Introibo ad altare Dei

A holier-than-thou attitude convinces no one

2012-02-17T00:01:00.000Z

Last Friday I wrote about the actions taken by theEnglish Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham against a paedophile priest. Thecrimes of such people plumb the depths of wickedness because they are anaffront to what is still innocent in humanity and for the continuing effectsthat will remain in the adult whom the child will become. The attack on suchinnocence is also a direct attack on God because is its origin. When theattacker is a priest, who is called and enabled to act on behalf of Christ, sacrilegemultiplies the offence.

The Catholic Church was founded by Christ and is theprincipal means by which humanity is reconciled to God yet she has often beenbesmirched with the gross sinfulness of her priests and bishops. The mostobvious examples are the way in which indulgences were soldand the sordid lives of some of the late mediaeval Popes. Is this a cause ofprofound regret? – Yes. A cause for repentance? – Yes. Is it a cause of despairin the Church? – No. If the Church is conceived as a bunch holier-than-thoucharacters who regard themselves as perfected saints then any fall from thisexalted perch proves them to be hypocrites. However, the Church makes no suchclaim. She is made up of a group of sinners. There are two differences betweenChurch members and non-Church members, neither of which make any claims toautomatic holiness. The first difference is that faithful Christians explicitlyrecognize their sinfulness and their need to change.The second difference is that God provides the means by which we can, with hishelp, effect this change. If we are successful in changing it is down to God.If we fail, or don’t even seriously try, it is down to us.

Unfortunately, it is part of the very texture ofChristianity that following the path of change and reconciliation is almostalways accompanied by difficulties, mishaps and various degrees of suffering.One of the most acute causes of such suffering is when other Christians, fortheir own selfish reasons, cause problems for their fellow-Christians ratherthan supporting them - crimes against innocent humanity come at the top of thelist. When Catholics are vilified by the public, and the Press, for actions ofcertain priests and bishops this is clearly unfair to the majority of Catholicswho are as horrified as their accusers. But our response should not be that ofpride: ‘we are not like these evil priests’. Of course, we need to care for thevictims and we need to show that we care by our actions. But we should notdefend ourselves by claiming superior holiness to these particular sinners orto the secular world. We should return to the thought that we are allsinners and we all suffer from our own sins and thoseof others. Only when we acknowledge that can we begin to put things right by ourown commitment to seek holiness by allowing God to pluck out our own sins.Just as Christ suffered because of the sins of others so will we. Our imagewith the outside world may be toxic, and we mustlive with that, but the reality of grace brought to us by the Holy Spirit isour true consolation.

Archbishop Nichols on the diplomatic connections between the UK and the Vatican

2012-02-16T05:30:00.000Z

Westminster Catholic Cathedral

The President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, Archbishop Vincent Nichols, has released a statement on his visit to the Holy See, accompanying a government delegation, to mark the 30th anniversary of full diplomatic relations:

"It has been my privilege to accompany the delegation from Her Majesty’s Government to the Holy See, following the visit of Pope Benedict to the UK and marking the 30th anniversary of full diplomatic relations.

"I thank Baroness Warsi for her leadership of this delegation and for her address, calling on people of religious belief to be confident in expressing it and urging public discourse and institutions to be open to the positive contributions made by faith to the common good.

"This visit emphasises again the crucial contribution made by the Catholic Church throughout the world in the fight against poverty and hunger, against maternal and infant deaths and in the provision of education and health. This work is always based on the God-given dignity of every person and the respect for human life from its beginnings to its natural end.

"The delegation was received with warmth and generous hospitality. The Holy Father, in meeting the delegation, expressed his good wishes and prayers for Her Majesty, The Queen, on her Diamond Jubilee and for the success of the Olympic Games.

"Discussions also covered issues of climate change, the international focus on disarmament and arms control, international stability especially in the Middle East and Somalia, the work of inclusive institutions in Northern Ireland, cultural and artistic exchange and the good of the family.

"Peoples of faith in the United Kingdom can rejoice in the messages from this historic visit and we Catholics, in particular, can take great encouragement to be more confident in our faith and in its contribution to the well-being of our society through all we say and do."

The misery of the Syrian people

2012-02-15T00:30:00.000Z

The value of human life counts for nothing
compared to the pride and self-interest
of dictators and their supporters

The Pope has made the following statement on thesituation in Syria:

It is withgreat concern that I am following the dramatic and increasing violence inSyria. In recent days there have been many victims, some of them children. Irecall them all in my prayers, just as I do the wounded and those who aresuffering the consequences of an increasingly worrying conflict. I also renewmy urgent appeal to put an end to the violence and bloodshed and, finally,invite everyone - particularly the Syrian authorities - to favour the paths ofdialogue, reconciliation and commitment to peace. It is vital to respond to thelegitimate aspirations of the various components of the nation, and to thehopes of the international community, which is concerned for the common good ofsociety as a whole, and of the region.

Vatican meeting for British Government representatives

2012-02-14T13:42:00.001Z

Baroness Sayeeda Warsi
Co-Chairman of the British Conservative Party

A delegation of ministers from theUnited Kingdom is today beginning an official visit to the Vatican to mark thethirtieth anniversary of the establishment of full diplomatic relations withthe Holy See. The delegation is led by Baroness Sayeeda Hussain Warsirepresenting the prime minister, and includes Archbishop Vincent Nichols ofWestminster. Their discussions with Holy See officials will focus oninter-religious dialogue, human rights, the environment, internationaldevelopment and climate change.

Most Rev Vincent Nichols
Catholic Archbishop of Westminster

This afternoon Baroness Warsi willdeliver an address on the place of religion in modern political discourse tostaff and students of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, and to thediplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See. The delegation will be received inaudience by the Holy Father tomorrow.

(Vatican Information Service)

A statement from Baroness Warsi inL’Osservatore Romano of 13-14 February 2012

Seventeen months ago, I had the immense honour of meeting His HolinessPope Benedict during his momentous visit to the United Kingdom. His visitcemented the ever closer co-operation between our two states. Tackling climatechange, promoting multi-faith dialogue, striving for peace and fighting poverty– on these and so many areas we share common goals and must work together. Inparticular it was the emphasis during the Holy Father’s address in WestminsterHall on inter-religious dialogue which struck a chord with me. Today, in 2012,there is plenty to still do and our goals are as clear. That is why, this week,I am delighted to be leading the largest ever ministerial delegation from theUK to the Vatican. Prime Minister David Cameron and I have long been making thecase for a deeper understanding of faith by the British government and it’s agreat honour to be taking our message to the Holy See this week.

We understand that the Holy See through the Catholic Church is a globalplayer with global concerns, reaching into every corner of the planet. It hasan important role in international affairs, expressed through its network ofbishops, priests, diplomats and religious, and is an influential voice in themajor ethical, moral and intellectual debates of the day. This network andinternational reach is why we why we need to engage with the Holy See. At theheart of the Queen’s government’s policies, at home as well as overseas, isconcern for the support and promotion of fundamental rights and values,underpinning democracy, and sustaining a culture of social, economic andpolitical responsibility, from communities on the ground to the level ofgovernment. Expressed through faith, these are also the priorities of the HolySee. Through the Caritas Internationalis network and Catholic NGOs inparticular, and their vital work in aid relief, education and healthcare, theHoly See touches the lives of millions of people.

Our bilateral talks will of course see discussions on hard powerquestions, from giving impetus to this year’s multilateral talks on an ArmsTrade Treaty and small arms proliferation, to the future of the Middle East.From Britain’s efforts to help bring peace and hope to Somalia and the Horn ofAfrica after years of civil war and under-development, to the impact of theEurozone crisis on European societies, structures and politics, including inthe United Kingdom. But our conversation must also range more widely. I wantthe British government to consider with the Holy See how inter-religiousdialogue – including that between Islam and Christianity - can be strengthenedto prevent conflict and discrimination, guarantee respect and co-existence, andsupport minorities wherever they are found. In particular, I want to call onour continent to be more confident in its Christian heritage and argue thatthis is the most effective way of accommodating minority faiths. We need tolook ahead later this year to the Rio de Janeiro Sustainable DevelopmentSummit, and explore how – despite our differences on some issues – we mightbest work together to secure sustainable and integral solutions to thechallenges of persistent poverty and inequalities, especially in the leastdeveloped parts of the planet. And following the success of the Durban ClimateChange Summit last year, we should examine how Pope Benedict’s call to protectcreation, and the British government’s determination to reduce greenhouse gasemissions, can be leveraged into faster progress towards a global low-carboneconomy. This short but intensive visit will also offer an opportunity to marka significant milestone in our bilateral relationship: the decision in 1982,coinciding with Pope John Paul II’s visit to Britain that year, to establishfull diplomatic relations at ambassadorial level. The Holy See is our oldestdiplomatic mission, dating back to 1479. But following interruptions in thesixteenth century, formal diplomatic links were not reinstated until 1914. Thiswas not done for sentimental reasons, but because the British government at thetime understood that we needed a voice at the Holy See of Pope Benedict XV, thePope of reconciliation and harmony between peoples, at a moment of globalcrisis.

