editor" at the Review, as is his/her prerogative, could have invoked editorial discretion and excised the 'offending' or potentially scandalous portions of the letter.
However, since this was certainly not the first time such questionable items have appeared in the Review, I fired off the following letter:
To whom it may concern:And where am I going with this?
A recent Letter to the Editor by Sister Barbara Jennings, CSJ, concerning the 2007 Farm Bill, contains a number of points which might be well worth considering. However, a thorough reading of the bill would seem to be advisable to determine its details.
Still, it should be noted that the good and worthy recommendations made by Sister Jennings, in fact, become tainted and suspect when she concludes the letter by providing questionable web site links for more information. One wonders who, if anyone, checks web site addresses in Letters to the Editor for inclusion in the Review? Sister Jennings’ letter proposes that readers check the “Network Lobby” web site, which is, as I understand, a site to be avoided at all costs.
Trinity Communications (Catholic Culture), a Catholic organization supporting fidelity to the Holy Father and the Magisterium of the Church and which has been evaluating web sites since 1996, reviewed “www.networklobby.org” as recently as September 27, 2006. The evaluation reads, in part:DESCRIPTIONThe full report from Catholic Culture can be read at http://www.catholicculture.org/reviews/view.cfm?recnum=1933
Network is a national Catholic social justice lobby providing "a progressive voice within the Catholic community that has been influencing Congress in favor of peace and justice for more than 30 years." Essentially a radical feminist interest group, Network was founded by Carol Couston, O.P. and a group of 47 disenchanted nuns. While the group refuses to take a public stand on abortion, it is heavily invested in left-wing politics, judges issues through the lens of "women's experience," and promotes eco-feminism and socialism/Marxism. This organization should be avoided altogether.
WEAKNESSES
* Founded and run by dissidents (Fidelity)
* Links to dissident sites (Fidelity)
* Promote events sponsored by Leadership Conference of Women Religious, Call to Action, and Pax Christi USA (Fidelity)
* Focuses exclusively on material "justice" for this world with no view to the next (Fidelity)
It is alarming that such a Letter to the Editor be printed in the Review without someone checking to determine if questionable or dangerous links are offered for the “enlightenment” of the faithful. Certainly, the editorial board of the Review would not approve inclusion of such sites as “Women Priests” or the “Rainbow Sash Movement” – would it?
Hopefully, a correction or update of some sort concerning this matter will be forthcoming in the next edition of the Review. I would prayerfully request that more diligence be exercised in the future as such questionable web sites could be a source of scandal and confusion for many Catholics.
Sincerely in Christ,
(signed)
CC: Most Reverend Raymond L. Burke
In the Nation and World news section of the July 20th edition of the St. Louis Review, readers are presented the following article (from Catholic News Service), titled:
Catholic online group shows war opposition, and which includes such "notable" groups as Chris Korzen's 'Catholics United', Pax Christi USA, and, of course, Network.
In the article (http://www.stlouisreview.com/article.php?id=13336), CNS states that:
Catholics United is a national online organization of Catholics. Founded as Catholics United for the Common Good, the group came out of a voter education project to promote the U.S. bishops’ 2003 document, "Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility."It should be noted that this group voiced its opposition to Archbishop Burke's Pastoral Letter, On Our Civic Responsibility for the Common Good (Oct. 2004) and presents distorted views of Catholic teaching and the Catholic's obligations regarding his moral responsibilities. A few examples might be worth reviewing:
The Catholic Voting Project Responds to Archbishop Burke's Pastoral LetterIt's debatable whether the CNS 'Catholics United' story is newsworthy. I contend that it is not, particularly as it comes from the news agency of the USCCB which is not particularly noted for its fidelity and orthodoxy - that and the history of these groups and their activities.
Archbishop’s Pastoral Letter Cites Five ‘Non-Negotiables’
Catholic Answers - THUMBS UP, THUMBS DOWN
A Planned Parenthood Press Release
The liberal Catholic voting guide * Bettnet.com
Mark Shea-Whores For Edwards Tries More Damage Control
The unfortunate reality is that, by printing these articles which promote dissident and heterodox groups, the St Louis Review gives, at a minimum, tacit approval of these groups and their agendas. And in so doing, as the Review is the communication arm of the Archdiocese, that approval appears to be coming from the Archbishop - and that defies logic and rational thinking.
Given the nature of some of the articles that the Review has chosen to cover and print, one wonders if the roots of dissent are really present at the office of the archdiocesan paper and if so, how deep and embedded are they? Or is this type of 'editorial oversight' due to a lack of understanding. Or am I overly sensitive because so many could be scandalized or unduly influenced by such groups?
Thoughts and Counsels - July 22
Gospel for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
From: Luke 10:38-42
Martha and Mary Welcome Our Lord
[38] Now as they went on their way, He (Jesus) entered a village; and a woman named Martha received Him into her house. [39] And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to His teaching. [40] But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." [41] But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; [42] one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good position, which shall not be taken away from her."
_________________________
Commentary:
38-42. Our Lord was heading for Jerusalem (Luke 9:51) and His journey took Him through Bethany, the village where Lazarus, Martha and Mary lived--a family for whom He had a special affection, as we see in other passages of the Gospel (cf. John 11:1-14; 12:1-9).
St. Augustine comments on this scene as follows: "Martha, who was arranging and preparing the Lord's meal, was busy doing many things, whereas Mary preferred to find her meal in what the Lord was saying. In a way she deserted her sister, who was very busy, and sat herself down at Jesus' feet and just listened to His words. She was faithfully obeying what the Psalm said: `Be still and know that I am God' (Psalm 46:10). Martha was getting annoyed, Mary was feasting; the former coping with many things, the latter concentrating on one. Both occupations were good" ("Sermon", 103).
Martha has come to be, as it were, the symbol of the active life, and Mary that of the contemplative life. However, for most Christians, called as they are to sanctify themselves in the middle of the world, action and contemplation cannot be regarded as two opposite ways of practising the Christian faith: an active life forgetful of union with God is useless and barren; but an apparent life of prayer which shows no concern for apostolate and the sanctification of ordinary things also fails to please God. The key lies in being able to combine these two lives, without either harming the other. Close union between action and contemplation can be achieved in very different ways, depending on the specific vocation each person is given by God.
Far from being an obstacle, work should be a means and an occasion for a close relationship with our Lord, which is the most important thing in our life.
Following this teaching of the Lord, the ordinary Christian should strive to attain an integrated life--an intense life of piety and external activity, orientated towards God, practised out of love for Him and with an upright intention, which expresses itself in apostolate, in everyday work, in doing the duties of one's state in life. "You must understand now more clearly that God is calling you to serve Him IN AND FROM the ordinary, material and secular activities of human life. He waits for us every day, in the laboratory, in the operating room, in the army barracks, in the university chair, in the factory, in the workshop, in the fields, in the home and in all the immense panorama of work. Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine, hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each of you to discover it [...]. There is no other way. Either we learn to find our Lord in ordinary, everyday life, or else we shall never find Him. That is why I can tell you that our age needs to give back to matter and to the most trivial occurrences and situations their noble and original meaning. It needs to restore them to the service of the Kingdom of God, to spiritualize them, turning them into a means and an occasion for a continuous meeting with Jesus Christ" ([St] J. Escriva, "Conversations", 114).
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Martha and Mary Welcome Our Lord
[38] Now as they went on their way, He (Jesus) entered a village; and a woman named Martha received Him into her house. [39] And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to His teaching. [40] But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." [41] But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; [42] one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good position, which shall not be taken away from her."
_________________________
Commentary:
38-42. Our Lord was heading for Jerusalem (Luke 9:51) and His journey took Him through Bethany, the village where Lazarus, Martha and Mary lived--a family for whom He had a special affection, as we see in other passages of the Gospel (cf. John 11:1-14; 12:1-9).
St. Augustine comments on this scene as follows: "Martha, who was arranging and preparing the Lord's meal, was busy doing many things, whereas Mary preferred to find her meal in what the Lord was saying. In a way she deserted her sister, who was very busy, and sat herself down at Jesus' feet and just listened to His words. She was faithfully obeying what the Psalm said: `Be still and know that I am God' (Psalm 46:10). Martha was getting annoyed, Mary was feasting; the former coping with many things, the latter concentrating on one. Both occupations were good" ("Sermon", 103).
Martha has come to be, as it were, the symbol of the active life, and Mary that of the contemplative life. However, for most Christians, called as they are to sanctify themselves in the middle of the world, action and contemplation cannot be regarded as two opposite ways of practising the Christian faith: an active life forgetful of union with God is useless and barren; but an apparent life of prayer which shows no concern for apostolate and the sanctification of ordinary things also fails to please God. The key lies in being able to combine these two lives, without either harming the other. Close union between action and contemplation can be achieved in very different ways, depending on the specific vocation each person is given by God.
Far from being an obstacle, work should be a means and an occasion for a close relationship with our Lord, which is the most important thing in our life.
