Sunday, March 30, 2014

MUST SEE: "Extraordinary Faith" series set to debut on EWTN (April 14th)


"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (March 30, 2014):
Extraordinary Faith Episode 1:
Mission San Juan Capistrano
To Debut on EWTN on April 14

EWTN has announced the debut of Extraordinary Faith, our locally-produced television series showcasing the beauties of Sacred Tradition and the Tridentine Mass. Episode 1 was filmed at the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano in California, located about one hour south of Los Angeles.

The oldest still-functioning Catholic church in California is the Mission’s Serra Chapel. The Serra Chapel also happens to be the site of one of the first Tridentine Masses to be established in North America after Vatican II in the wake of the 1984 Vatican indult, Quattuor Abhinc Annos, which re-permitted the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass worldwide if the local bishop approved.


As a point of interest, the Mission was made available for our use by its gracious pastor, Msgr. Art Holquin, who struck up a conversation with this author during a visit when he realized I was a member of the Windsor Tridentine Mass Community. Msgr. Holquin just happened to be an enthusiastic user of Michel Ozorak’s Chant Sheets and was interested in receiving some one-on-one training on how to celebrate a High Mass. A small world, indeed.

This episode also includes some background information about the series, as well as an interview with George Sarah, a Hollywood composer who was asked to become president of Una Voce Los Angeles after he organized a number of special high-profile Tridentine Masses in historic churches. Joy Lanfranchi of Una Voce Orange County discusses the annual Lenten Pilgrimage from St. Michael’s [Norbertine] Abbey to the Mission, culminating, not surprisingly, with a Latin Mass.


Episode 1 of Extraordinary Faith – Mission San Juan Capistrano – will be televised on EWTN beginning Monday, April 14, 2014 at 4:30 AM Eastern time. The episode will be re-run on Good Friday, April 18, 2014 at 2:00 AM Eastern time. The network wanted to run the episode during Holy Week because of the Lenten Pilgrimage segment. EWTN is considering future airings of Episode 1 at more convenient times of the day.

DVD copies of this and every episode of Extraordinary Faith will be available for sale from EWTN’s Religious Catalog. Our contract with EWTN also permits us to post each episode on our web site, one month after it debuts on the network. Beginning Wednesday, May 14, 2014, Episode 1 will be available for viewing on www.extraordinaryfaith.tv. Please note that the site is not yet up, but will go live no later than Tuesday, April 8. At that time, you will be able to view a trailer introducing the series on the site.

Web Site and Training Apostolate

Speaking of the web site, some credit is appropriate: Accomplished Australian Catholic web developer Michael Peterson is designing a comprehensive web presence for Extraordinary Faith. The site will offer a spectrum of resources for those new to the Latin Mass. It will include a section offering on-site training to priests and musicians who are interested in learning the Tridentine Mass. We will also have a Facebook page where people can have their questions about the Latin Mass answered in a courteous manner.

Possible Debut Party

Charlie and Ron Parent have suggested a possible debut party for Extraordinary Faith. There will be a private showing of Episode 1, snacks will be served, and some inside stories will be shared. If you would be interested in attending, please see Ron, Charlie, Sharon Moody, or Diane Begin, or e-mail the address at the bottom of this page. Please indicate what day(s) of the week work best for you.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 03/31 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria of Lent)
  • Tue. 04/01 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (Feria of Lent)
  • Fri. 04/04 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria of Lent) – First Friday
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit) and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for March 30, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]
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Saturday, March 29, 2014


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
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Sunday, March 23, 2014

Tridentine Masses in the Metro Detroit area coming this week


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
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The Rosary in Latin


"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (March 23, 2014):
In his Apostolic Exhortation, Sacraméntum Caritátis, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI instructed that “the better-known prayers of the Church’s tradition should be recited in Latin.” An excellent way to obey this directive is to learn to pray the Holy Rosary in Latin. Here are the prayers:

Sign of the Cross: In nómine Patris, et Fílii, et Spíritus Sancti. Amen.

Apostles’ Creed: Credo in Deum, Patrem omnipoténtem, Creatórem cæli et terræ. Et in Jesum Christum, Fílium ejus unícum, Dóminum nostrum: qui concéptus est de Spíritu Sancto, natus ex María Vírgine, passus sub Póntio Piláto, crucifíxus, mórtuus, et sepúltus: descéndit ad ínferos: tértia die resurréxit a mórtuis: ascéndit ad cælos: sedet ad déxteram Dei Patris omnipoténtis: inde ventúrus est judicáre vivos et mórtuos. Credo in Spíritum Sanctum, sanctam Ecclésiam cathólicam, Sanctórum communiónem, remissiónem peccatórum, carnis resurrectiónem, vitam ætérnam. Amen.