We do not face World War today. But our world is facing unprecedentedeconomic and social turmoil, requiring both sacrifice and effort as we look toa better future. I look forward to telling His Holiness, when he receives ourdelegation on 15 February, how much we value a relationship that his visit tothe United Kingdom did much to reinforce.

What is the Mass really about?

2012-02-14T05:00:00.000Z

Part 9 – And finally

This final contribution to explaining the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer 1) focuses first on ourselves and then on the context of the who action of the Mass - God, the Holy Trinity.

The prayerfor ourselves

Nobis quoque peccatoribus famulis tuis, demultitudine miserationum tuarum sperantibus, partem aliquam et societatemdonare digneris, cum tuis sanctis Apostolis et Martyribus: cum Ioanne,Stephano, Matthia, Barnaba, Ignatio, Alexandro, Marcellino, Petro, Felicitate,Perpetua, Agatha, Lucia, Agnete, Caecilia, Anastasia, et omnibus Sanctis tuis,intra quorum nos consortium, non aestimator meriti, sed veniae, quaesumus,largitor admitte. Per ChristumDominum nostrum.Per quem haec omnia, Domine, semper bona creas, sanctificas,vivificas, benedicis et praestas nobis.

To us, also, your servants, who, though sinners,hope in your abundant mercies, graciously grant some share and fellowship with your holy Apostlesand Martyrs: with John the Baptist, Stephen, Matthias, Barnabas, (Ignatius,Alexander, Marcellinus, Peter, Felicity, Perpetua, Agatha, Lucy, Agnes,Cecilia, Anastasia) and all your Saints: admit us, we beseech you, into theircompany, not weighing our merits, but granting us your pardon, through Christour Lord.. Through whom youcontinue to make all these good things, O Lord; you sanctify them, fill themwith life, bless them, and bestow them upon us.

Now,and only now that we have prayed for everyone else, we are free to pray forourselves. We are to be witnessesto Christ in our generation as Christians have been throughout thecenturies. The greatest witnessesof all are those who gave their blood for Christ. These special witnesses – the word‘martyr’ means ‘witness’ – are here beseeched to grant us ashare in their fellowship. Themartyrs listed are among the first to be venerated by the Church:

1. SaintJohn the Baptist who prepared the way for Jesus;

2. SaintStephen was the first to die for him;

3. Theothers were martyrs celebrated in Rome for from very early times.

Unlike other references to “gifts” the reference here is notto the bread and wine. It seems torefer to an early practice of bringing produce for blessing and placing it onthe altar. The point for us isthat we are offering all that is ours, including ourselves, for God’s blessingand service.

TheDoxology

Per ipsum, et cum ipso, et in ipso, est tibi DeoPatri omnipotenti, in unitate Spiritus Sancti, omnis honor et Gloria per omniasaecula saeculorum.  Amen.

Through him, and with him, and in him, O God,almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honour isyours, for ever and ever. Amen

TheSacrifice is offered to the Father, by the Son, through the Holy Spirit. The Body and Blood of Christ areelevated at this point as a final sign of this offering. Whereas the elevation at the point ofconsecration is to show the people the real and substantial presence of Jesus,the elevation during the Doxology is to show God the Father the offering of HisSon. The word Doxology indicates a formula used at the endof psalms and hymns, usually explicitly addressed to God as Father, Son andHoly Spirit. These words areintended to give glory to God. TheGreek word ‘doxa’ means ‘Glory’. So we end themost intense presentation of the Image of God available to us in this world.

Inconsistent models of truth in Anglo-Catholicism

2012-02-13T00:01:00.000Z

Most Reverend Katharine Schori

Presiding Bishop of the American
Episcopal (Anglican) Church

Attentive readers may remember that I used to be an Anglican Minister.The goings-on of the Church of England, which were once so important to me, nowseem very peripheral and quaint – so much so that I have only now realized thatthe General Synod has just finished discussing women Bishops (again!). Belowthe radar of my consciousness the same old discussion continues even though theoutcome was sealed years ago – by my sixty-fifth birthday in 2014 the CoE will,be assured, have women Bishops.

As a Catholic my – slight – remaining interest in this is prompted bythe distress of those Anglicans who think and define themselves as ‘catholic’.For years they have pinned their hopes on a structural solution whichwould allow them Bishops of their own. After the inevitable collapse of the ThirdProvince idea (a non-geographical area overlapping the ArchiepiscopalProvinces of Canterbury and York) the current argument is about providing male Bishops to look aftertraditionalist parishes. At the moment there are such Bishops – the ProvincialEpiscopal Visitors, or flying-Bishops – but it is intended to abolish theirrole and replace them with male Bishops who would be subordinate toDiocesan Bishops (who may, in future, be female or in the longer futurethemselves ordained by females). To me now, only to state these argumentsilluminates their irrationality!

It seems to me that the only valid argument for restricting the ordainedministries to males is because it is inconsistent with what has beenhanded down to us from Jesus himself through the ages of the Church. Thatprocess, and its content, is what the Catholic Church calls Holy Tradition. Butit is equally contrary to Holy Tradition to accept the co-existence of certainBishops within the Church whose ministry is not universally accepted. Atheological fudge over the very nature of the Church is not an option to becountenanced by Holy Tradition.

As I say, I have great sympathy for Anglo-Catholics who find thattheir precious beliefs are being trampled upon – I know how it feels frompersonal experience – but I suggest that they should take the opportunity toreflect on whether their beliefs really reflect the truth or whether theiropponents were not right all along. I don’t mean that they should reject their catholicbeliefs – the sacrifice of the Mass, transubstantiation, purgatory, confessionand so on – but they should question by what authority they believe thesedoctrines. In short, they should question the belief that the Church of Englandis, or ever was in its post-Reformation form, catholic. Blessed JohnHenry Newman himself – the originator of the theory of the Via Media betweenRome and Protestantism -struggled to remain an Anglican when he was faced withthe strength of evidence from antiquity that antiquity itself is not sufficientbasis for a claim to Catholicity. He fought to remain an Anglican despite hisgrowing recognition of the absurdity of his position. Eventually, he came intocommunion with the Holy See as have many since.

I feel the pain of my Anglo-Catholic friends but I recognize thatit is the inevitable result of trying to live according to two inconsistentmodels of truth. I know that it is painful to change – I know because I havedone it – but the pain won’t go away until the basic inconsistency is resolved.Furthermore, I have to state candidly that, from a Catholic point of view, theproblem with Anglican Bishops is not their sex but that they are not Bishopsin the Traditional sense at all whether they are male or female. This need beno problem at all for most Anglicans who never dreamt that they were Catholicsanyway and wouldn’t dream of using Roman liturgy.

Everyone must come to the Catholic Faith and Church in his or her owntime if at all but for those who believe that they are called to be Catholicthere can be no peace of mind in an attempt to play at being a Catholic withina Protestant ecclesial body even if protection is afforded you from thosenasty female Bishops!

Grievous wounds for victims and for the Catholic Church

2012-02-10T05:30:00.000Z

Darkness in the light

Statementby the Most Rev Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, England

On Tuesday 7 February, Bede Walsh,who served as a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of Birmingham, was convictedby a jury, following a 10-day trial at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court, of 21 sexualoffences against eight boys. The offences took place between the 1970s and theearly 1990s.   These are horrendous crimes, and l first want to express mydeep sense of shame at what has taken place. It is the most serious betrayal oftrust. I also want to express my profound sorrow, and deep regret to each ofthe victims, then children, now adults, for the abuse perpetrated by FatherBede Walsh, whom they and their families trusted as a priest.

I now want to offer a few words tothe victims themselves: I realise that this has been an indescribably difficultand distressing time for you, your families and friends. I recognise that thesecrimes can cause deep and lasting damage. It is my sincere hope that as a resultof this conviction, and with the help of God, you will now be able to begin totake up again the rebuilding of your lives.   I thank you for the couragethat you have shown in giving evidence to the court in order that these crimesmight be brought into the light of day. My thoughts and prayers are with eachof you and the members of your families at this particular time. My door isopen to you, and I am willing to meet with you, individually or with members ofyour families. It is right that you have the chance to tell me how the actionsof Bede Walsh have affected you, and I am ready and willing to listen.    TheArchdiocese of Birmingham has worked closely with the police throughout thiscase and we shall continue to do so.

I wish to make clear that BedeWalsh has not been in active ministry as a Catholic priest since 2004, beforeany of the allegations associated with this conviction were made. Becauseof the seriousness of the offences committed by Bede Walsh, I will beginimmediately the process of Iaicisation, which will lead to his removal from theclerical state.