Following this teaching of the Lord, the ordinary Christian should strive to attain an integrated life--an intense life of piety and external activity, orientated towards God, practised out of love for Him and with an upright intention, which expresses itself in apostolate, in everyday work, in doing the duties of one's state in life. "You must understand now more clearly that God is calling you to serve Him IN AND FROM the ordinary, material and secular activities of human life. He waits for us every day, in the laboratory, in the operating room, in the army barracks, in the university chair, in the factory, in the workshop, in the fields, in the home and in all the immense panorama of work. Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine, hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each of you to discover it [...]. There is no other way. Either we learn to find our Lord in ordinary, everyday life, or else we shall never find Him. That is why I can tell you that our age needs to give back to matter and to the most trivial occurrences and situations their noble and original meaning. It needs to restore them to the service of the Kingdom of God, to spiritualize them, turning them into a means and an occasion for a continuous meeting with Jesus Christ" ([St] J. Escriva, "Conversations", 114).
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
The Priest at Prayer for July 22, Avarice
The Third Part - Vices and Virtues
Avarice
Second Meditation - Further Evils of Avarice in the Priest
I. The avaricious priest becomes a stumbling-block to the faithful. According to Church historians, the most balanced and conscientious, one of the sparks that produced the conflagration of Protestantism and caused the explosion of the combustible material piled up by so many abuses and laxity of both people and clergy was the ecclesiastical demand for money, sometimes unjust, sometimes immoderate.
The constant spectacle of a shepherd of souls attached to money soon persuades the people that religion is just another money-making business or concern, a means of livelihood for a person who is either unwilling to earn or incapable of earning a living in any other way.
Eternal and spiritual values are not believed in or are despised, because the master and dispenser of them lives as though for him they did not exist, or as if his only hope was linked up with the tangible good things of earth. If he preaches about spiritual goods, it is taken as a joke, as a hackneyed pulpit theme that nobody believes, least of all the preacher himself; and thus, under the impact of the priest's example, souls will cling more and more firmly to pleasures, honours, and wealth; and religion, if any trace of it should remain, becomes a mixture of Christian formulas and mercenary - not to say ungodly - spirit.
And there are so many instances of this soul destroying and corroding avarice!
II. There is a further consideration: this particular vice, with all its ruinous effects on the avaricious person, especially the priest, turns out to be absolutely of no use; it has not the slightest compensation by way of pleasure in his life.
Lord, there is many a time when Thou couldst have asked Thy priests who had enslaved themselves to the cruel demon of covetousness:
Who is going to make merry and do himself well on the strength of what your covetous and miserly acts kept in hiding and seclusion, like the dragon of the fable? Who is so closely related to you, so deeply loved by you, so near to your heart and so grateful to you for your sacrifices and stintings, that for the sake of leaving him well endowed you even profane your priesthood, make purchaseable products out of your priesthood's sublimest functions, extinguish the flickering flame of conscience, spend your days in sordidness, harrowed by worry, in order to make your little pile?
Who ever loved you so much that, with a view to bettering his worldly condition, you do not hesitate to fling your good name to the gossiping public, and your soul to the unquenchable fire?
III. St. Thomas teaches (S.T. II-II q. 118, a. 5) that there are graver sins, in themselves, than avarice; most sins are, in fact: those directly affronting and injuring God, those that violate human rights; for the simple reason that avarice has for its object exterior goods, goods very inferior to the Glory of God and the welfare of souls. Avarice, we may say, has to do with goods of the lowest grade.
But there is no sin more hideous and indecorous for human dignity than that of enslaving the human will to riches, to things of such paltry value, inferior by far to the things which constitUte the object of spiritual vices, lower even than the mire of fleshly wallowing. The basest, the lewdest, the most hideous thing on earth is to identify the soul and its yearnings with these empty shadows of good; because the soul is what it loves: heaven, if in love with heaven; if mud, mud.
And if this applies to every avaricious person, even to the man aspiring after fabulous wealth, what degradation, what sordidness this vice will take on in the priest, who perhaps has to live a beggarly existence in order to save up in shillings and pence!
Avarice is also the most dangerous of vices. Those of the spirit, pride, for example, are cured or relieved by disillusionment; those of the flesh, with all their powerful sting, are mitigated or neutralised by the winter of one's declining years; whereas avarice of its own nature tends to increase with age.
The older one gets, the more helpless and needy one becomes and the less one is able to fend for oneself, and therefore, the more avid one is to possess and to hoard, as the only remedy for one's indigence and the only support for one's weakness.
Hasn't experience taught a lesson or two in demonstration of this sad fact? How many old people, fast approaching death, already on the threshold of eternity, on those frontiers that allow no earthly chattel to pass through, seem to have no hands or eyes or memory or desire except for the service of their god - money!
QUERIES
1. Could I swear that I have never committed real injustice: larceny, theft, or fraud, with the goods of my parishioners, of the Church, or of the charitable works, that I administer? The diocesan Authorities may not perhaps be able to convict me, but what about my inmost conscience and God's justice?
2. Have I been scrupulously honest in giving an account of all my administrative acts to the person who, according to Canon Law, has a right and a duty to receive it from me? It would be the best guarantee of my straightforwardness and honesty.
3. Have I ever taken advantage of the faithful's ignorance and demanded more than what is permitted by diocesan regulations or lawful custom in matters pertaining to burials, weddings, and church functions? At the hour of death, will my conscience disturb me on this issue?
4. And while supposing that I have proceeded in everything with absolute justice - the world demands as much of any decent person - do I not demand my rights with excessive haste and harshness, like a taxcollector or a money lender?
5. Apart from everything else, am I not mean in aiding the poor? What alms do I give? What sympathy do I show towards the poor? What do people think of me in this matter, those who know me well?
However biassed or distorted their opinion may be, I should do well to find out what it is, not in order to reproach them or to revenge myself, but to arrive at an objective knowledge of myself, to gather clues for passing on myself a correct judgement.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Avarice
Second Meditation - Further Evils of Avarice in the Priest
I. The avaricious priest becomes a stumbling-block to the faithful. According to Church historians, the most balanced and conscientious, one of the sparks that produced the conflagration of Protestantism and caused the explosion of the combustible material piled up by so many abuses and laxity of both people and clergy was the ecclesiastical demand for money, sometimes unjust, sometimes immoderate.
The constant spectacle of a shepherd of souls attached to money soon persuades the people that religion is just another money-making business or concern, a means of livelihood for a person who is either unwilling to earn or incapable of earning a living in any other way.
Eternal and spiritual values are not believed in or are despised, because the master and dispenser of them lives as though for him they did not exist, or as if his only hope was linked up with the tangible good things of earth. If he preaches about spiritual goods, it is taken as a joke, as a hackneyed pulpit theme that nobody believes, least of all the preacher himself; and thus, under the impact of the priest's example, souls will cling more and more firmly to pleasures, honours, and wealth; and religion, if any trace of it should remain, becomes a mixture of Christian formulas and mercenary - not to say ungodly - spirit.
And there are so many instances of this soul destroying and corroding avarice!
II. There is a further consideration: this particular vice, with all its ruinous effects on the avaricious person, especially the priest, turns out to be absolutely of no use; it has not the slightest compensation by way of pleasure in his life.
Lord, there is many a time when Thou couldst have asked Thy priests who had enslaved themselves to the cruel demon of covetousness:
Thou fool! . . . And whose shall be those things which thou hast provided? (Luke xii, 20)Upon the wrinkled and frowning brow of the avaricious cleric might well be stamped, in stigmatisation of his foolishness, these sarcastic remarks from the Bookof Ecclesiastes:
"And there was another kind of frustration I marked, here under the sun.Brother priest, who is going to inherit from you here on earth? Who is going to survive you? Who is going to eat and drink the "pretium sanguinis" of your parishioners and of Christ, the fruit of your sordid life, unworthy of God's minister?
Here is one that works alone, partner nor son nor brother to aid him, yet still works on, never content with his bright hoard, never asking, as he toils and stints himself, who shall gain by it. Frustration and lost labour, here, too." (Eccl. iv, 7-8)
Who is going to make merry and do himself well on the strength of what your covetous and miserly acts kept in hiding and seclusion, like the dragon of the fable? Who is so closely related to you, so deeply loved by you, so near to your heart and so grateful to you for your sacrifices and stintings, that for the sake of leaving him well endowed you even profane your priesthood, make purchaseable products out of your priesthood's sublimest functions, extinguish the flickering flame of conscience, spend your days in sordidness, harrowed by worry, in order to make your little pile?
Who ever loved you so much that, with a view to bettering his worldly condition, you do not hesitate to fling your good name to the gossiping public, and your soul to the unquenchable fire?
III. St. Thomas teaches (S.T. II-II q. 118, a. 5) that there are graver sins, in themselves, than avarice; most sins are, in fact: those directly affronting and injuring God, those that violate human rights; for the simple reason that avarice has for its object exterior goods, goods very inferior to the Glory of God and the welfare of souls. Avarice, we may say, has to do with goods of the lowest grade.