Our Father: Pater noster, qui es in cælis, sanctificétur nomen tuum. Advéniat regnum tuum. Fiat volúntas tua, sicut in cælo et in terra. Panem nostrum quotidiánum da nobis hodie, et dimítte nobis débita nostra, sicut et nos dimíttimus debitóribus nostris. Et ne nos indúcas in tentatiónem: sed líbera nos a malo. Amen.

Hail Mary: Ave María, grátia plena, Dóminus técum; benedícta tu in muliéribus, et benedíctus fructus ventris tui, Jesus. Sancta María, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatóribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostræ. Amen.

Glory Be: Glória Patri, et Fílio, et Spirítui Sancto. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper: et in saécula sæculórum. Amen.

Fatima Prayer: Dómine Jesu, dimítte nobis debíta nostra, salva nos ab igne infériori, perduc in cælum omnes ánimas, præsértim eas, quæ misericórdiæ tuæ máxime índigent.

Hail, Holy Queen: Salve Regína, mater misericórdiæ: vita, dulcédo, et spes nostra, salve. Ad te clamámus, éxsules fílii Hevæ. Ad te suspirámus, geméntes et flentes in hac lacrimárum valle. Eja ergo, Advocáta nostra, illos tuos misericórdes óculos ad nos convérte. Et Jesum, benedíctum fructum ventris tui, nobis post hoc exsílium osténde. O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo María.

℣. Ora pro nobis sancta Dei Génitrix.
℟. Ut digni efficiámur promissiónibus Christi.

Concluding Prayer: Orémus: Deus, cujus Unigénitus per vitam, mortem et resurrectiónem suam nobis salútis ætérnæ praémia comparávit: concéde, quaésumus: ut hæc mystéria sacratíssimo beátæ Maríæ Vírginis Rosário recoléntes, et imitémur quod cóntinent, et quod promíttunt, assequámur. Per eúmdem Christum Dóminum nostrum. Amen.

For the Holy Father’s Intentions: Ad mentem Summi Pontíficis:

Mystéria Gaudiósa (The Joyful Mysteries)

Prímum Mystérium Gaudiósum: Annuntiátio
Secúndum Mystérium Gaudiósum: Visitátio
Tértium Mystérium Gaudiósum: Natívitas Dómini nostri Jesu Christi
Quartum Mystérium Gaudiósum: Præsentátio Púeri Jesu in Templo
Quintum Mystérium Gaudiósum: Invéntio Púeri Jesu in Templo

Mystéria Dolorósa (The Sorrowful Mysteries)

Prímum Mystérium Dolorósum: Agónia in Horto
Secúndum Mystérium Dolorósum: Flagellátio
Tértium Mystérium Dolorósum: Coronátio spinis
Quartum Mystérium Dolorósum: Bajulátio Crucis
Quintum Mystérium Dolorósum: Crucifíxio et Mors Dómini nostri Jesu Christi

Mystéria Gloriósa (The Glorious Mysteries)

Prímum Mystérium Gloriósum: Resurréctio
Secúndum Mystérium Gloriósum: Ascénsio
Tértium Mystérium Gloriósum: Descénsus Spíritus Sancti
Quartum Mystérium Gloriósum: Assúmptio
Quintum Mystérium Gloriósum: Coronátio Beátæ Maríæ Vírginis in Cælis

Mystéria Luminósa (The Luminous Mysteries)

Prímum Mystérium Luminósum: Baptísma Dómini nostri Jesu Christi apud Jordánem
Secúndum Mystérium Luminósum: Núptiæ Canénses
Tértium Mystérium Luminósum: Proclamátio Regni Dei
Quartum Mystérium Luminósum: Transfigurátio
Quintum Mystérium Luminósum: Institútio Eucharístiæ