This is an horrific case that hasshocked and appalled me, and it has cast a shadow over the lives of manypeople: victims and their families, fellow priests, and also the people of theparishes where he has served as a priest.   Recognising the damage causedto these communities, there will be a special parish visit to St Giles' Parish,Cheadle, All Souls Parish, Coventry and St John's Parish, Banbury. I and thosewho work most closely with me will be available to speak with parishioners andto attend to their distress and anger.

It is important for me to say thatthere are today robust safeguarding policies in operation throughout theArchdiocese of Birmingham and indeed the Catholic Church in England and Wales.Policies relating to safeguarding in general and child protection inparticular, are systematically enforced. Any abuse reported to us isimmediately passed to the police and other relevant authorities.   Iinvite anybody who has been affected by this case to contact the Archdiocese ofBirmingham Safeguarding Co-ordinator, Mrs Jane Jones, at Cathedral House inBirmingham. You can find the phone number below.   You will understandthat for legal reasons I am not able to add anything further to this statementor to answer any questions.

Missal refusenik resigns

2012-02-09T00:01:00.000Z

And with your spirit - no thank you!

An Illinois priest has resigned from active ministry, refusing to accept his bishop’s directive that he must use the new English translation of the Roman Missal.

Father William Rowe admits that he has been “improvising” freely for years, using his own words to replace the language of the Missal. He explains that “I tend to change the words that are written in the book to match what I was talking about, or what a song is about.” When Bishop Edward Braxton of Belleville told him that he must follow the new translation, Father Rowe resigned.
(Catholic World News)

This is an extreme example of a new form of traditionalism with the difference that certain people are so hung up on what has become traditional over the last 40 years that that do not recognize the Tradition of two thousand years.

Legal coercion to ignore conscience?

2012-02-08T05:30:00.000Z

The freedom of conscience of religious bodies andindividuals, and for the Catholic Church and her Faithful in particular, iscontinually under attack from secularist governments in Europe and NorthAmerica. Unlike straightforward anti-Faith attacks the current attacks are moresophisticated since they are typically wrapped up in positive-soundingobjectives like equality. In the USA the government is introducing purportedimprovements to heath care, but included within the legislation there isreference to contraception which has implications for health care professionalsand patients alike. The following is from the website of the Catholic Bishopsin the USA.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Conference ofCatholic Bishops has issued the following response to the February 2 post onthe White House blog.

Full text follows:

The Obama administration, tojustify its widely criticized mandate for contraception and sterilizationcoverage in private health plans, has posted a set of false and misleadingclaims on the White House blog (“Health Reform, Preventive Services, andReligious Institutions,” February 1).In what follows, each White House claim isquoted with a response.

Claim: “Churches are exemptfrom the new rules: Churches and otherhouses of worship will be exempt from the requirement to offer insurance thatcovers contraception.”

Response: This is not entirely true. To be eligible, even churches and houses ofworship must show the government that they hire and serve primarily people oftheir own faith and have the inculcation of religious values as their purpose.Some churches may have service to the broader community as a major focus, forexample, by providing direct service to the poor regardless of faith. Suchchurches would be denied an exemption precisely because their service to thecommon good is so great. More importantly, the vast array of other religiousorganizations – schools, hospitals, universities, charitable institutions –will clearly not be exempt.

Claim: “No individual healthcare provider will be forced to prescribe contraception: The President and this Administration have previously and continue toexpress strong support for existing conscience protections. For example, noCatholic doctor is forced to write a prescription for contraception.”

Response: It is true that these rules directly apply to employers and insurers,not providers, but this is beside the point: The Administration is forcingindividuals and institutions, including religious employers, to sponsor andsubsidize what they consider immoral. Less directly, the classification ofthese drugs and procedures as basic “preventive services” will increasepressures on doctors, nurses and pharmacists to provide them in order toparticipate in private health plans – and no current federal conscience lawprevents that from happening. Finally, because the mandate includesabortifacient drugs, it violates one of the “existing conscience protections”(the Weldon amendment) for which the Administration expresses “strong support.”

Claim: “No individual will beforced to buy or use contraception:This rule only applies to what insurance companies cover. Under this policy,women who want contraception will have access to it through their insurancewithout paying a co-pay or deductible. But no one will be forced to buy or usecontraception.”

Response: The statement that no one will be forced to buy it is false. Women whowant contraception will be able to obtain it without co-pay or deductibleprecisely because women who do not want contraception will be forced to helppay for it through their premiums. This mandate passes costs from those whowant the service, to those who object to it.

Claim: “Drugs that causeabortion are not covered by this policy:Drugs like RU486 are not covered by this policy, and nothing about this policychanges the President’s firm commitment to maintaining strict limitations onFederal funding for abortions. No Federal tax dollars are used for electiveabortions.”

Response: False. The policy already requires coverage of Ulipristal (HRP 2000 or“Ella”), a drug that is a close analogue to RU-486 (mifepristone) and has thesame effects.[i] RU-486 itself is also being tested for possible use as an “emergencycontraceptive” – and if the FDA approves it for that purpose, it willautomatically be mandated as well.

Claim:” Over half of Americansalready live in the 28 States that require insurance companies covercontraception: Several of these States likeNorth Carolina, New York, and California have identical religious employerexemptions. Some States like Colorado, Georgia and Wisconsin have no exemptionat all.”

Response: This misleads by ignoring important facts, and some of it is simplyfalse. All the state mandates, even those without religious exemptions, may beavoided by self-insuring prescription drug coverage, by dropping thatparticular coverage altogether, or by taking refuge in a federal law thatpre-empts any state mandates (ERISA).None of these havens is available underthe federal mandate. It is also false to claim that North Carolina has anidentical exemption. It is broader: It does not require a religiousorganization to serve primarily people of its own faith, or to fulfill thefederal rule’s narrow tax code criterion. Moreover, the North Carolina law,unlike the federal mandate, completely excludes abortifacient drugs like Ellaand RU-486 as well as “emergency contraceptives” like Preven.

Claim: “Contraception is usedby most women: According to a study by the GuttmacherInstitute, most women, including 98 percent of Catholic women, have usedcontraception.”

Response: This is irrelevant, and it is presented in a misleading way. If asurvey found that 98% of people had lied, cheated on their taxes, or had sexoutside of marriage, would the government claim it can force everyone to do so?But this claim also mangles the data to create a false impression. The studyactually says this is true of 98% of “sexually experienced” women. The morerelevant statistic is that the drugs and devices subject to this mandate(sterilization, hormonal prescription contraceptives and IUDs) are used by 69%of those women who are “sexually active” and “do not want to become pregnant.”Surely that is a minority of the general public, yet every man and woman whoneeds health insurance will have to pay for this coverage. The drugs that themandate’s supporters say will be most advanced by the new rule, because theyhave the highest co-pays and deductibles now, are powerful but risky injectableand implantable hormonal contraceptives, now used by perhaps 5% of women. Themandate is intended to change women’s reproductive behavior, not only reflectit.

Claim: “Contraception coveragereduces costs: While the monthly cost ofcontraception for women ranges from $30 to $50, insurers and experts agree thatsavings more than offset the cost. The National Business Group on Healthestimated that it would cost employers 15 to 17 percent more not to providecontraceptive coverage than to provide such coverage, after accounting for boththe direct medical costs of potentially unintended and unhealthy pregnancy andindirect costs such as employee absence and reduced productivity.”

Response: The government is violating our religious freedom to save money? If theclaim is true it is hard to say there is a need for a mandate: Secular insurersand employers who don’t object will want to purchase the coverage to savemoney, and those who object can leave it alone. But this claim also seems torest on some assumptions: That prescription contraceptives are the only way toavoid “unintended and unhealthy pregnancy,” for example, or that increasingaccess to contraceptives necessarily produces significant reductions inunintended pregnancies. The latter assumption has been cast into doubt bynumerous studies (see http://old.usccb.org/prolife/issues/contraception/contraception-fact-sheet-3-17-11.pdf).

Claim: “The Obama Administration is committed to both respecting religiousbeliefs and increasing access to important preventive services. And as we moveforward, our strong partnerships with religious organizations will continue.”

Response: False. There is no“balance” in the final HHS rule—one side has prevailed entirely, as the mandateand exemption remain entirely unchanged from August 2011, despite manythousands of comments filed since then indicating intense opposition. Indeed,the White House Press Secretary declared on January 31, “I don’t believe thereare any constitutional rights issues here,” so little was placed on that sideof the scale. The Administration’s stance on religious liberty has also beenshown in other ways. Recently it argued before the Supreme Court that religiousorganizations have no greater right under the First amendment to hire or firetheir own ministers than secular organizations have over their leaders– a claimthat was unanimously rejected by the Supreme Court as “extreme” and“untenable.” The Administration recently denied a human trafficking grant to aCatholic service provider with high objective scores, and gave part of thatgrant instead to a provider with not just lower, but failing, objective scores,all because the Catholic provider refused in conscience to compromise the samemoral and religious beliefs at issue here. Such action violates not onlyfederal conscience laws, but President Obama’s executive order assuring“faith-based” organizations that they will be able to serve the public infederal programs without compromising their faith.