But there is no sin more hideous and indecorous for human dignity than that of enslaving the human will to riches, to things of such paltry value, inferior by far to the things which constitUte the object of spiritual vices, lower even than the mire of fleshly wallowing. The basest, the lewdest, the most hideous thing on earth is to identify the soul and its yearnings with these empty shadows of good; because the soul is what it loves: heaven, if in love with heaven; if mud, mud.
And if this applies to every avaricious person, even to the man aspiring after fabulous wealth, what degradation, what sordidness this vice will take on in the priest, who perhaps has to live a beggarly existence in order to save up in shillings and pence!
Avarice is also the most dangerous of vices. Those of the spirit, pride, for example, are cured or relieved by disillusionment; those of the flesh, with all their powerful sting, are mitigated or neutralised by the winter of one's declining years; whereas avarice of its own nature tends to increase with age.
The older one gets, the more helpless and needy one becomes and the less one is able to fend for oneself, and therefore, the more avid one is to possess and to hoard, as the only remedy for one's indigence and the only support for one's weakness.
Hasn't experience taught a lesson or two in demonstration of this sad fact? How many old people, fast approaching death, already on the threshold of eternity, on those frontiers that allow no earthly chattel to pass through, seem to have no hands or eyes or memory or desire except for the service of their god - money!
QUERIES
1. Could I swear that I have never committed real injustice: larceny, theft, or fraud, with the goods of my parishioners, of the Church, or of the charitable works, that I administer? The diocesan Authorities may not perhaps be able to convict me, but what about my inmost conscience and God's justice?
2. Have I been scrupulously honest in giving an account of all my administrative acts to the person who, according to Canon Law, has a right and a duty to receive it from me? It would be the best guarantee of my straightforwardness and honesty.
3. Have I ever taken advantage of the faithful's ignorance and demanded more than what is permitted by diocesan regulations or lawful custom in matters pertaining to burials, weddings, and church functions? At the hour of death, will my conscience disturb me on this issue?
4. And while supposing that I have proceeded in everything with absolute justice - the world demands as much of any decent person - do I not demand my rights with excessive haste and harshness, like a taxcollector or a money lender?
5. Apart from everything else, am I not mean in aiding the poor? What alms do I give? What sympathy do I show towards the poor? What do people think of me in this matter, those who know me well?
However biassed or distorted their opinion may be, I should do well to find out what it is, not in order to reproach them or to revenge myself, but to arrive at an objective knowledge of myself, to gather clues for passing on myself a correct judgement.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Thoughts and Counsels - July 21
Gospel for Saturday, 15th Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial: St Lawrence of Brindisi, Priest and Doctor
Optional Memorial: Our Lady's Saturday
From: Matthew 12:14-21
Jesus, the Suffering Servant of Yahweh
[14] But the Pharisees went out and took counsel against Him, how to destroy Him. [15] Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed Him, and He healed them all, [16] and ordered them not to make Him known. [17] This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: [18] "Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon Him, and He shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. [19] He will not wrangle or cry aloud, nor will any one hear His voice in the streets; [20] He will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick, till He brings justice to victory; [21] and in His name will the Gentiles hope."
___________________
Commentary:
17-21. Once again the sacred text points out the contrast between the contemporary mistaken Jewish notion of a spectacular messianic kingdom and the discernment which Jesus asks of those who witness and accept His teaching and miracles. By providing this long quotation from Isaiah (42:1-4), the Evangelist is giving us the key to the teaching contained in Chapters 11 and 12: in Jesus the prophecy of the Servant of Yahweh is fulfilled: the lovable and gentle teacher has come to bring the light of truth.
When narrating the passion of our Lord, the Gospels will once again remind us of the figure of the Servant of Yahweh, to show that in Jesus the suffering and expiatory aspect of the death of the Servant finds fulfillment (cf. Matthew 27:30, with reference to Is 50:6; Matthew 8:17 and Isaiah 53:4; John 1:38 and Isaiah 53:9-12; etc.).
17. Isaiah 42:1-4 speaks of a humble servant, beloved of God, chosen by God. And in fact Jesus, without ceasing to be the Son of God, one in substance with the Father, took the form of a servant (cf. Philippians 2:6). This humility led him to cure and care for the poor and afflicted of Israel, without seeking acclaim.
18. See the note on Matthew 3:16.
[Note on Matthew 3:16 states:
16. Jesus possessed the fullness of the Holy Spirit from the moment of His conception. This is due to the union of human nature and divine nature in the person of the Word (the dogma of hypostatic union). Catholic teaching says that in Christ there is only one person (who is divine) but two natures (divine and human). The descent of the Spirit of God spoken of in the text indicates that just as Jesus was solemnly commencing His messianic task, so the Holy Spirit was beginning His action through Him. There are very many texts in the Old Testament which speak of the showing forth of the Holy Spirit in the future Messiah. This sign of the Spirit gave St. John the Baptist unmistakable proof of the genuineness of his testimony concerning Christ (cf. John 1:29-34). The mystery of the Holy Trinity is revealed in the baptism of Jesus: the Son is baptized; the Holy Spirit descends on Him in the form of a dove; and the voice of the Father gives testimony about His Son. Christians must be baptized in the name of the Three Divine Persons. "If you have sincere piety, the Holy Spirit will descend on you also and you will hear the voice of the Father saying to you from above: "This was not My son, but now after Baptism he has been made My son" (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, "De Baptismo", 14).]
19. The justice proclaimed by the Servant, who is filled with the Holy Spirit, is not a noisy virtue. We can see the loving, gentle way Jesus worked His miracles, performing righteousness in all humility. This is how He brings about the triumph of His Father's Justice, His plan of revelation and salvation--very quietly and very effectively.
20. According to many Fathers, including St. Augustine and St. Jerome, the bruised reed and the smoldering wick refer to the Jewish people. They also stand for every sinner, for our Lord does not seek the sinner's death but his conversion, and his life (cf. Ezekiel 33:11). The Gospels often bear witness to this reassuring truth (cf. Luke 15:11-32), the parable of the prodigal son; Matthew 18:12-24, the parable of the lost sheep; etc.).
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Optional Memorial: Our Lady's Saturday
From: Matthew 12:14-21
Jesus, the Suffering Servant of Yahweh
[14] But the Pharisees went out and took counsel against Him, how to destroy Him. [15] Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed Him, and He healed them all, [16] and ordered them not to make Him known. [17] This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: [18] "Behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon Him, and He shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. [19] He will not wrangle or cry aloud, nor will any one hear His voice in the streets; [20] He will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick, till He brings justice to victory; [21] and in His name will the Gentiles hope."
___________________
Commentary:
17-21. Once again the sacred text points out the contrast between the contemporary mistaken Jewish notion of a spectacular messianic kingdom and the discernment which Jesus asks of those who witness and accept His teaching and miracles. By providing this long quotation from Isaiah (42:1-4), the Evangelist is giving us the key to the teaching contained in Chapters 11 and 12: in Jesus the prophecy of the Servant of Yahweh is fulfilled: the lovable and gentle teacher has come to bring the light of truth.
When narrating the passion of our Lord, the Gospels will once again remind us of the figure of the Servant of Yahweh, to show that in Jesus the suffering and expiatory aspect of the death of the Servant finds fulfillment (cf. Matthew 27:30, with reference to Is 50:6; Matthew 8:17 and Isaiah 53:4; John 1:38 and Isaiah 53:9-12; etc.).
17. Isaiah 42:1-4 speaks of a humble servant, beloved of God, chosen by God. And in fact Jesus, without ceasing to be the Son of God, one in substance with the Father, took the form of a servant (cf. Philippians 2:6). This humility led him to cure and care for the poor and afflicted of Israel, without seeking acclaim.
18. See the note on Matthew 3:16.
[Note on Matthew 3:16 states:
16. Jesus possessed the fullness of the Holy Spirit from the moment of His conception. This is due to the union of human nature and divine nature in the person of the Word (the dogma of hypostatic union). Catholic teaching says that in Christ there is only one person (who is divine) but two natures (divine and human). The descent of the Spirit of God spoken of in the text indicates that just as Jesus was solemnly commencing His messianic task, so the Holy Spirit was beginning His action through Him. There are very many texts in the Old Testament which speak of the showing forth of the Holy Spirit in the future Messiah. This sign of the Spirit gave St. John the Baptist unmistakable proof of the genuineness of his testimony concerning Christ (cf. John 1:29-34). The mystery of the Holy Trinity is revealed in the baptism of Jesus: the Son is baptized; the Holy Spirit descends on Him in the form of a dove; and the voice of the Father gives testimony about His Son. Christians must be baptized in the name of the Three Divine Persons. "If you have sincere piety, the Holy Spirit will descend on you also and you will hear the voice of the Father saying to you from above: "This was not My son, but now after Baptism he has been made My son" (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, "De Baptismo", 14).]