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 03/24 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria of Lent)
  • Tue. 03/25 7:00 PM: High Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary) – Mass will be held in the Rosary Chapel this Tuesday only
  • Fri. 03/28 7:30 PM: High Mass at Resurrection Parish, Lansing (Feria of Lent) – Dinner for young adults age 18-35 follows Mass, organized by Juventútem Michigan
  • Sun. 03/30 12:00 Noon: High Mass at Our Lady of the Scapular, Wyandotte (Fourth Sunday of Lent – Lætáre Sunday) - Eucharistic Exposition for the closing of the parish’s Forty Hours Devotion follows Holy Mass
  • Sun. 03/30 12:30 PM: High Mass at Immaculate Conception, Lapeer (Fourth Sunday of Lent – Lætáre Sunday)
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit) and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for March 23, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]
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Friday, March 21, 2014

Honest atheist

In this review of James Hannam's God's Philosophers: How the Medieval World Laid the Foundations of Modern Science, atheist Tim O'Neill writes (Armarium Magnum, October 17, 2009):
One of the occupational hazards of being an atheist and secular humanist who has the lack of common sense to hang around on atheist discussion boards is to encounter a staggering level of historical illiteracy. I like to console myself that many of the people on such boards have come to their atheism via the study of science and so, even if they are quite learned in things like geology and biology, usually have a grasp of history stunted at about high school level. I generally do this because the alternative is to admit that the average person's grasp of history and how history is studied is so utterly feeble as to be totally depressing.

So, alongside the regular airings of the hoary old myth that the Bible was collated at the Council of Nicea, the tedious internet-based "Jesus never existed!" nonsense or otherwise intelligent people spouting pseudo historical garbage that would make even Dan Brown snort in derision, the myth that the Catholic Church caused the Dark Ages and the Medieval Period was a scientific wasteland is regularly wheeled, creaking, into the sunlight for another trundle around the arena.
Related
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Sunday, March 16, 2014

Tridentine Masses in the Metro Detroit area coming this week


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
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Extraordinary Community News



"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (March 16, 2014):

Graces to be Gained from Holy Mass
Despite its modest name, “A Blog for Dallas Area Catholics” (http://veneremurcernui.wordpress.com) offers meaty material for readers, no matter where they reside. One recent post, a portion of which is reprinted below, outlines some of the graces to be gained by assisting at Holy Mass. This list was excerpted from the book, Explanation of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by Fr. Martin von Cochem, a Capuchin priest who lived from 1625-1712.

  • For thy salvation God the Father sends His beloved Son down from Heaven
  • For thy salvation the Holy Spirit changes bread and wine into the True Body and Blood of Christ
  • For thy sake the Son of God comes down from Heaven, and conceals Himself under the form of the Sacred Host
  • He even abases Himself to such an extent as to be present in the minutest particle of the Sacred Host
  • For thy salvation He renews the saving mystery of the Incarnation
  • For thee Christ offers Himself as a true burnt-offering, and renders to the Godhead the supreme honor which is its due
  • By offering this act of worship to God thou dost make reparation for the glory which thou hast failed to give Him
  • For thee Christ offers Himself to God as a Sacrifice of praise, thus atoning for thy omissions in praising His Holy Name.
  • By offering to God this oblation which Christ offers thou givest Him greater praise than do the holy angels
  • By offering to God Christ’s act of thanksgiving thou dost make ample acknowledgement of all the benefits He has bestowed on thee
  • For thee Christ offers Himself as the all-powerful Victim, reconciling thee to the God Whom thou has offended
  • He pardons thee all thy venial sins, provided thou art firmly resolved to forsake them
  • He offers Himself as a victim to make satisfaction for a part at least of thy debts and transgressions
  • Each time thou hearest Mass thou canst do more to pay the penalty due to thy sins than by the severest work of penance
  • For the sake of this propitiatory victim the petitions proffered during Mass will be granted far sooner than those that are proffered at other times
  • Never canst thou pray so well as whilst present at Mass
  • This is so because Christ unites His prayers to thine, and offers them to His Heavenly Father
  • He acquaints Him with thy needs and the dangers to which thou art exposed, and makes thy eternal salvation His particular concern
  • By offering this Holy Sacrifice thou dost present to the Blessed Trinity the most acceptable of all oblations, greater than all things in Heaven and earth
  • By this Sacrifice thou dost honor God as He alone is worthy to be honored
  • By this Sacrifice thou dost give infinite satisfaction to the Most Holy Trinity
  • When thou hearest Mass aright, thou dost [...] perform an act of highest worship
  • When thou dost bow down before the Sacred Host and the Sacred Chalice, thou dost perform a supreme act of adoration
  • For each time that thou dost gaze reverently upon the Sacred Host thou wilt receive a recompense in Heaven
  • Each time thou dost smite thy breast with compunction some of thy sins are remitted to thee
  • If thou hearest Mass in a state of mortal sin, God offers thee the Grace of conversion
  • Thou needest not fear a long and terrible Purgatory if thou hast already to a great extent atoned for thy sins by frequently assisting at Holy Mass
  • One Mass devoutly heard will do more to mitigate the pains of Purgatory than any act of penance, however difficult the performance
  • One Mass in thy lifetime will be of greater service to thee than many said for thee after death
  • Thou wilt attain a higher place in Heaven, which will be thine for all eternity
  • And if it is not within thy power to have Mass said for thy departed friends thou canst by devout assistance at the Holy Sacrifice release them from the tormenting flames.