Tell the world you are a Catholic and proud of it

2012-02-07T05:00:00.000Z

A card to communicate that thecarrier is a baptised Catholic is to be distributed nationally as an initiativeof the Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis of the Catholic Bishops’Conference of England and Wales.

One million cards will be madeavailable to 24 Catholic dioceses, including the Bishopric of the Forces andthe Ordinariate, as a reminder that all baptised are invited to know and sharetheir faith. The credit-card-sized resource features on one side, a space forthe owner to sign, a clear statement that the carrier is a Catholic and a listof six things that Catholics are called to do.

There is also a sentence thatreads: ‘In the event of an emergency, please call a Catholic priest.’ The otherside of the card has a quote from the recently beatified Blessed John Henry Newman,focusing on the call to serve and affirming that everyone has a mission.

Bishop Kieran Conry, Arundel andBrighton, Chair of the Bishops’ Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis,said:    

Weall carry a variety of cards in our purses and wallets which reflect somethingof our identity and the things that are important to us. The faith card forCatholics aims to offer a daily reminder of what it means to be a follower ofJesus Christ. We can’t summarise the whole of our faith in bullet points, butwe hope that the card simply inspires people to do, read and learn more.

The Bishop added:

Thecard is also designed to give Catholics confidence to share their faith – oftenpeople need help knowing what to say. Faith is a not a private matter. This issomething that Pope Benedict reminded the Catholic community in his recentletter announcing a Year of Faith, beginning in October 2012. Carrying a faithcard takes courage, it signals to others, every time you use your wallet orpurse, that you believe in God, that your life has a purpose, that you aretrying to love and serve your neighbour. We hope that Catholics will use it towitness to their faith. If someone asks a question about Catholicism, astarting point could be to show the card and to take it from there.

Theresource is free and will be distributed to diocesan offices during Februaryand March 2012.

(Fromthe website of the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales)

Coffee and gay marriage

2012-02-06T05:30:00.000Z

First Tesco, now Starbucks. TheAmerican coffee chain is officially backing the homosexual cause. Its executiveVice President, Kalen Homes writes that proposed homosexual ‘marriage’legislation ‘is core to who we are and what we value as a company…. Starbucksis proud to join other leading Northwest employers in support of WashingtonState legislation recognizing marriage equality for same-sex couples.’

What is the Mass really about?

2012-02-03T05:00:00.001Z

Part 8 - The Prayer for the Faithful Departed

Having traced the prayers of the Roman Canon (EucharisticPrayer 1) from general thanksgiving, through oblation and consecration, we arenearing the end. We have prayed with the Saints in Heaven, we now pray with,and for, those who are destined for Heaven but have not yet entered into God’spresence.

Mementoetiam, Domine, famulorum famularumque tuarem N. et N.,qui nos praecesserunt cum signo fidei, et dormiunt in somno pacis, Ipsis,Domine, et omnibus in Christo quiescentibus, locum refrigerii, lucis et pacis,ut indulgeas, deprecamur.

Rememberalso, Lord, your servants N. and N., who have gone before us with the sign offaith and rest in the sleep of peace. Grant them, O Lord, we pray, and all whosleep in Christ, a place of refreshment, light and peace.

Lodovico Carracci
An Angel Frees the Souls of Purgatory

Our image ofthe afterlife involves three basic stands. First, we have those who haveaccepted with open hands and hearts the love of God. They have accepted it as a gift made available to themthrough the sacrifice of Christ. They are destined for eternal communion with their Lord. There are others who have definitivelyrejected the love of God and want nothing to do with Him. Their wish for independence will alsobe granted. Then there are themajority of us who want to accept God’s love but who continually stumble andstruggle against the instant gratification, which is a feature of ourexistence. If we really seek tolove God, despite our falls, we will not be rejected. If He wanted to reject the fallen He would not have putHimself through the humiliation of the Cross. Elsewhere in the Canon we have prayed to the Saintswho are simply the best known examples of those who are in God’s presence. In the prayer we are no considering wepray for those whose faith and love for God has been strong, but also for thosewho have been weak. We pray thatthey will be cleansed of all that stands in the way to entering into God’spresence. We pray that they toomay enter heaven.

Eucharistic Prayer 2

Momentoetiam fratrum nosrorum, qui in spe resurrectionis dormierunt, omniumque in tuamiseratione defunctorum, et eos in lumen vultus tui admitte.

Rememberalso our brothers and sisters who have fallen asleep in the hope of theResurrection, and all who have died in your mercy: welcome them into the lightof your face.

Eucharistic Prayer 3

Fratresnostros defunctos et omnes qui, tibi placentes, ex hoc saeculo transierunt, inregnum tuum benignus admitte …

To ourdeparted brothers and sisters and to all who were pleasing to you at theirpassing from this life, give kind admittance to your kingdom …

Eucharistic Prayer 4

Momentoetiam illorum, qui obierunt in pace Christ tui, et omnium defunctorum, quorumfidem tu solus cognovisti.

Rememberalso those who have died in the peace of your Christ and all the dead, whosefaith you alone have known.

The Traditional Roman Canon (after the Sanctus to the end)

2012-02-03T04:59:00.000Z

Our civilization originates in the Catholic Church and Faith!

2012-02-02T05:30:00.000Z

Venerable English College celebrates

2012-02-01T05:30:00.000Z

The Catholic seminary in Rome where young Englishmen are trained for thepriesthood turned 650 years-old on Jan. 27. It was on that day in 1362 that the forerunnerof the Venerable English College, a house for English and Welsh pilgrims toRome, was founded. In the 16th century it became a seminary.

“It is right in the heart of Rome. It is awonderful location,” said vice rector Fr. Mark Harold, as he gave a tour of thecollege to CNA.

The English College “is a really historic placeand we believe it is the oldest English institution in the world outsideEngland,” he explained.

The pilgrim house, which is tucked away onRome’s Via di Monserrato, was in operation for about 200 years and enjoyedroyal patronage.

Beginning in 1412 its front wall was emblazonedwith the English Royal Coat of Arms – a crest that is still there today. Duringthe reign of Henry VII it was known as the “King’s Hospice,” while Henry VIIIdescribed it as “Our Hospice.”

But that all changed in the 16th century whenthe English monarchy turned against the Catholic faith, fueling a ProtestantReformation in England.

“Then, Pope Gregory XIII met with CardinalWilliam Allen who was resident here in the hospice,” explained Fr. Harold. PopeGregory said, “‘why don’t you found your seminary for the English here in thisplace on the Via Mosserato?’” Portraits of the two founders still claim prideof place in the seminary’s dining room.

Since its foundation in 1579 the English Collegehas produced numerous martyrs who were killed for their Catholic faith uponreturn to England. The roll of honor in the college’s grand entrance hall is alitany of 10 former students who have been declared canonized saints, 28 whohave been declared beatified, and four others who are venerable.

The impressive list of martyrs led to thecollege being bestowed with the title “Venerable” in 1818.

“It is very much part of the tradition of thiscollege, a tradition of mission for the Catholic Church, a mission showingwitness, showing martyrdom for Christ by giving their life,” said Fr. Harold.

He related how the college’s first martyr, St.Ralph Sherwin, was executed at Tyburn in central London in 1581, only two yearsafter the seminary was founded.

His fellow students quickly developed atradition that whenever an alumnus was martyred they would assemble in front ofthe college chapel’s altar piece to sing a “Te Deum Laudamus” in thanksgiving.That tradition will be repeated after Mass on Jan. 27.

Over the past 650 years the college has hostedmany distinguished guests – from the poet John Milton to Cardinal John HenryNewman to Blessed John Paul II in 1979.

“It is also reported that William Shakespeare,who was a recusant Catholic – so many people say – visited Italy and thecollege. He certainly wrote widely about Italy in his plays,” claimed Fr.Harold.

This weekend many alumni will return to thecollege to celebrate the 650th anniversary, including Archbishop VincentNichols of Westminster and Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, who was also rectorfor six years in the 1970s.

They return to an institution that seems to bein good health with numbers of seminarians on the up and up. When Fr. Haroldjoined the staff three-and-a-half years ago the college had 25 students. Todayit has 45. The majority come from England and Wales, while four hail fromScandinavia.

A former student himself, Fr. Harold says it is“a real privilege” to be a seminarian in Rome because it gives young men sixyears at the heart of the Church to develop both intellectually andspiritually.