19. The justice proclaimed by the Servant, who is filled with the Holy Spirit, is not a noisy virtue. We can see the loving, gentle way Jesus worked His miracles, performing righteousness in all humility. This is how He brings about the triumph of His Father's Justice, His plan of revelation and salvation--very quietly and very effectively.
20. According to many Fathers, including St. Augustine and St. Jerome, the bruised reed and the smoldering wick refer to the Jewish people. They also stand for every sinner, for our Lord does not seek the sinner's death but his conversion, and his life (cf. Ezekiel 33:11). The Gospels often bear witness to this reassuring truth (cf. Luke 15:11-32), the parable of the prodigal son; Matthew 18:12-24, the parable of the lost sheep; etc.).
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Friday, July 20, 2007
The Priest at Prayer for July 21, Avarice
The Third Part - Vices and Virtues
Avarice
First Meditation - Evils of Avarice in the Priest
I. St. Paul speaks of avarice as a kind of idolatry - "that love of money which makes a man an idolater." (Eph. v, 5.)
Just as the idolater surrenders to a creature, adoring it as his God, the avaricious person surrenders and sacrifices himself to riches, with an all-absorbing desire to possess them.
Once covetousness dominates over me, I shall regard and assign the amassing and worship and service of the ephemeral goods of earth, in the form of coin, chattels, or paper money; as the whole of life's purpose. My spiritual faculties will live a life of dedication to the worship of my idol. This will be the pursuit of my probing mind day and night. This will be my love above all other loves. My heart, created for the God of heaven, will be full of the craving for wealth - auri sacra fames - and this will be my despicable god, whom I shall love with my whole heart, with my whole soul, with my whole mind, and with all my strength.
Even in the holiest works of my ministry: in preaching, administering the Sacraments, in the Sacrifice of the Mass, and in the very Person of Christ sacrificed, I shall seek no other value beyond their emolument value in cash. To this idol I shall sacrifice not only my own soul with its understanding, will, and affections, but the Word of God as well; yes, the very Person of the Word, if avarice becomes my ruling passion.
Have not these abominations the stench of sacrilege and apostasy about them? Should I not richly deserve, if I stooped so low, the bitter reproach conveyed through the prophet Isaias:
From this poisoned source flows in an unquenchable and continual stream insensitiveness and callousness of heart at the sight of our neighbours' sorrows and miseries - the hard-heartedness of the rich glutton towards Lazarus - and also a tormenting solicitude to increase our store.
Money alone does not satisfy the covetous man; in order to acquire and retain his ill-gotten goods he resorts to violence, extortion, deceit, perjury, fraud, treachery, and every species of injustice. And in the case of a covetous or avaricious priest, these injustices would find expression in his imposing taxes and stole-fees in accordance with his craving for quick gains, not with the rulings of Canon Law and common honesty; he will be led, in imitation of Judas, to maladminister the sacred property of the poor, of the Church, of Christ, and to fleece the devout or simple people under the pretext of piety.
You may think this an exaggeration, but, if the priest is avaricious, what other line of business or source of income can he exploit for quick gains outside the sphere of the altar and public worship and whatever pertains thereto?
III. To the above-mentioned evils of priestly avarice must be added another no less serious. Zeal for the salvation of souls is diametrically opposed to, and absolutely incompatible with, greed for gain and hoarding; therefore, those works of zeal which do not yield ready cash, which bring no increase to his emoluments, will be a hindrance to him, a hateful task, an irreparable loss of time; because to him "time is money."
He will not exercise these "non-productive" duties of the ministry, or, if he cannot evade them entirely, he will spare as little time for them as possible, and will never put his whole heart and mind into them. They will be, for a priestly victim of avarice, nothing more than matters of form and tiresome courtesies.
And what are those unproductive priestly duties? Catechetical instruction, the preaching that goes with his appointment, the confessional, attending the sick and poor; all these will be the target of his hatred and contempt, as being the enemies of his happiness.
Not all these dark stains defile my conscience; that, I can well and piously believe; but am I sure of not being contaminated by a few drops, so to speak, of this deadly poison in a diluted form? Even diluted they can gradually blacken my soul, obscure my ways of thought and action; they can imperceptibly cast me almost unawares at the feet of the golden calf.
QUERIES
Instead of resolutions, today I'm going to put myself some queries on a number of points, with full determination to correct, if necessary, anything crooked or not quite straight and honest, anything unfair or frankly dishonest, that may emerge from this self-examination.
1. Money being the common denominator for all external goods, avarice usually takes the form of avid desire for money - aeris aviditas; so, do I experience that immoderate craving for money? has it become a sort of kink in my mind? has it become a minting-machine for converting all my activities of body and soul into money?
2. Is your desire to acquire and hold on to things a desire that goes unrestrained? The principle that should govern this desire is as follows:
3. The sin of avarice comes in when this practical consideration is set aside, when acquiring and retaining go beyond the limits approved by right reason, for the mere delight of possessing, of continually increasing one's store, or for the purpose of employing possessions in ways that are sinful. The essence of avarice is the immoderate craving to have things.
How often have I been unrestrained in my desires? How often have I trespassed, in my desire for gain? How often have I, as a priest, yielded to avarice? Have I struggled with myself in order to acquire the noble virtue of generosity, which moderates according to reason this affection and craving for possession?
4. Avarice is a twofold disorder:
(a) In acquiring and retaining, it goes beyond what is proper and just, either taking by force what belongs to another or keeping it against the owner's reasonable will; this is avarice in its crudest form of injustice, the avarice of thieves, extortioners, forgers, dishonest administrators, etc. Surely, such ignoble company is not mine! But it is not altogether impossible!
(b) In the affections of the heart towards riches, avarice entails inordinate pleasure and disorder: a too ardent desire or fondness for them, excessive delight and complacency in them, even though there may be no question of wanting to appropriate another's belongings unjustly. This type of avarice, less blameworthy than the former type, is still something base and vile; it is in clean opposition to the virtue of generosity, and, if nurtured, can develop into the first type. Could I
swear that I am not a prey to this form of covetousness? If I were, I should sooner or later warrant the terrible words of St. John Chrysostom: "tenebrae animae est pecuniarum cupido" - the craving for money is darkness to the soul.
5. All avarice is a sin, but not all of the same gravity. The first type of avarice we have mentioned is grave sin (per se, ex genere suo) with the gravity attaching to theft and robbery; but it could be venial sin through lack of perfect knowledge and wilfulness (ex imperfectione actus); or when the quantities concerned are small - ex parvitate materiae. If I have committed sins of avarice of this type, have they been grievous sins? If they have, there is a name for me: thief.
As regards the second type of avarice: disorderly craving will amount to mortal sin only if I gloat on worldly possessions to the extent of preferring them to charity; that is, if for love of worldly goods I am ready to offend the love of God and the neighbour by breaking some serious precept of the divine law. If I am disposed to forfeit riches rather than offend God in this way, my avarice does not exceed venial sin.
What is my position? Where do I stand as regards my affections for the perishable things of earth? How far do these affections go? Where do I draw the line?
6. In conclusion, have I stooped so far as to convert the corruptible treasures of earth into objects of a spiritual love? Avarice is a spiritual disorder, because what takes delight in the possessing and counting of riches and in gloating over them is not the body but the soul, the soul created to find its delight in God.
That is why St. John calls this vice concupiscentia oculorum (1 John ii, 16), covetousness of the eyes, that is, of the intelligence. And this is a serious aberration and debasement.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Avarice
First Meditation - Evils of Avarice in the Priest
I. St. Paul speaks of avarice as a kind of idolatry - "that love of money which makes a man an idolater." (Eph. v, 5.)
Just as the idolater surrenders to a creature, adoring it as his God, the avaricious person surrenders and sacrifices himself to riches, with an all-absorbing desire to possess them.
Once covetousness dominates over me, I shall regard and assign the amassing and worship and service of the ephemeral goods of earth, in the form of coin, chattels, or paper money; as the whole of life's purpose. My spiritual faculties will live a life of dedication to the worship of my idol. This will be the pursuit of my probing mind day and night. This will be my love above all other loves. My heart, created for the God of heaven, will be full of the craving for wealth - auri sacra fames - and this will be my despicable god, whom I shall love with my whole heart, with my whole soul, with my whole mind, and with all my strength.
Even in the holiest works of my ministry: in preaching, administering the Sacraments, in the Sacrifice of the Mass, and in the very Person of Christ sacrificed, I shall seek no other value beyond their emolument value in cash. To this idol I shall sacrifice not only my own soul with its understanding, will, and affections, but the Word of God as well; yes, the very Person of the Word, if avarice becomes my ruling passion.
Have not these abominations the stench of sacrilege and apostasy about them? Should I not richly deserve, if I stooped so low, the bitter reproach conveyed through the prophet Isaias:
Thou hast made me to serve with thy sins (Is. xliii, 24),or that uttered by Ezechiel:
"For a handful of meal, or a crust of bread, they will put me to shame before my own people." (Ez. xiii, 19)II. There is a semblance of perfect happiness in the possession of riches: we can procure with them most of the good things of this life, and their sovereignty in this world is practically undisputed. Hence, the unruly desire to possess and retain, which is avarice, becomes by its force and widespread action the origin of other keen desires equally irregular and vicious; in other words, avarice is a capital sin.