“If Christians only knew how to profit by Holy Mass, they might acquire greater riches than are to be found in all the things God has created. We have indeed a precious storehouse in the Mass. Happy he who can earn treasures so great at the cost of so little labor! Who would willingly miss Mass? Who would not delight in hearing it? Let us resolve never to lose an opportunity of hearing Mass, provided the duties of our state of life do not prevent us from doing so.

To omit hearing Mass daily merely from carelessness or indolence would be a proof that we were either ignorant of, or indifferent to, the divine treasures it contains. God grant that those who read this book may in future appreciate more fully this pearl of great price, value it more highly, seek it more diligently!”

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 03/17 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria of Lent)
  • Tue. 03/18 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (Feria of Lent)
  • Wed. 03/19 6:00 PM: High Mass at St. Joseph (St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary) – Dinner for young adults age 18-35 follows Mass, organized by Juventútem Michigan
  • Sat. 03/22 8:00 AM: Low Mass at Our Lady of the Scapular, Wyandotte (Feria of Lent)
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit) and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for March 16, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]
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Sunday, March 09, 2014

Extraordinary Community News


"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (March 9, 2014):
Archbishop Vigneron Confers the Sacrament of Confirmation According to the Extraordinary Form

For the second time since becoming Archbishop of Detroit in 2009, Archbishop Allen Vigneron has administered the Sacrament of Confirmation according to the Tridentine formula. Last Sunday, March 2, His Excellency attended the weekly Tridentine Mass at St. Edward on the Lake Parish in Lakeport, north of Port Huron. Fr. Lee Acervo, pastor of St. Edward, was the celebrant of the Mass. Archbishop Vigneron preached the homily, then after Mass confirmed five young souls. He was assisted at the altar by his secretary, Fr. Stephen Pullis.


Why Evangelize?

Some food for thought was recently posted by Professor Peter Kwasniewski of Wyoming Catholic College on The New Liturgical Movement blog: “...preaching the Good News to unbelievers is effective only to the extent that there is something profoundly and transcendently good awaiting them when they arrive at church.” Those of us who embrace traditional liturgy certainly believe that the Extraordinary Form offers a transcending worship experience, but are we using that conviction to attract others to the Tridentine Mass, non-Catholics in particular?

The Future of the Reform of the Reform Movement

In recent weeks, a flurry of articles penned by major figures on the liturgical scene have raised the question of whether there is a future for the Reform of the Reform. The ROTR is the movement to add solemnity to the Ordinary Form by modifying the Mass to incorporate elements of the Tridentine Mass into it. Which elements to include, of course, is a matter of debate.

What distinguishes the current round of discussions from previous ones is that some of the movement’s most ardent advocates over the past decade are now concluding that the ROTR may not be realistic. ROTR proponents were encouraged by Pope Emeritus Benedict’s writings and actions, but now that we have a new Holy Father whose primary interests are not in the realm of liturgy, it is reasonable to ask if reforming the liturgy is possible at the present time.

One or two voices are raising the question of whether the 1965 Missal, the interim missal which eliminated the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, the Last Gospel, and a few other elements of the Tridentine Mass, while also permitting a limited use of the vernacular, might represent a better starting point for a reformed liturgy. Whether or not this is a meritorious approach, it, too, would require endorsement of the reigning Holy Father, thus it is not a very realistic option right now.

All parties seem to agree that the most practical present path is to encourage reverent celebrations of the Ordinary Form using the currently in-force missal, employing traditional options such as the Aspérges, the Roman Canon, ad oriéntem celebration, Latin, and Gregorian Chant. What is most significant is that so many former ROTR proponents have become convinced that the best way to promote solemn liturgy in the Church going forward is to encourage more frequent celebrations of the Tridentine Mass.