“That spiritual development is particularly important– your life with Christ in prayer, to make it become part of you. Seminary lifeis not just about acquiring knowledge and skills. It is about growing inChrist,” he said.

(Catholic News Agency)

Catholic ecumenism

2012-01-31T05:30:00.000Z

Saint Peter
Tommaso Masaccio
15th century Florence

In recent days the Pope has been speaking about Faith andUnity, indicating that Christian Unity will follow from unity of Faith. Hereferred to the Vatican II document Unitatis redintegratio as the authorative document onecumenism as far as the Catholic Church is concerned. Before referring toecumenism this document makes it absolutely clear that the Church in communionwith the Apostolic See and Bishop of Rome is the Church founded by Christ. Thisis what it says:

In order toestablish this His holy Church everywhere in the world till the end of time,Christ entrusted to the College of the Twelve the task of teaching, ruling andsanctifying. Among their number He selected Peter, and after his confession offaith determined that on him He would build His Church. Also to Peter Hepromised the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and after His profession of love,entrusted all His sheep to him to be confirmed in faith and shepherded inperfect unity. Christ Jesus Himself was forever to remain the chief cornerstoneand shepherd of our souls.

It then proceeds to refer to the rifts that have led groupsto separate from the Catholic Church:

Even in thebeginnings of this one and only Church of God there arose certain rifts, which theApostle strongly condemned. But in subsequent centuries much more seriousdissensions made their appearance and quite large communities came to beseparated from full communion with the Catholic Church-for which, often enough,men of both sides were to blame. The children who are born into theseCommunities and who grow up believing in Christ cannot be accused of the sininvolved in the separation, and the Catholic Church embraces upon them asbrothers, with respect and affection. For men who believe in Christ and havebeen truly baptized are in communion with the Catholic Church even though thiscommunion is imperfect. The differences that exist in varying degrees betweenthem and the Catholic Church-whether in doctrine and sometimes in discipline,or concerning the structure of the Church-do indeed create many obstacles,sometimes serious ones, to full ecclesiastical communion.

Whilst accepting that God works through these separatedChristians and that they are blessed with his grace in many ways it goes on tosay that they are not blessed with unity

Nevertheless,our separated brethren, whether considered as individuals or as Communities andChurches, are not blessed with that unity which Jesus Christ wished to bestowon all those who through Him were born again into one body, and with Himquickened to newness of life-that unity which the Holy Scriptures and theancient Tradition of the Church proclaim. For it is only through Christ'sCatholic Church, which is "the all-embracing means of salvation,"that they can benefit fully from the means of salvation. We believe that OurLord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant to the apostolic collegealone, of which Peter is the head, in order to establish the one Body of Christon earth to which all should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to thepeople of God.

It may be objected that if unity refers to the totality ofChristians then the Catholic Church also lacks unity since many Christians arenot Catholics. But true Unity refers to our connection to Christ from which unitywith other Christians derives. Since the Church founded by Christ has thefullness of gifts and privileges she is a unique expression of unity – theunity of bride and bridegroom. She is the possessor of the Holy Tradition –understood as that which has been handed down from Christ through the ages andincludes such gifts as the Holy Scriptures, the Sacraments, the teaching of theFathers, the Councils, the Popes and Bishops and the continued communion withthe successor of Peter. The document goes on to say:

… unitysubsists in the Catholic Church as something she can never lose, and we hopethat it will continue to increase until the end of time.

Lest Catholics should puff themselves up in pride at thesestatements the document makes it very clear that the attributes of the CatholicChurch are gifts which Catholics themselves often ignore.

… althoughthe Catholic Church has been endowed with all divinely revealed truth and withall means of grace, yet its members fail to live by them with all the fervourthat they should, so that the radiance of the Church's image is less clear inthe eyes of our separated brethren and of the world at large, and the growth ofGod's kingdom is delayed. All Catholics must therefore aim at Christianperfection and, each according to his station, play his part that the Churchmay daily be more purified and renewed. For the Church must bear in her ownbody the humility and dying of Jesus, against the day when Christ will presenther to Himself in all her glory without spot or wrinkle.

In short Catholics are often unaware of how lucky they areas the recipients of the fullness of God’s gifts to humanity whilst manynon-Catholics see unity as something that can be done by papering over thecracks. Being ‘nice’ to other Christians is better than the alternative butthen again be ‘nice’ is the baseline of good manners. We need to recognize thatgrace and truth are inextricably linked and that the fullness of grace isavailable from the Catholic Church.

Is the Church dispensable?

2012-01-30T00:01:00.000Z

Other things to do with a Rosary!

2012-01-27T05:30:00.000Z

TheRosary used in the Latin Church is clearly designed for a specific use – therecitation of the Hail Mary. This, combined with a meditation on an aspect ofthe mystery of salvation is a powerful way of drawing closer to God. But, if wehave the Rosary in our pockets we might use it as an aid in other prayers as well.Having used the Rosary in the normal way before Mass I use it at two pointswithin the Mass on Sundays. On Sundays and Holy Days it can take a considerabletime to receive Communion and then to wait for the Post-Communion Prayer. It isalso often very distracting because of all the movement. This makes itdifficult for me to concentrate on the fact that Jesus is present with us and Iam about to receive him. I find that the use of repetitive prayer is verysuccessful in tuning out what is going on around me. Ithelps me to concentrate and create an oasis of stillnessin my soul.

Beforeit is my turn to receive Holy Communion I use one of two short prayers,repeating them slowly and with concentration, as I move from on bead of theRosary to another. (For these prayers all of the beads are usedindiscriminately). The first prayer, which is widely used in the Eastern Ritesof the Church, is called simply the Jesus Prayer. It goeslike this:

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

TheFathers of the Eastern Churches adapted the Jewish emphasis on the Holy name.Since pre-Christian Jews, and subsequent Judaism, do not make representationsof God they treat his very name as a sort of encapsulation of his essence andpresence. This Christian prayer invokes the Holy Name of Jesus and immediatelycontrasts it – and him – with our own sinful natures. It evokes love and fear –love for God and fear that I am not worthy to approach him. Said before HolyCommunion it offers a final moment of repentance and of awe at what is about tohappen.

Analternative prayer that I use reflects on this same contrast. It is the form ofwords that we have said out loud after the Body of Christ was presented to usbefore Communion:

Domine, non sum dignus, ut intres sub tectum meum, sed tantum dic verbo,et sanabitur anima mea.

Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only saythe word and my soul shall be healed.

James Tissot
'Lord I am not worthy

Thecontrast is between my unworthiness and God’s healing of my soul. The idea ofrepeating this prayer comes from observing that in the older form of Mass thepriest says it three times before his reception of the Blessed Sacrament andthree times before the Communion of the People.

Theprayer I use after Communion reflects the change from anticipation to joy:

Blessed and praised be Jesus Christ in the most holy sacrament. Hosannain excelsis.

Thisprayer is one I used to sing in my High Anglican days. Google only gives meAnglican sources for it but the words are entirely appropriate for Catholicuse.

Mychoices may be useful to you. If not chose other exclamatory prayers and usethe Rosary beads to pace the repetition of the prayers. Ihope that, like me, this helps you to tune out thedistractions before and after Holy Communion and tune into your encounter with the Lord.

Tune outthe distractions. Tune into God’s very image.

StephenWard ‘How Catholics see God’

See http://amzn.com/1463627831

The flip side of freedom

2012-01-26T05:00:00.000Z

The United States likes to categorize itself as the land of the free. Traditionally this has referred to its form of economic organization which it has sought to export to the world or to the freedom to carry arms. More recently, like my own country – Britain – it has extended to the unfettered freedom from traditional notions of morality.

In recent days the Catholic Bishops of the United Stated have been meeting the Pope for their ad limina visit. Every five years Bishops are required to attend a formal meeting with the Supreme Pontiff. The term ad limina refers to a visit to the threshold of the Apostles. Not surprisingly the Pope does not agree with an absolute understanding of freedom. He strongly denounces those ‘who promote notions of the separation of freedom separated from moral truth… which is the key to human happiness and social prosperity.’

This is a way of affirming the Catholic doctrine of the Kingship of Christ. No system which ignores this has real authority. An individual is truly free only when he or she lives in accordance with the image of God which is the basic blueprint of human nature shorn of the effects of sin. There is no such thing as absolute freedom and its pursuit is a pursuit of selfishness for the individual and of anarchy for society. By the same token the seemingly political opposites to absolute freedom are also condemned. Tyrannical authority removes freedom in a more obvious way because it seeks to restrict all views and actions without reference to any moral view except that of the tyrant. Surely, though democracy escapes this criticism since it aims to give value to all individuals by taking their views seriously. Well no, even presuming that our systems represented the views of the majority which is often in doubt, the will of a majority has no more moral authority than the will of an individual.