From this poisoned source flows in an unquenchable and continual stream insensitiveness and callousness of heart at the sight of our neighbours' sorrows and miseries - the hard-heartedness of the rich glutton towards Lazarus - and also a tormenting solicitude to increase our store.
Money alone does not satisfy the covetous man; in order to acquire and retain his ill-gotten goods he resorts to violence, extortion, deceit, perjury, fraud, treachery, and every species of injustice. And in the case of a covetous or avaricious priest, these injustices would find expression in his imposing taxes and stole-fees in accordance with his craving for quick gains, not with the rulings of Canon Law and common honesty; he will be led, in imitation of Judas, to maladminister the sacred property of the poor, of the Church, of Christ, and to fleece the devout or simple people under the pretext of piety.
You may think this an exaggeration, but, if the priest is avaricious, what other line of business or source of income can he exploit for quick gains outside the sphere of the altar and public worship and whatever pertains thereto?
III. To the above-mentioned evils of priestly avarice must be added another no less serious. Zeal for the salvation of souls is diametrically opposed to, and absolutely incompatible with, greed for gain and hoarding; therefore, those works of zeal which do not yield ready cash, which bring no increase to his emoluments, will be a hindrance to him, a hateful task, an irreparable loss of time; because to him "time is money."
He will not exercise these "non-productive" duties of the ministry, or, if he cannot evade them entirely, he will spare as little time for them as possible, and will never put his whole heart and mind into them. They will be, for a priestly victim of avarice, nothing more than matters of form and tiresome courtesies.
And what are those unproductive priestly duties? Catechetical instruction, the preaching that goes with his appointment, the confessional, attending the sick and poor; all these will be the target of his hatred and contempt, as being the enemies of his happiness.
Not all these dark stains defile my conscience; that, I can well and piously believe; but am I sure of not being contaminated by a few drops, so to speak, of this deadly poison in a diluted form? Even diluted they can gradually blacken my soul, obscure my ways of thought and action; they can imperceptibly cast me almost unawares at the feet of the golden calf.
QUERIES
Instead of resolutions, today I'm going to put myself some queries on a number of points, with full determination to correct, if necessary, anything crooked or not quite straight and honest, anything unfair or frankly dishonest, that may emerge from this self-examination.
1. Money being the common denominator for all external goods, avarice usually takes the form of avid desire for money - aeris aviditas; so, do I experience that immoderate craving for money? has it become a sort of kink in my mind? has it become a minting-machine for converting all my activities of body and soul into money?
2. Is your desire to acquire and hold on to things a desire that goes unrestrained? The principle that should govern this desire is as follows:
All exterior goods and possessions interchangeable among themselves or exchangeable for money - such is the general meaning of "riches" - are in the nature of useful means to an end; therefore, these goods must necessarily be adjusted to a certain order or measure in keeping with what is necessary or useful for the maintenance of man's life according to his particular state and condition, and in harmony with his eternal interests.It follows, then, that the practical consideration in matters of desiring, seeking and possessing material goods is simply: "Are they necessary or convenient in order to live?"
3. The sin of avarice comes in when this practical consideration is set aside, when acquiring and retaining go beyond the limits approved by right reason, for the mere delight of possessing, of continually increasing one's store, or for the purpose of employing possessions in ways that are sinful. The essence of avarice is the immoderate craving to have things.
How often have I been unrestrained in my desires? How often have I trespassed, in my desire for gain? How often have I, as a priest, yielded to avarice? Have I struggled with myself in order to acquire the noble virtue of generosity, which moderates according to reason this affection and craving for possession?
4. Avarice is a twofold disorder:
(a) In acquiring and retaining, it goes beyond what is proper and just, either taking by force what belongs to another or keeping it against the owner's reasonable will; this is avarice in its crudest form of injustice, the avarice of thieves, extortioners, forgers, dishonest administrators, etc. Surely, such ignoble company is not mine! But it is not altogether impossible!
(b) In the affections of the heart towards riches, avarice entails inordinate pleasure and disorder: a too ardent desire or fondness for them, excessive delight and complacency in them, even though there may be no question of wanting to appropriate another's belongings unjustly. This type of avarice, less blameworthy than the former type, is still something base and vile; it is in clean opposition to the virtue of generosity, and, if nurtured, can develop into the first type. Could I
swear that I am not a prey to this form of covetousness? If I were, I should sooner or later warrant the terrible words of St. John Chrysostom: "tenebrae animae est pecuniarum cupido" - the craving for money is darkness to the soul.
5. All avarice is a sin, but not all of the same gravity. The first type of avarice we have mentioned is grave sin (per se, ex genere suo) with the gravity attaching to theft and robbery; but it could be venial sin through lack of perfect knowledge and wilfulness (ex imperfectione actus); or when the quantities concerned are small - ex parvitate materiae. If I have committed sins of avarice of this type, have they been grievous sins? If they have, there is a name for me: thief.
As regards the second type of avarice: disorderly craving will amount to mortal sin only if I gloat on worldly possessions to the extent of preferring them to charity; that is, if for love of worldly goods I am ready to offend the love of God and the neighbour by breaking some serious precept of the divine law. If I am disposed to forfeit riches rather than offend God in this way, my avarice does not exceed venial sin.
What is my position? Where do I stand as regards my affections for the perishable things of earth? How far do these affections go? Where do I draw the line?
6. In conclusion, have I stooped so far as to convert the corruptible treasures of earth into objects of a spiritual love? Avarice is a spiritual disorder, because what takes delight in the possessing and counting of riches and in gloating over them is not the body but the soul, the soul created to find its delight in God.
That is why St. John calls this vice concupiscentia oculorum (1 John ii, 16), covetousness of the eyes, that is, of the intelligence. And this is a serious aberration and debasement.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Archbishop Burke Speaks to Confraternity of Catholic Clergy
Clergy Voice Their Full Support
SAINT LOUIS, July 20 /Christian Newswire/ -- Archbishop Raymond Burke was keynote speaker for the 32nd annual convocation of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, a national association of 600 priests and deacons. This year's conference was held in Saint Louis and included other speakers such as Dr. James and Helen Hitchcock, Msgr. Kevin McMahon and Fr. Fred Miller. The following resolutions were issued at the conclusion of the four day gathering on July 19th:Continued here.1.We express our deep gratitude and respect for church leaders like Archbishop Raymond Burke of Saint Louis who courageously, consistently and faithfully defend Holy Mother Church and all her official teachings and disciplines. We strongly support his stand on denying Holy Communion to any Catholic candidate or politician who openly and notoriously supports abortion and/or euthanasia...
Archbishop Burke: Two Forms of the One Rite of the Mass
From the weekly column by the Most Reverend Raymond L. Burke:
In writing to you this week, I want to address two different but related subjects of concern to us all. The first is the recent publication of new liturgical norms pertaining to the celebration of two forms of the Rite of the Mass, the form used by all until 1970 and the new form introduced by Pope Paul VI. The new norms, given by Pope Benedict XVI on July 7, have been the subject of much discussion in the media. For your better understanding of the new norms, I want to offer you my reflections on the norms and their implementation in the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Two forms of the one Rite of the Mass
By his apostolic letter "Summorum Pontificum," Pope Benedict XVI has provided for the easier use of the form of the Rite of the Mass until 1970, which was published by Blessed Pope John XXIII in 1962, in addition to the use of the Rite of the Mass, which was published by Pope Paul VI in 1970 and with which we are all quite familiar. The first form is sometimes popularly called the Tridentine Rite of the Mass, referring to the fact that, in its essentials, it remained the same from the time of the reforms introduced by the Council of Trent (Tridentine is the adjective for Trent). Changes were introduced into the rite over the centuries, including the changes made in the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal, but the greater part of the rite remained unchanged.
The second form is called the Novus Ordo or New Order of the Mass. It also retains the essential elements found in the Tridentine Rite but introduces a somewhat radical simplification of the rite. It is, however, one and the same Rite of the Mass.
With the norms promulgated by Pope Benedict XVI, the Novus Ordo remains the ordinary form in which the Rite of the Mass is to be celebrated. The Order of the Mass in force before the changes introduced by the Novus Ordo is now the extraordinary form, which may be celebrated by any priest, without special permission, under the conditions set forth by the Holy Father. In establishing the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass, our Holy Father reminds us that, in fact, the use of the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII "was never juridically abrogated and, consequently, in principle, was always permitted" (Letter of Pope Benedict XVI Accompanying the Apostolic Letter Summorum Pontificum, July 7, 2007, paragraph 6).