1974 Graduále Románum Placed On-Line

Speaking of the solemn celebration of the Ordinary Form, there is a news item that warrants attention, even though it does not pertain to the Extraordinary Form:

Corpus Christi Watershed is an organization well-known for publishing numerous resources for Catholic musicians. From hymnals and Gregorian Chant sheet music for the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms, to slickly-produced videos depicting the Church Music Association of America’s Colloquia, CCW, headed by composer Jeff Ostrowski, has done a tremendous amount of good. Most of their offerings are available at no charge on their web site.

This past month, CCW has once again done a great service to the sacralization of the Liturgy by scanning in and posting on its web site the main book for cantors and choirs to use when chanting the Latin Propers for the Ordinary Form: the Graduále Románum, published in 1974 by the Monks of Solesmes, France. Until now, this edition of the Graduále has been a fairly difficult book to obtain. The first step in making it possible for choirs to sing the Proper Chants of the Ordinary Form of Holy Mass is to make the main book of chants easily accessible, and this has now been done.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 03/10 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria of Lent)
  • Tue. 03/11 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (Feria of Lent)
  • Sat. 03/15 8:00 AM: Low Mass at Our Lady of the Scapular, Wyandotte (Ember Day of Lent)
  • Sun. 03/16 12:00 Noon: High Mass at St. Albertus (Second Sunday of Lent)
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit) and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for March 9, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]
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Saturday, March 08, 2014

Tridentine Masses coming this week in the greater Detroit area


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
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Tuesday, March 04, 2014

Into the long quiet recollections of Lent


Our posts at Musings will be on a reduced schedule during the forty days of Lent. We will continue to post regular features, such as Mass listings and Extraordinary Community News, but intend to absent ourselves from ongoing debates and controversies. Lent has always been one of our favorite liturgical seasons, and we intend to make the most of it. Let us hold one another in prayer. Prayer is not a sling shot or a BB gun. Prayer is our nuclear arsenal. We can only avail ourselves of it, however, as we are only too painfully aware, through quiet, humble recollection, penance, and prayer.

Kind regards in our Lord and Lady, -- PP

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Evolution: the debate that will not die

Albert Mohler, "Bill Nye's Reasonable Man -- The Central Worldview Clash of the Ham-Nye Debate" (February 5, 2014):
Last night’s debate between Bill Nye and Ken Ham attracted a huge international audience and no shortage of controversy—even before it began. Bill Nye, whose main media presence is as “The Science Guy,” and Ken Ham, co-founder of Answers in Genesis and founder of the Creation Museum, squared off in a true debate over one of the most important questions that the human mind can contemplate. That is no small achievement....

The initial controversy about the debate centered in criticism of Bill Nye for even accepting the invitation. Many evolutionary scientists, such as Richard Dawkins and Jerry Coyne, refuse to debate the issue, believing that any public debate offers legitimacy to those who deny evolution. Nye was criticized by many leading evolutionists, who argued publicly that nothing good could come of the debate....

... A protege of the late Carl Sagan and the current CEO of the Planetary Society, Nye was in full form last night, wearing his customary bow-tie, and immaculately dressed in a very expensive suit....

Ken Ham is a veteran debater on the issue of origins, and he was clearly prepared for the debate. Ham’s arguments were tight and focused, and his demeanor was uniformly calm and professional....

... The clash of ultimate worldview questions was vividly displayed for all to see. Read more >>
Then there are the following comments from Frank Sheed's Genesis Regained from more than four decades ago, which seemed so tame back then but now ly in the face of the far more urgent rumblings of the Zeitgeist:
Those scientists who work on human origins, most of them at least, find it difficult to see the human race as all descended from one couple. Men trained in palaeontology, anthropology, genetics, are practically unanimous in feeling that the frontier between animal and man could not have been crossed by one single individual or pair from whom all the existent races of men have descended.... For those not trained in any of these fields such unanimity must carry great weight.

But can we simply accept it? We lend them our ears, we cannot give them our minds – if for no other reason than they cannot give us theirs. They cannot give us the years of experience.... which have strengthened and enriched their minds, the habits grown instinctive, the reactions grown spontaneous. We can but weigh as much as they can convey to us… We can no more simply swallow scientists than we can swallow historians or theologians.

What we are hearing is the scientific orthodoxy of today, but scientific orthodoxies, like religious, have been known to change....