This is not to say that some political arrangements are not morally preferable to others but our choices are subject to a higher judgement of right and wrong. Without freedom of choice moral choices would be impossible but freedom is the precursor to moral choices not an end in itself. If we as individuals, or as a society, freely make choices that are immoral we cannot bask in our freedom since our freedom will have become our curse.

Ecumenism, structures and truth

2012-01-25T05:00:00.000Z

The statue of Saint Paul in front of
the Basilica of Saint Paul outside the walls
in Rome where a Papal liturgy will today formally end the Catholic
observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Today is the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul and the end of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. I must admit to a weariness about the whole concept because the unity of all Christians into the Catholic Church seems a distant prospect. How could we object to the concept – based on Our Lord’s intention – unity is a good thing like apple pie. In reality, though, there have always been Christians who have seceded from the Church and who have remained outside – separated brethren as Vatican II calls them.

It seems to me that until, or unless, there is a meeting of hearts and minds there cannot be unity. There are alternative models of course. One is the ecclesiastical equivalent of the United Nations such as the World Council of Churches which comprises 349 non-Catholic ecclesial bodies in a loose federation united around general goals such as ‘seeking visible unity’, ’witnessing to mission and evangelism’, ‘breaking down barriers between people’ and ‘fostering renewal.’ This could be described as a ‘federal structural’ model of Christian unity in which each unit retains its inner structure and beliefs.

An alternative is where two, or more, denominations are replaced by a new structure which usually provides considerable internal allowance for differences in belief and practice. An extraordinary example of this type was the creation, in the late 1940s, of the Church of South India. Its original ministry, after unification were made up of Anglican clergy who believed themselves to be priests in the Catholic sense and Presbyterian ministers who made no pretence of being episcopally ordained. The idea was that all new ministers would be ordained by those who had received Anglican episcopal orders so that, given time, with the retirement and death of older ministers all ministers would be in Anglican orders. In the interim a theologically incoherent situation pertained.

The problems with both these well-meaning attempts at unity is that they ignore Truth in favour of unity. The first says ‘we can ring-fence Truth but be part of a wider grouping with those who do not share our view of the Truth.’ The second approach allows individuals within the so-called united church to believe and practice diametrically opposite things. They both put structure before, or even in place of, Truth.

From a Catholic point of view there can be no such compromise. We need to live according to the image of Christ within us – we need to live according to the Truth. We should recognize what we share with non-Catholic Christians and with humanity in general but we cannot deny that the fullness of Christianity is to be found only in Catholicism and the Catholic Church. We would not be taking the beliefs of non-Catholics seriously, let alone our own, if we said that structural unity was an end in itself or even a means to the desired aim of a truly shared Faith nurtured under the guidance of the true Church.

It is interesting to note that the Catholic Church, which at first sight would appear to be the most monolithic is actually quite able to absorb various structures within her. Look at the way in which religious orders work within dioceses with the dual authority of Bishop and Religious Superior. Look at the ‘Eastern Rite’ Churches which have been absorbed into the Catholic Church. Look at organizations such as Opus Dei and the Ordinariates which have an autonomy from local Bishops. Finally, look at the way in which certain ultra-traditionalist groups have been integrated and at the offer made to the Society of Saint Pius X. It turns out that the Catholic Church is quite elastic within her basic structure. However, unlike the Protestant structural models for unity these groups within the Catholic Church are required to adhere to the Catholic Faith in the same way, and to the same extent, as all other Catholics. Jesus described himself as the Way, the Truth and the Life. There is only one Way to God and it leads us to eternal life, but it is predicated on adherence to, and recognition of, the Truth. Any other unity is insincere and therefore bogus.

What is the Mass really about?

2012-01-24T05:00:00.000Z

Part 7 - The Sacrifice on earth and the Sacrifice in Heaven

In this series on the Mass we move our attention from what is happening on our earthly altar to the worship which is taking place in Heaven. We discover that the two are not just intimately linked, they are one and the same.

Supra quae propitio ac sereno vulturespicere digneris: et accepta habere, sicuti accepta habere dignatus es munerapueri tui iusti Abel, et sacrificium patriarchae nostri Abrahae: et quod tibiobtulit summus sacerdos tuus Melchisedech, sanctum sacrificium, immaculatamhostiam.

Supplices Terogamus, omnipotens Deus, iube haec perferri per manus sancti Angeli Tui insublime altare Tuum, in conspectu divinae maiestatis tuae: ut quotquot, ex hacaltaris participatione, sacrosanctum Filii tui Corpus et Sanguinem sumpserimus,omni benedictione Coelesti et gratia repleamur.

Be pleased to look upon these offerings with a serene and kindly countenance, and to accept them, as once you were pleased to accept the gifts of your servant Abel the just, the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, and the offering of your high Priest Melchizedech, a holy sacrifice, a spotless victim.

In humbleprayer we ask you, almighty God: command that these gifts be borne by the handsof your holy Angel to your altar on high in the sight of your divine majesty,so that all of us who through this participation at the altar receive the mostholy Body and Blood of your Son, may be filled with every grace and heavenlyblessing.

Apse of Sant Climent de Taüll

A sacrifice is only of any use if it is accepted. Having rehearsed the context andcontent of the Sacrifice of the Mass, the Priest now pleads that it should beacceptable to God the Father. Heasks that the local offering be united with the universal offering in heavenand he cites three biblical precedents. Each, in its own way, is a precursor of the Mass. The story of Cain and Abel contraststhe offering of two brothers: Cain offered grain and Abel, animals. The offering of Abel was accepted byGod, probably because it was made out of love rather than fear. It is, of course, also the offering ofa once living thing and, therefore, more expressive of the sacrifice of our ownlives than an inanimate object. The story of Abraham takes this further still. God orders him to take his son Isaac to a place ofsacrifice. Short of sacrificingoneself, the offering of one’s closest blood relative is the greatest sacrificepossible. Of course, God does notallow this sacrifice to take place, but not before testing Abraham’sfaith. Faith in the eternalBridegroom is as central to sacrifice as is love. Indeed, the two strengthen each other. The example of Abraham showsdramatically that we should be prepared to give to God what is most precious tous knowing that He will remain faithful to us. When the sacrifice of Christ is central in our lives theyare turned into sacrifices acceptable to God. Thirdly, we have the offering of that mysterious figureMelchisedech. He is described asKing of Salem and a Priest. He offers bread and wine. ‘Salem’ means‘peace’. It is also part of theword ‘Jerusalem’ which means ‘city of peace’. Whoever he was, and whatever he signified to the OldTestament writers, the Christian implications are clear - he is the archetypeof the King of Peace, the Priest whose sacrifice points beyond Jerusalem andconsists of bread and wine. ThatJesus fulfils these archetypal images needs no further explanation.

In theEastern Rites of the Church the role of the Holy Spirit in uniting thesacrifice on Earth and that in heaven is always made explicit. In the Eucharist Prayers to be found inthe Roman Rite in the newer form the Eastern tradition is also followed. When the Holy Spirit is called upon inthis way, we refer to it as the Epiclesis (from a Greek word meaning‘invocation’). Of course, whetherthis is expressed in so many words or not, the Holy Spirit is the moving forceof the whole sacrificial process.

Eucharistic Prayer 2

Haec ergodona, quaesumus, Spiritus tui rore sanctifica …

Make holy,therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like thedewfall

Eucharistic Prayer 3

Suplicesergo te, Domine, deprecamur, et haec munera, quae tibi sacranda detulimus,eodem Spiritu santificare digneris …

by the powerand working of the Holy Spirit, you give life to all things and make them holy

Eucharistic Prayer 4

Quaesumusigitur, Domine, ut idem Spiritus Sanctus haec munera sanctificare dignetur …

O Lord, wepray: may this same Holy Spirit graciously sanctify these offerings

Law, Faith and Truth

2012-01-23T00:01:00.000Z

There has always been a tension in Christianitybetween grace and law. Famously, Saint Paul appears to denounce the Law infavour of faith in Christ. Yet the Church has always recognized that orderwithin the Church is essential to faith itself. A simple rejection of law(antinomianism) is condemned by the Catholic Church. Saint Paul makes the pointthat law arises from sin because without sin there would be no need for law,but of course there is sin and Christians are not automatically exempt from it.What he surely meant was that the blind following of the letter of the law doesnot automatically bring us nearer to God but when we see the spiritual purposeof the law through the eyes of Faith and are helped by God’s grace to liveaccordingly we are brought nearer to God. At the same time seeing the spiritualmeaning does not allow us to reject the letter of the law.