As he observes, there was a greater attachment to the former rite than perhaps was anticipated, especially among the faithful "with a notable liturgical formation and a deep, personal familiarity with the earlier form of the liturgical celebration" (Ibid.). An interest in and attachment to the former Rite of the Mass also developed among the faithful in circumstances in which the reforms of the Novus Ordo were not implemented with fidelity but were falsely seen to permit or even require a creative interpretation on the part of the priest. Such circumstances, in the words of Pope Benedict XVI, "led to deformations of the liturgy which were hard to bear" (Ibid.). Our Holy Father reflects upon his own experience of the confusion and hurt which sometimes accompanied the implementation of the Novus Ordo.
Not infrequently, I meet young people who are attracted to the former Order of the Mass, even though they had no experience of it when they were growing up. What attracts them is the beauty and reverence, which the earlier form very much fosters. Such beauty and reverence should also be evident in the celebration of the Novus Ordo. Because the ordinary form is greatly simplified, the priest and those who assist him must be attentive to the divine action taking place and not give way to an informality and familiarity which is offensive to the nature of the Sacred Liturgy.
Through "Summorum Pontificum," Pope Benedict XVI makes the former Order of the Mass more available to the faithful who are attached to it. At the same time, he maintains the Novus Ordo as the ordinary form of the celebration of the Mass. It is the expressed hope of our Holy Father that the use of the extraordinary form will support the faithful celebration of the Mass according to the Novus Ordo.
Implementation of the new norms in the archdiocese
Some of the faithful of the archdiocese have expressed the fears that the use of the vernacular in the celebration of the Mass will be taken away and that the use of the extraordinary form of the Mass will be imposed upon them, while they, in fact, are attached to the ordinary form. Both fears are unfounded. The celebration of the extraordinary form in parishes must be requested by a group of the faithful and is to be scheduled in such a way as to permit the other faithful the use of the ordinary form. Priests, when they celebrate the Mass without a congregation, that is, when they are on vacation or away from a parochial assignment, may choose either form. Members of the faithful can, of course, assist at the Mass, no matter in which form it is celebrated.
At present, the Archdiocese of St. Louis has a most effective apostolate on behalf of the faithful who are attached to the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass, that is the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII. St. Francis de Sales Oratory is the center of the apostolate and serves well the faithful who desire the celebration of the Mass and of the other sacraments according to the rites which were in force in 1962. The Canons Regular of the New Jerusalem also provide Sunday and holy day Masses at the Chapel of the Passionist Nuns in Ellisville. In addition, the Canons Regular, as befits their form of religious life, celebrate daily and publicly the Liturgy of the Hours in the chapel of their Priory in Chesterfield.
If additional requests of the regular celebration of the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass are received, I will work with the parish priests in responding appropriately and generously to the requests. Also, courses of liturgical formation pertaining to the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII will be provided for priests who desire it. The seminarians at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary will be provided the liturgical formation necessary to celebrate the Mass according to the extraordinary form. Their studies of Latin will also give attention to the texts of the extraordinary form.
Gratitude for the richness of the forms of the Sacred Liturgy
In concluding my brief reflections on "Summorum Pontificum," I express, in the name of us all, deepest gratitude to Pope Benedict XVI for providing so richly and well for the worthy and beautiful celebration of the Sacred Liturgy, especially the Holy Mass. With Pope Benedict XVI, I am certain that the richer possibilities for the celebration of the Mass and the other sacraments will lead us all to a deeper appreciation of the immeasurable love of God for us and to a deeper response of love, on our part.
###
Source.
In writing to you this week, I want to address two different but related subjects of concern to us all. The first is the recent publication of new liturgical norms pertaining to the celebration of two forms of the Rite of the Mass, the form used by all until 1970 and the new form introduced by Pope Paul VI. The new norms, given by Pope Benedict XVI on July 7, have been the subject of much discussion in the media. For your better understanding of the new norms, I want to offer you my reflections on the norms and their implementation in the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Two forms of the one Rite of the Mass
By his apostolic letter "Summorum Pontificum," Pope Benedict XVI has provided for the easier use of the form of the Rite of the Mass until 1970, which was published by Blessed Pope John XXIII in 1962, in addition to the use of the Rite of the Mass, which was published by Pope Paul VI in 1970 and with which we are all quite familiar. The first form is sometimes popularly called the Tridentine Rite of the Mass, referring to the fact that, in its essentials, it remained the same from the time of the reforms introduced by the Council of Trent (Tridentine is the adjective for Trent). Changes were introduced into the rite over the centuries, including the changes made in the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal, but the greater part of the rite remained unchanged.
The second form is called the Novus Ordo or New Order of the Mass. It also retains the essential elements found in the Tridentine Rite but introduces a somewhat radical simplification of the rite. It is, however, one and the same Rite of the Mass.
With the norms promulgated by Pope Benedict XVI, the Novus Ordo remains the ordinary form in which the Rite of the Mass is to be celebrated. The Order of the Mass in force before the changes introduced by the Novus Ordo is now the extraordinary form, which may be celebrated by any priest, without special permission, under the conditions set forth by the Holy Father. In establishing the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass, our Holy Father reminds us that, in fact, the use of the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII "was never juridically abrogated and, consequently, in principle, was always permitted" (Letter of Pope Benedict XVI Accompanying the Apostolic Letter Summorum Pontificum, July 7, 2007, paragraph 6).
As he observes, there was a greater attachment to the former rite than perhaps was anticipated, especially among the faithful "with a notable liturgical formation and a deep, personal familiarity with the earlier form of the liturgical celebration" (Ibid.). An interest in and attachment to the former Rite of the Mass also developed among the faithful in circumstances in which the reforms of the Novus Ordo were not implemented with fidelity but were falsely seen to permit or even require a creative interpretation on the part of the priest. Such circumstances, in the words of Pope Benedict XVI, "led to deformations of the liturgy which were hard to bear" (Ibid.). Our Holy Father reflects upon his own experience of the confusion and hurt which sometimes accompanied the implementation of the Novus Ordo.
Not infrequently, I meet young people who are attracted to the former Order of the Mass, even though they had no experience of it when they were growing up. What attracts them is the beauty and reverence, which the earlier form very much fosters. Such beauty and reverence should also be evident in the celebration of the Novus Ordo. Because the ordinary form is greatly simplified, the priest and those who assist him must be attentive to the divine action taking place and not give way to an informality and familiarity which is offensive to the nature of the Sacred Liturgy.
Through "Summorum Pontificum," Pope Benedict XVI makes the former Order of the Mass more available to the faithful who are attached to it. At the same time, he maintains the Novus Ordo as the ordinary form of the celebration of the Mass. It is the expressed hope of our Holy Father that the use of the extraordinary form will support the faithful celebration of the Mass according to the Novus Ordo.
Implementation of the new norms in the archdiocese
Some of the faithful of the archdiocese have expressed the fears that the use of the vernacular in the celebration of the Mass will be taken away and that the use of the extraordinary form of the Mass will be imposed upon them, while they, in fact, are attached to the ordinary form. Both fears are unfounded. The celebration of the extraordinary form in parishes must be requested by a group of the faithful and is to be scheduled in such a way as to permit the other faithful the use of the ordinary form. Priests, when they celebrate the Mass without a congregation, that is, when they are on vacation or away from a parochial assignment, may choose either form. Members of the faithful can, of course, assist at the Mass, no matter in which form it is celebrated.
At present, the Archdiocese of St. Louis has a most effective apostolate on behalf of the faithful who are attached to the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass, that is the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII. St. Francis de Sales Oratory is the center of the apostolate and serves well the faithful who desire the celebration of the Mass and of the other sacraments according to the rites which were in force in 1962. The Canons Regular of the New Jerusalem also provide Sunday and holy day Masses at the Chapel of the Passionist Nuns in Ellisville. In addition, the Canons Regular, as befits their form of religious life, celebrate daily and publicly the Liturgy of the Hours in the chapel of their Priory in Chesterfield.
If additional requests of the regular celebration of the extraordinary form of the Rite of the Mass are received, I will work with the parish priests in responding appropriately and generously to the requests. Also, courses of liturgical formation pertaining to the Roman Missal of Blessed Pope John XXIII will be provided for priests who desire it. The seminarians at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary will be provided the liturgical formation necessary to celebrate the Mass according to the extraordinary form. Their studies of Latin will also give attention to the texts of the extraordinary form.
Gratitude for the richness of the forms of the Sacred Liturgy
In concluding my brief reflections on "Summorum Pontificum," I express, in the name of us all, deepest gratitude to Pope Benedict XVI for providing so richly and well for the worthy and beautiful celebration of the Sacred Liturgy, especially the Holy Mass. With Pope Benedict XVI, I am certain that the richer possibilities for the celebration of the Mass and the other sacraments will lead us all to a deeper appreciation of the immeasurable love of God for us and to a deeper response of love, on our part.
###
Source.