About the cradle of every religion, said Thomas Huxley, lie extinguished theologians like “the strangled snakes beside that of Hercules.” Surely extinguished scientists are as frequent....

[They tell us] to allow the descent of all men from one pair would go against all [proper scientific] mental habits. But belief in God, in immortality, in God-made-man are not among those habits; we cannot be certain of the judgments, even the unanimous judgments, of minds which omit such habits ....

A geneticist tells us that the emergence of a single pair is “infinitely improbable”; if we have followed his arguments we may agree, but with a proviso “unless God intervenes.” Is God’s intervention improbable? Our geneticist may ... well be irritated, even if he happens to be a Christian: God is not part of his scientific habit. To his scientific formation, so much has been contributed by the insights of men who regard God as irrelevant.... (p. viii).
[Hat tip to JM]
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Women Religious and the 'New' Cosmology

Ann Carey, "Women Religious and the New Cosmology" (National Catholic Register, February 18, 2014):
New-Age spirituality is often thought of as a fad from the 1960s and 1970s that went out of vogue long ago. However, among some Catholics, including some members of religious orders, New-Age spirituality still is being promulgated — and its proponents are becoming more overtly critical of Catholic doctrine....

In 2003, the Pontifical Councils for Culture and Interreligious Dialogue issued the instruction "Jesus Christ, the Bearer of the Water of Life: A Christian Reflection on the ‘New Age,’" calling New-Age spirituality "heterodox," distorting God’s word and replacing it with purely human words.

In spite of this clear instruction, a few New-Age concepts still are promoted vigorously in some Catholic circles. One of these concepts, called "the new cosmology," is being used to characterize Catholic doctrine as flawed because it allegedly is based on outmoded science. Variations of the new cosmology challenge belief in settled tenets of the Catholic faith, including the very nature of the Trinitarian God and the role of Jesus as Redeemer.

New cosmology also dismisses hierarchal order as well as so-called "dualisms" (defined as absolute truths). It holds that God, as a sort of "Earth Spirit," permeates every bit of matter and is part of the evolving universe, a theory called panentheism.

As Michael Morwood explains in his book It’s Time: Challenges to the Doctrine of the Faith (self-published under Kelmor Publishing, 2013): "The thesis of this book is that much of Catholic doctrine, specifically defined dogma about God, Jesus and Mary, being safeguarded and promoted by the CDF [Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith] on behalf of the Roman Catholic Church, has outlived its use-by date. … There are undeniable implications for and challenges to traditional doctrine when the notion of God as a heavenly deity is replaced by an understanding that the word ‘God’ points to a Mystery that permeates everything that exists" (pp. 3-4).

According to Morwood’s website, he resigned from the priesthood and his religious order after the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the hierarchy in his native Australia silenced him because of errors in two of his earlier books. Yet Morwood’s website shows that he speaks regularly at retreat houses in this country that are sponsored by Catholic sisters, and his book seems to be circulating within some religious orders....

The new cosmology also was cited as one of the problems found by the CDF doctrinal assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR).

Archbishop Leonard Blair of Hartford, Conn., who, as bishop of Toledo, Ohio, had conducted the assessment, explained in an open letter published in the June 8, 2012, Toledo diocesan paper: "LCWR speakers also explore themes like global spirituality, the new cosmology, earth-justice and eco-feminism in ways that are frequently ambiguous, dubious or even erroneous with respect to Christian faith."

Nevertheless, just two months after that letter, the LCWR annual assembly in August welcomed as its keynote speaker Barbara Marx Hubbard, a proponent of the new cosmology.

In 2013, Franciscan Sister Ilia Delio likewise gave a keynote on the new cosmology at the LCWR assembly. DVDs were made of both keynotes and sold by the LCWR.

... the winter 2014 issue of the LCWR Occasional Papers is dedicated to the new cosmology, with several of the authors referencing both Sister Ilia and Barbara Marx Hubbard. Read more >>
[Hat tip to Sir A.S.]
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"Thomas Merton: Memories of a Brother Monk"


Fr. John Eudes Bamberger, OCSO is a Trappist abbot at Genesee NY. He has just posted an article (11 page typescript), "Thomas Merton: Memories of a Brother Monk." As a psychiatrist he sheds considerable light on Merton's absent father and his affair with a Louisville nurse. But he rescues Merton by describing his true devotion to his abbot of 20 years, Dom James.

[Hat tip to Sir A.S.]
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Has Michael Voris finally "crossed the line"?