Speaking to the judges of the Roman Rota, the VaticanMarriage Tribunal, Pope Benedict has pointed out that all law – and mostobviously Canon Law (the Law of the Church) – cannot be based solely on humanvalues but must express eternal values. He said:

In recent times certain ways of thinking havecriticized the Law of the Church, starting with the Codes (of Canon Law),judging them an expression of legalism.

He goes on to say that this has led to a liberalinterpretation in which the individual case comes to define the law rather thanthe other way round. Decisions made on this basis seem to be motivated bypastoral concerns or theological insight but are ultimately simply arbitrary.This approach empties the law of all meaning and simply ignores the letter ofthe law in favour of an individual ‘dynamic’ interpretation. Canon Law should,said the Pope, be approached as a search for the Truth.

What I take from this is that the Pope wants us torecognize that the truly pastoral approach to Canon Law is to understand theChurch’s intention in formulating it and accepting it as an expression of God’swill rather than a matter of human convenience.

Vatican - Catholic presence on the Internet essential

2012-01-20T06:00:00.000Z

Archbishop Celli

Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, the president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, has emphasized that the presence of Catholics on the internet is essential.

He noted that in 2009, roughly 440 million Catholics went online.   Archbishop Celli made his comments at Mercy University in the Swiss city of Fribourg during a meeting organized by the Bishops’ Conference of Switzerland and the Swiss Press League. The event was held in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the pastoral instruction on social communications, “Communio et progressio.”    According to L’Osservatore Romano, Archbishop Celli said society has passed from the “era of information” to the “era of conversation,” in which the content is itself the object of dialogue.   Speaking about the social media, the archbishop said, “Language, understanding of communities and visibility are the great challenges facing those who want to be present in the new digital continent.”   He noted the important contributions to the world of communications made by Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI and said Catholics must meet the challenge of stepping into this “courtyard of the gentiles,” where God is unknown to many.

(Catholic News Agency)

Seeking unity among Christians

2012-01-19T08:59:00.000Z

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which began yesterday, was the theme of Benedict XVI's general audience celebrated yesterday morning in the Paul VI Hall. The Holy Father explained how this initiative has been held annually for more than a century and brings together Christians from Churches and ecclesial communities, who "invoke that extraordinary gift for which the Lord Jesus prayed during the Last Supper: ... 'That they may all be one'".

The Week of Prayer - established in 1908 by Paul Wattson, founder of an Anglican religious community who later entered the Catholic Church - "is one of the most effective annual e_xpressions ... of the impetus which Vatican Council II gave to the search for full union among all Christ's disciples", said the Pope. "This spiritual event, which unites Christians from all traditions, increases our awareness of the fact that the unity we strive for cannot result merely from our own efforts; rather, it is a gift we receive and must constantly invoke from on high".

The texts for this year's Week of Prayer have been prepared by a group of representatives from the Catholic Church, and from the Polish Ecumenical Council which proposed the theme of "We will all be changed by the victory of our Lord Jesus Christ". The history of Poland - marked by defeats and victories, by the struggle to end oppression and achieve freedom - led the ecumenical group to reflect more deeply upon what it means to "win" and to "lose".

In this context the Pope pointed out that, "in contrast to 'victory' understood in triumphal terms, Christ shows us a very different way. His victory does not involve power and might. ... Christ speaks of victory through love, mutual assistance and boosting the self-esteem of those who are 'last', forgotten, excluded. For all Christians, the best expression of such humble service is Jesus Christ Himself, His total gift of self, the victory of His love over death. ... We can share in this 'victory' only if we allow ourselves to be transformed by God".

Likewise, "the unity for which we pray requires inner conversion, both shared and individual. But this must not be limited to cordiality and cooperation; we must reinforce our faith in God; ... we must enter into the new life in Christ, Who is our true and definitive victory; we must open to one another, accepting all the elements of unity which God has conserved for us; ... we must feel the pressing need to bear witness, before the men and women of our time, to the living God Who made Himself known in Christ".

Ecumenism, as defined by Vatican Council II and Blessed John Paul II, is "the responsibility of the entire Church and of all the baptised, who must augment the partial communion that already exists among Christians until achieving full communion in truth and charity. Praying for unity ... must then be an integral part of the prayer life of all Christians, in all times and places, especially when people from different traditions come together to work for victory in Christ over sin, evil, injustice and the violation of human dignity".

Benedict XVI also pointed out that "lack of unity among Christians hinders the effective announcement of the Gospel and endangers our credibility", but noted that, "as far as the fundamental truths of the faith are concerned, there is far more that unites us than divides us. ... This is a great challenge for the new evangelisation, which will be more fruitful if all Christians together announce the truth of the Gospel and Jesus Christ, and give a joint response to the spiritual thirst of our times".

In conclusion, the Pope exhorted the faithful to unite more intensely in prayer during the course of the coming Week, "to increase shared witness, solidarity and collaboration among Christians, in expectation of that glorious day when together we will all be able to celebrate the Sacraments and profess the faith transmitted by the Apostles".

At the end of his audience, the Holy Father greeted a group of Italian lawyers, encouraging them to practise their profession "in faithfulness to the truth, which is a fundamental premise of justice".

(Vatican Information Service)

Submission or love - who is forcing whose conversion?

2012-01-18T05:30:00.000Z

I canunderstand the perplexity in the mind of a devout believer when someone‘converts’ to another religion. I know that my own conversion to Catholicismwas not universally applauded by my Anglican friends, or more perplexing forme, by some Catholics. I can, therefore, understand why Muslim authorities inIndia cannot believe that other Muslims have freely converted to Christianity.In fact they find this so perplexing that they would rather believe that theywere forced to convert against their will. A sharia court in Kashmir has cometo this conclusion in the cases of Father Jim Borst and Protestant Pastor C. M.Khanna whom they have found guilty of forcing conversions.

Fr Borst

As I say, Ican understand the perplexity that someone should voluntarily reject what Iconsider the truth and yet, in reality, this happens all the time. As I wroteyesterday, the number of Christians in the world is constantly increasing butit would be even greater if many others had not rejected the Truth. A criticaldifference I perceive between Islam and Christianity is the view we hold about submissionto Allah or God. Islam literally means submission. The human will is not evoked hereand neither is the concept of love – obedience is the be all and end all. Christianity, bycontrast accepts that without free and voluntary choice there can be no love.Love, for us, is a central issue because it is an act of the will, rather thanthe emotions, to live in response to God’s love for us. Christians hold thatboth God and his followers have, by acts of will, decided to love the other. Itis an unfortunate, but a necessary corollary, that some – many – decide to dootherwise. Historically, we have not always lived consistently with this beliefand we have been guilty of attempting to force compliance. It, nevertheless,remains the truth that whilst submission can be enforced, love cannot. What sort of a godwould prefer submission to the voluntary commitment of the will or whoserepresentatives would blame external influences for the rejection of such a godrather than looking to their own weaknesses.

What do readers think?

2012-01-17T13:21:00.000Z

I can honestly and very firmly recommend this book without reservation. It is an excellent choice for those who have been through the RCIA (the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) and want to look into matters a little more closely. It is easy to read, yet gives a thoughtful and knowledgeable insight into all manner of issues. Imagine yourself sitting in a comfy chair - I would describe this book as being rather like talking things through, in depth, with a close friend.

Review by a reader about 'How Catholics See God' on Amazon.co.uk

The fastest growing & most persecuted religion

2012-01-17T05:31:00.000Z

In the following video Fr Barron makes the point that Christianity is the largest religion in the world, the fasting growing everywhere apart from in Europe and North America and the most persecuted. The centuries of persecution and martyrdom did not end in the fourth century, or even the sixteenth - there were far most Christian martyrs in the twentieth century than at any other time in history.

Fr. Barron comments on A Persecuted Church and Its Heroes

2012-01-17T05:30:00.000Z

2012-01-16T07:51:00.000Z

Published today - Kindle edition of my book 'How Catholics See God' from Amazon.co.uk at £2.05

(Also available from other Amazon sites at various prices)

I am the Truth - Peace be with you

2012-01-16T00:01:00.000Z

Justiceand Peace has had a high profile in Catholic thought in recentyears, but what does the phrase mean? Pope Benedict offered this explanationrecently to the Vatican Police:

Justice isnot a mere human convention. When, in the name of supposed justice, thecriteria of utility, profit, and material possession come to dominate, thevalue and dignity of human beings can be trampled underfoot. Justice is avirtue which guides the human will, prompting us to give others what is due tothem by reason of their existence and their actions. Likewise, peace is not themere absence of war, or the result of man's actions to avoid conflict; it is,above all, a gift of God which must be implored with faith, and which has theway to its fulfillment in Jesus. True peace must be constructed day after daywith compassion, solidarity, fraternity, and collaboration on everyone's part.