Thoughts and Counsels - July 20
Gospel for Friday, 15th Week in Ordinary Time
Optional Memorial of St. Apollinaris, bishop and martyr
Old Calendar: St. Jerome Emiliani, confessor; St. Margaret of Antioch, virgin and martyr
________________
From: Matthew 12:1-8
The Question of the Sabbath
[1] At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck ears of grain and to eat. [2] But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath." [3] He said to them, "Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him: [4] how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? [5] Or have you not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless? [6] I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. [7] And if you had known what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless. [8] For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
_____________________
Commentary:
2. "The Sabbath": this was the day the Jews set aside for worshipping God. God Himself, the originator of the Sabbath (Genesis 2:3), ordered the Jewish people to avoid certain kinds of work on this day (Exodus 20:8-11; 21:13; Deuteronomy 5:14) to leave them free to give more time to God. As time went by, the rabbis complicated this divine precept: by Jesus' time they had extended to 39 the list of kinds of forbidden work.
The Pharisees accuse Jesus' disciples of breaking the Sabbath. In the casuistry of the scribes and the Pharisees, plucking ears of corn was the same as harvesting, and crushing them was the same as milling--types of agricultural work forbidden on the Sabbath.
3-8. Jesus rebuts the Pharisees' accusation by four arguments--the example of David, that of the priests, a correct understanding of the mercy of God and Jesus' own authority over the Sabbath.
The first example which was quite familiar to the people, who were used to listening to the Bible being read, comes from 1 Samuel 21:2-7: David, in flight from the jealousy of King Saul, asks the priest of the shrine of Nob for food for his men; the priest gave them the only bread he had, the holy bread of the Presence; this was the twelve loaves which were placed each week on the golden altar of the sanctuary as a perpetual offering from the twelve tribes of Israel (Leviticus 24:5-9). The second example refers to the priestly ministry to perform the liturgy, priests had to do a number of things on the Sabbath but did not thereby break the law of Sabbath rest (cf. Numbers 28:9). On the other two arguments, see the notes on Matthew 9:13 and Mark 2:26-27, 28.
[The notes on Matthew 9:13 states:
13. Here Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6, keeping the hyperbole of the Semitic style. A more faithful translation would be: "I desire mercy MORE THAN sacrifice". It is not that our Lord does not want the sacrifices we offer Him: He is stressing that every sacrifice should come from the heart, for charity should imbue everything a Christian does--especially his worship of God (see 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Matthew 5:23-24).]
[The notes on Mark 2:26-27, 28 states:
6-27. The bread of the Presence consisted of twelve loaves or cakes placed each morning on the table in the sanctuary, as homage to the Lord from the twelve tribes of Israel (cf. Leviticus 24:5-9). The loaves withdrawn to make room for the fresh ones were reserved to the priests. Abiathar's action anticipates what Christ teaches here. Already in the Old Testament God had established a hierarchy in the precepts of the Law so that the lesser ones yielded to the main ones.
This explains why a ceremonial precept (such as the one we are discussing) should yield before a precept of the natural law. Similarly, the commandment to keep the Sabbath does not come before the duty to seek basic subsistence. Vatican II uses this passage of the Gospel to underline the value of the human person over and above economic and social development: "The social order and its development must constantly yield to the good of the person, since the order of things must be subordinate to the order of persons and not the other way around, as the Lord suggested when He said that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. The social order requires constant improvement: it must be founded in truth, built on justice, and enlivened by love" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 26).
Finally in this passage Christ teaches God's purpose in instituting the Sabbath: God established it for man's good, to help him rest and devote himself to Divine worship in joy and peace. The Pharisees, through their interpretation of the Law, had turned this day into a source of anguish and scruple due to all the various prescriptions and prohibitions they introduced.
By proclaiming Himself `Lord of the Sabbath', Jesus affirms His divinity and His universal authority. Because He is Lord he has the power to establish other laws, as Yahweh had in the Old Testament.
28. The Sabbath had been established not only for man's rest but also to give glory to God: that is the correct meaning of the _expression "the Sabbath was made for man." Jesus has every right to say He is Lord of the Sabbath, because He is God. Christ restores to the weekly day of rest its full, religious meaning: it is not just a matter of fulfilling a number of legal precepts or of concern for physical well-being: the Sabbath belongs to God; it is one way, suited to human nature, of rendering glory and honor to the Almighty. The Church, from the time of the Apostles onwards, transferred the observance of this precept to the following day, Sunday--the Lord's Day--in celebration of the resurrection of Christ.
"Son of Man": the origin of the messianic meaning of this _expression is to be found particularly in the prophecy of Dan 7:13ff, where Daniel, in a prophetic vision, contemplates `one like the Son of Man' coming down on the clouds of Heaven, who even goes right up to God's throne and is given dominion and glory and royal power over all peoples and nations. This _expression appears 69 times in the Synoptic Gospels; Jesus prefers it to other ways of describing the Messiah--such as Son of David, Messiah, etc.--thereby avoiding the nationalistic overtones those expressions had in Jewish minds at the time (cf. "Introduction to the Gospel According to St. Mark", p. 62 above.]
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Old Calendar: St. Jerome Emiliani, confessor; St. Margaret of Antioch, virgin and martyr
________________
From: Matthew 12:1-8
The Question of the Sabbath
[1] At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck ears of grain and to eat. [2] But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath." [3] He said to them, "Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him: [4] how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? [5] Or have you not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless? [6] I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. [7] And if you had known what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless. [8] For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."
_____________________
Commentary:
2. "The Sabbath": this was the day the Jews set aside for worshipping God. God Himself, the originator of the Sabbath (Genesis 2:3), ordered the Jewish people to avoid certain kinds of work on this day (Exodus 20:8-11; 21:13; Deuteronomy 5:14) to leave them free to give more time to God. As time went by, the rabbis complicated this divine precept: by Jesus' time they had extended to 39 the list of kinds of forbidden work.
The Pharisees accuse Jesus' disciples of breaking the Sabbath. In the casuistry of the scribes and the Pharisees, plucking ears of corn was the same as harvesting, and crushing them was the same as milling--types of agricultural work forbidden on the Sabbath.
3-8. Jesus rebuts the Pharisees' accusation by four arguments--the example of David, that of the priests, a correct understanding of the mercy of God and Jesus' own authority over the Sabbath.
The first example which was quite familiar to the people, who were used to listening to the Bible being read, comes from 1 Samuel 21:2-7: David, in flight from the jealousy of King Saul, asks the priest of the shrine of Nob for food for his men; the priest gave them the only bread he had, the holy bread of the Presence; this was the twelve loaves which were placed each week on the golden altar of the sanctuary as a perpetual offering from the twelve tribes of Israel (Leviticus 24:5-9). The second example refers to the priestly ministry to perform the liturgy, priests had to do a number of things on the Sabbath but did not thereby break the law of Sabbath rest (cf. Numbers 28:9). On the other two arguments, see the notes on Matthew 9:13 and Mark 2:26-27, 28.
[The notes on Matthew 9:13 states:
13. Here Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6, keeping the hyperbole of the Semitic style. A more faithful translation would be: "I desire mercy MORE THAN sacrifice". It is not that our Lord does not want the sacrifices we offer Him: He is stressing that every sacrifice should come from the heart, for charity should imbue everything a Christian does--especially his worship of God (see 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Matthew 5:23-24).]
[The notes on Mark 2:26-27, 28 states:
6-27. The bread of the Presence consisted of twelve loaves or cakes placed each morning on the table in the sanctuary, as homage to the Lord from the twelve tribes of Israel (cf. Leviticus 24:5-9). The loaves withdrawn to make room for the fresh ones were reserved to the priests. Abiathar's action anticipates what Christ teaches here. Already in the Old Testament God had established a hierarchy in the precepts of the Law so that the lesser ones yielded to the main ones.
This explains why a ceremonial precept (such as the one we are discussing) should yield before a precept of the natural law. Similarly, the commandment to keep the Sabbath does not come before the duty to seek basic subsistence. Vatican II uses this passage of the Gospel to underline the value of the human person over and above economic and social development: "The social order and its development must constantly yield to the good of the person, since the order of things must be subordinate to the order of persons and not the other way around, as the Lord suggested when He said that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. The social order requires constant improvement: it must be founded in truth, built on justice, and enlivened by love" ("Gaudium Et Spes", 26).
Finally in this passage Christ teaches God's purpose in instituting the Sabbath: God established it for man's good, to help him rest and devote himself to Divine worship in joy and peace. The Pharisees, through their interpretation of the Law, had turned this day into a source of anguish and scruple due to all the various prescriptions and prohibitions they introduced.
By proclaiming Himself `Lord of the Sabbath', Jesus affirms His divinity and His universal authority. Because He is Lord he has the power to establish other laws, as Yahweh had in the Old Testament.
28. The Sabbath had been established not only for man's rest but also to give glory to God: that is the correct meaning of the _expression "the Sabbath was made for man." Jesus has every right to say He is Lord of the Sabbath, because He is God. Christ restores to the weekly day of rest its full, religious meaning: it is not just a matter of fulfilling a number of legal precepts or of concern for physical well-being: the Sabbath belongs to God; it is one way, suited to human nature, of rendering glory and honor to the Almighty. The Church, from the time of the Apostles onwards, transferred the observance of this precept to the following day, Sunday--the Lord's Day--in celebration of the resurrection of Christ.