So claims Louis Verrecchio, the Al Pacino of la cosa nostra tradizione cattolica, in "The Gore-Tex" (Harvesting the Fruit of Vatican II, March 1, 2014), though perhaps in a direction most would not have expected: C'mon Michael, I'll make you an offer you can't refuse ...

CMTV Manifestogate from Louie Verrecchio on Vimeo.


[Advisory & disclaimer: Rules ## 7-9: views expressed in linked posts do not necessarily reflect those of the site editor.]
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Sunday, March 02, 2014

Cardinal Kasper on marriage (re: October 2014 Synod of Bishops)

A response to Cardinal Kasper's proposals by Prof. Roberto de Mattei, trans. Francesca Romana (Il Foglio, March 1, 2014, via Rorate Caeli, March 2, 1014).

Then there's Fr. Z's observation, "There's marriage and then there's marriage*" (March 1, 2014), quoting a CNS source:
"[Cardinal Kasper] allowed for the possibility that in very specific cases the church could tolerate, though not accept, a second union.”
Say what? "Tolerate though not accept"? Don't you just love this clarity? Must be a real ecumenical help to folks contemplating conversion to the Holy Catholic Faith.

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Tridentine Masses Coming this week in the Metro Detroit Area


Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
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Extraordinary Community News


"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"

Tridentine Community News (March 2, 2014):
Regína Magazine

It’s always refreshing to learn of a new publication serving the Latin Mass world. Quietly building a reputation over the past two years is Regína Magazine, a color periodical published six times per year.

Regína advocates Catholic traditions of all sorts, with a clear emphasis on the Tridentine Mass. Articles cover a broad spectrum of topics from vocations, to saints’ biographies, to pilgrimages and travel, to Catholic dating.

Regína has a professional appearance, with first-class page layout and graphic design. The publication embraces beauty; the photography draws the reader in. It would be an eye-catcher if it were published as a glossy magazine, but it isn’t. You can only read it on their web site, www.reginamag.com, where you can also subscribe – for free – to be notified of new issues via e-mail.

Votive Masses

On Feasts or Ferias of the Fourth Class, the celebrant has the choice of saying one of the following Masses:
  1. The Mass of the specified (Fourth Class) Saint
  2. The Ferial Mass, which is the Mass of the preceding Sunday
  3. The Daily Mass for the Dead (the memorial Requiem Mass)
  4. The Mass of any Saint or of certain titled Feasts, even though they are normally assigned another date in the Calendar. Examples of Votive Masses for titled Feasts include Holy Name, Immaculate Heart of Mary, and Immaculate Conception. It is not permissible to have a Votive Mass of the Nativity, of Easter, or of Pentecost, as those Feasts are highly tied to the Liturgical Year.
  5. One of the Votive Masses, the list of which is below:
    - Votive Mass of Jesus Christ the High Priest (traditionally on First Thursdays)
    - Votive Mass of the Most Holy Trinity (traditionally on Mondays)
    - Votive Mass of the Holy Angels (traditionally on Tuesdays)
    - Votive Mass of St. Joseph (traditionally on Wednesdays)
    - Votive Mass of Ss. Peter & Paul the Apostles (traditionally on Wednesdays)
    - Votive Mass of All Holy Apostles (traditionally on Wednesdays)
    - Votive Mass of the Holy Ghost (traditionally on Thursdays)
    - Votive Mass for Obtaining the Grace of the Holy Ghost
    - Votive Mass of the Most Blessed Sacrament (traditionally on Thursdays)
    - Votive Mass of the Holy Cross (traditionally on Fridays)
    - Votive Mass of the Passion of Our Lord (traditionally on Fridays)
    - Votive Mass of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (traditionally on First Fridays)
    - Votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary (traditionally on Saturdays)
    - Votive Mass for the Election of a Pope (when appropriate)
    - Votive Mass on the Anniversary of Election or Coronation of a Pope
    - Votive Mass on the Anniversary of Consecration of a Bishop
    - Votive Mass for the 25th or 50th Anniversary of Marriage
    - Votive Masses (multiple forms) for the Grant and Preservation of Ecclesiastical and Religious Vocations
    - Votive Mass for the Sick
    - Votive Mass for the Propagation of the Faith
    - Votive Mass for the Defense of the Church
    - Votive Mass for the Unity of the Church
    - Votive Mass in Time of War
    - Votive Mass for Peace
    - Votive Mass in Time of Pestilence
    - Votive Mass of Thanksgiving
    - Votive Mass for the Forgiveness of Sins
    - Votive Mass for Pilgrims and Travelers
    - Votive Mass for Any Necessity
    - Votive Mass for the Grace of a Happy Death
Indulgenced Prayer for the Pope