"Son of Man": the origin of the messianic meaning of this _expression is to be found particularly in the prophecy of Dan 7:13ff, where Daniel, in a prophetic vision, contemplates `one like the Son of Man' coming down on the clouds of Heaven, who even goes right up to God's throne and is given dominion and glory and royal power over all peoples and nations. This _expression appears 69 times in the Synoptic Gospels; Jesus prefers it to other ways of describing the Messiah--such as Son of David, Messiah, etc.--thereby avoiding the nationalistic overtones those expressions had in Jewish minds at the time (cf. "Introduction to the Gospel According to St. Mark", p. 62 above.]
___________________________
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Reprinted with permission from Four Courts Press and Scepter Publishers, the U.S. publisher.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
The Priest at Prayer for July 20, Love of Hard Work
The Third Part - Vices and Virtues
The Love of Hard Work
Fourth Meditation - What should and should not be done
I. To do nothing at all is the first degree of idleness. To say Mass and recite the Divine Office hurriedly, just to get it done, and then to kill time (as though time was some sort of harmful and poisonous creature!) talking for hours on end, reading the newspaper (if I have sufficient energy to do so) - a parasite of a priest, a fruitless tree sucking the sap of other trees, marked out for those words of burning scorn and concentrated wrath from Christ's own lips:
Haven't I spent days, months, years with my talents, many or few, - five, three, or one - buried in the barren sands of a somnolent survival? Am I not to be numbered among those whom the Master of the vineyard greets in the evening with the sad reproof: "What do ye here all the day idle?"
II. Perhaps mere lack of activity is not in your line; on the contrary, you are naturally active, and neither your youth nor your impulsive imagination will allow a life of idleness; you feel the need to move around, to be always on the go, to keep your mind constantly nourished. Yes, but hasn't your mind up to now been a furnace feeding on fuel as quick-burning as it is useless - occupations that estrange you from yourself, that entertain, divert, and distract you? Aren't you like a traveller who is bored while the train swallows up mile after mile, and takes to smoking, reading a novel, looking out of the window, for no other purpose than to deaden the sensation of forced inactivity imposed by the long journey?
Distraction, diversion, entertainment, are all ways and means of escaping from the realities of the hour and from one's own personality. Is that the formula for the life of a priest? If it is, our Lord would certainly have to revise the schedule of the priestly vocation contained in these words:
Nevertheless, in preference to priestly duties and clerical activities, which seemed to clash with my worldly outlook, I may have chosen other occupations apparently more glamorous, remunerative, and honourable, almost to the point of cancelling out the former.
Have I unreservedly obeyed the injunction of the Apostle:
Resolutions
1. I shall positively keep away from any occupation which is at variance with, or less conformable to, Canon Law, if only because experience teaches that the priest
comes to grief therein every time. Moreover, I resolve not to attach more importance to any work, however pleasant and useful it may seem, than to my ministerial duties.
2. If I cannot conveniently forgo all relaxation, while keeping within the narrowest limits of what is permissible, I shall prefer those forms of recreation that have an educational value for me or which enable me to develop my priestly capabilities; such as travel or sight-seeing suitable to my state.
3. While I do not propose to deprive myself till the end of my days of games in every shape and form, I shall most definitely refrain from games of chance, a pitfall and a snare that has been the ruin of many a good priest; and so I shall say good-bye for ever to gambling-houses, casinos, etc.
4. Since card games can so easily captivate one and arouse one even to frenzy, if I do not decide to renounce them entirely, at least I promise to hold myself in check and to take them as a mere diversion; and, if I begin to find myself tied down to the card table because of an eager desire for monetary gain, or to revenge my piqued or wounded feelings, or for the sake of mere pleasure, I shall give up card games immediately.
I shall never allow the faithful to witness the degrading spectacle of, for instance, my spending the whole night at a game of cards; a thing so unworthy of the priest who has so much else to do, and who in the morning has to offer to God the Holy Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
The Love of Hard Work
Fourth Meditation - What should and should not be done
I. To do nothing at all is the first degree of idleness. To say Mass and recite the Divine Office hurriedly, just to get it done, and then to kill time (as though time was some sort of harmful and poisonous creature!) talking for hours on end, reading the newspaper (if I have sufficient energy to do so) - a parasite of a priest, a fruitless tree sucking the sap of other trees, marked out for those words of burning scorn and concentrated wrath from Christ's own lips:
"Why cumbereth it the ground?" (Luke xiii, 7)A miserable, aimless, dishonest existence!
Haven't I spent days, months, years with my talents, many or few, - five, three, or one - buried in the barren sands of a somnolent survival? Am I not to be numbered among those whom the Master of the vineyard greets in the evening with the sad reproof: "What do ye here all the day idle?"
II. Perhaps mere lack of activity is not in your line; on the contrary, you are naturally active, and neither your youth nor your impulsive imagination will allow a life of idleness; you feel the need to move around, to be always on the go, to keep your mind constantly nourished. Yes, but hasn't your mind up to now been a furnace feeding on fuel as quick-burning as it is useless - occupations that estrange you from yourself, that entertain, divert, and distract you? Aren't you like a traveller who is bored while the train swallows up mile after mile, and takes to smoking, reading a novel, looking out of the window, for no other purpose than to deaden the sensation of forced inactivity imposed by the long journey?
Distraction, diversion, entertainment, are all ways and means of escaping from the realities of the hour and from one's own personality. Is that the formula for the life of a priest? If it is, our Lord would certainly have to revise the schedule of the priestly vocation contained in these words:
I have chosen you, and have appointed you, that you should go and should bring forth fruit, and your fruit should remain. (John xv, 16)III. Perhaps my case is different again. I consider it improper for any steady person to fritter his life away in aimless activity; that might be all right for children or people in the green of youth, but not for mature age, and much less for a priest-presbyter: an old man. At the moment of my ordination, in the full vigour of my twenty-some-odd years, I said good-bye to my youth and I cannot go back to it without forfeiting the glorious title of priest.
Nevertheless, in preference to priestly duties and clerical activities, which seemed to clash with my worldly outlook, I may have chosen other occupations apparently more glamorous, remunerative, and honourable, almost to the point of cancelling out the former.
Have I unreservedly obeyed the injunction of the Apostle:
"Like a good soldier of Christ Jesus, take thy share of hardship.Can I swear to God and to my own conscience that I have observed the ruling of the Church - a ruling that has never changed from the beginning - about keeping away from certain secular employments?
"Thou art God's soldier, and the soldier on service, if he would please the captain who enlisted him, will refuse to be entangled in the business of daily life." (2 Tim. ii, 3-4)?
Resolutions
1. I shall positively keep away from any occupation which is at variance with, or less conformable to, Canon Law, if only because experience teaches that the priest
comes to grief therein every time. Moreover, I resolve not to attach more importance to any work, however pleasant and useful it may seem, than to my ministerial duties.
2. If I cannot conveniently forgo all relaxation, while keeping within the narrowest limits of what is permissible, I shall prefer those forms of recreation that have an educational value for me or which enable me to develop my priestly capabilities; such as travel or sight-seeing suitable to my state.
3. While I do not propose to deprive myself till the end of my days of games in every shape and form, I shall most definitely refrain from games of chance, a pitfall and a snare that has been the ruin of many a good priest; and so I shall say good-bye for ever to gambling-houses, casinos, etc.
4. Since card games can so easily captivate one and arouse one even to frenzy, if I do not decide to renounce them entirely, at least I promise to hold myself in check and to take them as a mere diversion; and, if I begin to find myself tied down to the card table because of an eager desire for monetary gain, or to revenge my piqued or wounded feelings, or for the sake of mere pleasure, I shall give up card games immediately.
I shall never allow the faithful to witness the degrading spectacle of, for instance, my spending the whole night at a game of cards; a thing so unworthy of the priest who has so much else to do, and who in the morning has to offer to God the Holy Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.
_________________________
Adapted from The Priest at Prayer
by Fr. Eugenio Escribano, C.M. (© 1954)
Translated by B.T. Buckley, C.M.
###
Please pray for our priests and pray for vocations to the priesthood!
Fr. Tom Euteneuer to Celebrate EWTN Masses
Fr Euteneuer, President of Human Life International, will be celebrating the televised Masses for EWTN every day this next week, from Sunday the 22nd of July through Saturday the 28th.
Note that Wednesday, July 25th will be the 39th anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae which will be the subject of Fr Euteneuer's homily that day.
Also, Tuesday, July 24th, will be the 19th anniversary of Father's priesthood and he will preach on the Holy Priesthood.
Note that Wednesday, July 25th will be the 39th anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae which will be the subject of Fr Euteneuer's homily that day.
Also, Tuesday, July 24th, will be the 19th anniversary of Father's priesthood and he will preach on the Holy Priesthood.
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