A reader suggested that we pray for our Holy Father during these important days of reform of the Vatican Curia. One of the best ways to do so is to offer the prayer the Church has designated for this purpose, the Prayer for the Pope, which has been enriched with a Partial Indulgence:
℣. Orémus pro Pontífice nostro Francísco.
℟. Dóminus consérvet eum, et vivíficet eum, et beátum fáciat eum in terra, et non tradat eum in ánimam inimicórum ejus.

℣. Let us pray for our Sovereign Pontiff Francis.
℟. The Lord preserve him and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not to the will of his enemies.
Tridentine Masses This Coming Week
  • Mon. 03/03 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Feria)
  • Tue. 03/04 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Benedict/Assumption-Windsor (St. Casimir, Confessor)
  • Wed. 03/05 7:00 PM: High Mass at St. Joseph (Ash Wednesday)
  • Fri. 03/07 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Joseph (Friday After Ash Wednesday) – First Friday
[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit) and Assumption (Windsor) bulletin inserts for March 2, 2014. Hat tip to A.B., author of the column.]
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Saturday, March 01, 2014

Seminary professor asks: Is there really a priest shortage in Detroit?

Mike McCallion, who holds the Rev. William Cunningham Chair in Catholic Social Analysis at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, asks: "Is There Really a Priest Shortage in the Archdiocese of Detroit? (AOD)" (The Catholic Conversation, University of Notre Dame, February 17, 2014):
I think there is a common misconception in the Archdiocese of Detroit that there is a priest shortage! When I compare the number of priests to the number of parishes in the Archdiocese, it seems clear to me that there is not a priest shortage. If I am right, sociologists would call “the priest shortage” a mythic fact, myth in the sense of statistically not true. Let me explain.....

... First of all, with 588 priests, the AOD could assign 2 priests to every parish with some to spare. So, who are these 329 non-parish priests? Well, 131 of these priests are retired, which leaves 198 others in ministries that supposedly make these priests unavailable for parish work. This total includes bishops, those engaged in provincial work, campus ministers, chaplains, faculty/teachers, those in central service, etc. Now, if we examine more closely the 198 priests who are not retired, 143 are religious and 55 are diocesan. Of the 143 religious priests there are 64 who are 70 years of age or younger (average age = 56), and 49 of the 55 diocesan priests are 70 years of age or younger (average age = 55); leaving a total of 113 priests who could possibly be pastors.

So, there are 457 active priests (259 in parishes and 198 in other roles), raising the question that if there are only 237 parishes, then what are the other 198 or, more realistically, the other 113 (non-parish) priests doing that precludes them from being a pastor? Granted, I am not privy to whether these 113 priests are equipped for parish ministry, but it seems to me that probably most of them are. Obviously, they are doing something other than being pastors/associate pastors. All things being equal, therefore, I argue the AOD faces a priest distribution problem rather than a priest shortage problem.

I also conclude, all things being equal, that it appears that parishes are not a top priority, if my figures are correct. Why? Because otherwise the AOD would not be closing/clustering/merging parishes based on the unavailability of priests (which has not always been the only reason but often the predominant one).

... The raising of consciousness [about this] is particularly important because as Mike Vlasic (Chair of the restructuring committee for the AOD in 2009) stated at the AOD Central Services day in September 2009, and to which everyone appeared to agree, the health of AOD parishes determines the health of the AOD. If that is true, then it seems to me that parishes should be the top priority in terms of priest assignments and not something else.

Finally, now that the AOD has only 237 parishes today compared to 313 in 2000, with more closings anticipated; it appears that the numbers of priests are aplenty. Then again, I could be missing something in this analysis. If so, please enlighten me. Otherwise, I agree with the USCCB, we should stop using the term “priest shortage” in that it seems to be more of a priest distribution problem than a numbers problem.
It seems, then, that in addition to stressing the top priority of parish needs, Dr. McCallion is asking a two-fold question: Does it make sense to talk about a "shortage" of priests (1) if the problem is actually one of "distribution" rather than "shortage," and (2) if the current rate of parish closings is keeping pace with the pool of available active priests? Interesting question.
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