Gaudium et Spes, the Vatican II document on the Church in the modern world uses the phrase ‘the truth of peace’, making the point that peaceresults from adherence to truth. By contrast, itfollows, that peace is shattered by adherence to what is false. The primeval sin was adherence to the knowledge that the world could beusurped for purposes contrary to the will of its creator. This attachment tolies and falsity, engendered by the notion that others are there simply for theself-gratification of the strongest, is the root cause of evil and war. Peaceis ‘the fruit of an order which has been planted in humansociety by its divine Founder.’ It comes as a gift from God as the fruitof lives lived according the will of God.

If peace isGod’s gift which flows from righteousness, what are we to say of justice? It is not about the mechanics of thelaw or the preservation of society as currently constituted but about therighteous life. If every human being lived the righteous life – the life livedaccording to God’s intention for us – we would recognize each other as membersof one family made in God’s image. We would recognize the value of human lifeand, therefore, the immense value of every individual. We would be at peacewith our fellow human beings and with God. We would not simply hold back fromharming others out of civilized politeness – a recognition that ourself-reservation requires restraint – we would do so because the way of love isits own reward. Achievement of this state depends on God working with usthrough grace.

Even in theworld as it is the righteous life that brings us personal peace and humanityone small step towards peace. Whilst legal restraints on the most egregiousactions by states and despotic individuals are of great benefit they do not, inthemselves, lead to righteous behaviour and peace. Only personal commitment tothe truth leads to righteousness. Furthermore, the Truth is not an impersonaltenet of belief but is incarnate in the Son of God.

Only bycommitting ourselves to the Truth revealed in Christ can we hope to becomerighteous or, as a consequence, can we expect person peace. Only with theultimate conversion of the world can the world as a whole expect peace andharmony. This is why the continuing mission of Christ through his Church ismuch more than a matter of the personal devotion of those who like that sort ofthing. It is something of vital significance to the whole of humanity.

Statues aren’t what they used to be

2012-01-13T00:30:00.000Z

The use of statues by the Catholic Church owes its dogmatic authority to the Second Council of Nicaea which took place in 787 AD. Contrary to those who said that they were graven images, and thus condemned by the Ten Commandments, this Council said that images could be ‘venerated’ because they looked beyond themselves to spiritual realities. In that context what are we to make of the enormous statue of Blessed John Paul II which stands outside Rome’s principal railway station. The President of Rome’s Cultural Commission, Federico Mollicone, describes it as ‘a permanent and sacrilegious mud stain on his memory.’

Erected only last year, the four metre high bronze statue is already in a state of decay. The head is strangely spherical. There is no body, the head being supported by an immense ‘cloak’ which forms a sort of cave into which you can walk. According to the sculptor, this is to allow us to enter into the inner man. This does not seem to me to be something which elicits veneration, or that raises the heart to God. Rather, it draws attention to the artist’s ‘self-expression’ in the way of secular art. To that extent it is a ‘graven image’ because it invites us to venerate the imagination of man rather than God.

Witnessing to Life even by death

2012-01-12T05:30:00.000Z

A reminder of a violent period for the early British Church
Swords used by Viking invaders

Having written yesterday about the year of Faith, I reflect today on the degree of commitment this entails and the possible consequences. Just as the Christmas season is interspersed with the feast days of martyrs so the Church today, in the midst of joy, finds itself saddened by violence. You will recall in the last few months the murderous attacks on Christians at prayer in Nigeria on Christmas Day and the earlier attacks in Egypt. A report has now been issued by the Vatican detailing the deaths of 26 priests, religious and lay workers throughout 2011. It quotes the words of Pope Benedict: ‘the sincere adherence to the Gospel may require the sacrifice of life, and many Christians in various parts of the world are sometimes exposed to persecution and martyrdom.’

The highest dead-toll was in Columbia and Mexico. Many of these deaths were because the victims were in the wrong place at the wrong time and were not related to faith. They occurred during robberies or kidnapping but some where motivated by religious hatred. These include Sister Valsha John, killed by a mob after several years of activism against mining interests; and Father Fausto Tentorio, a missionary priest who worked on behalf of indigenous peoples in the Philippines and died at the hands of two gunmen.

This is a sad commentary on the fact that Christians are not exempt from violence, but also that some Christians are killed specifically for their beliefs. Christianity calls us to embrace life, not to seek out death or martyrdom but our deaths, just as much as our lives, can witness to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Plant the seeds and reap the harvest of Faith

2012-01-11T04:30:00.000Z

Saint Peter

‘From the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI has worked decisively for a correct understanding of the (Second Vatican) Council, rejecting as erroneous the so-called “hermeneutic of discontinuity and rupture” and promoting what he himself has termed ‘the “hermeneutic of reform,” of renewal in continuity.’

These words from a document issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) make very explicit the major theme of this Pontificate. The Pope is urging the Church to see the perfectly legitimate forms in which the Faith, and its practice, have been expressed in the last half-century in the context of the whole history of the Church. Putting it bluntly, the Church did not start or finish with the Second Vatican Council. After every Ecumenical Council there has been a period of significant ‘turbulence’ during which that Council’s insights are assimilated. It is still common to hear Vatican II referred to simply as ‘the Council’ as if the previous 20 are irrelevant or even erroneous.

First Ecumenical Council
Nicaea 325 AD

The CDF document is issued in preparation for the ‘Year of Faith’ which starts in October and finishes on Christ the King next year. It is significant that October marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of Vatican II and the twentieth anniversary of the publication of the ‘Catechism of the Catholic Church.’ The Year of Faith is intended to renew the Faith in the light of the whole history of its development within the worshipping community of the Church and in anticipation of its future. It fits together with the Papal emphasis on the re-evangelization of the old Catholic heartlands. It will involve decisive actions at every level starting with a Synod of Bishops in Rome, a world Youth Day in Brazil and ‘a solemn ecumenical celebration in which all of the baptized will reaffirm their faith in Christ.’ Episcopal Conferences are to be encouraged to use new media channels to bring the message of Christ to the world. Dioceses are to ‘renew creative dialogue between faith and reason.’

Twenty-first, and most recent, Ecumenical Council
Vatican 1962-1965 AD

Two hundred & sixty-fifth
successor of Saint Peter
Pope Benedict XVI

In many ways most significant is the connection that the Holy Father makes between Faith and Liturgy – a constant theme in his theological publications. The document makes the point in these words: the Mass is the ‘mystery of faith and source of the new evangelization, the faith of the Church is proclaimed, celebrated and strengthened.’ I heard it said by Mgr Keith Newton whilst he was still an Anglican Bishop that the ‘Mass is the whole of the Faith’. It is certainly true that the Faith is nurtured in our Lord’s offering of himself, made present to us at every Mass. The Mass, and the other sacraments are the crucibles of Faith and the font from which evangelism gains its force and power to save. We pray for the Holy Father’s intention.

The temporal consequences of sin and the role of Indulgences

2012-01-10T05:30:00.000Z

The abuse of Indulgences was the catalyst forMartin Luther’s rejection of the Catholic Church. The rejection of Indulgencesbecame one of the founding principles of Protestantism as a result. It is muchto the Church’s shame that this abuse took place but it does not justify therejection of Indulgences as such, only their abuse. Even the nature of theabuse wasn’t quite what is normally thought – the Church did not sellIndulgences, she misappropriated the funds of genuine donations given tocharity. This is not morally better than selling Indulgencesand does not excuse the Church and her leaders in any way, but it is not thesame thing as reported by many even to this day. Certainly the Church does notstand by her illicit actions of the past and as early as in 1567 Pope Pius Vcancelled all grants of indulgences involving any fees or other financialtransactions.

Setting aside the abuseof Indulgences they are, in themselves, part of the Catholic Faith. TheEcumenical Council of Constance (1414-18) condemned the teaching of JohnWycliffe for rejecting Indulgences. The Ecumenical Council of Trent, in its1563 session, gave Indulgences dogmatic status as an article of faith (defede). So Catholics must, to remain in good faith, believe in the efficacy of Indulgences,but what are they really?. The modern Catechism of the Catholic Churchsays the following:

Anindulgence is obtained through the Church who, by virtue of the power ofbinding and loosing granted her by Christ Jesus, intervenes in favour of individualChristians and opens for them the treasury of the merits of Christ and thesaints to obtain from the Father of mercies the remission of the temporalpunishment due for their sins.

(CCC1478).

The first crucial thing to note about thisdefinition is that we are concerned here with ‘temporal punishment’ notforgiveness. The Church has always recognized that the temporal consequences ofsin do not go away just because the sinner is forgiven. Non-Catholics oftenthink that sacramental Confession gives easy grace.By this they mean that, however, grave the sin all is resolved by a few wordsfrom the priest. In a sense they are right because God is more forgiving thanany of us provided that we are truly repentant. The last fewwords of the last sentence are a critical proviso. However, forgiving a sin isnot the same as eliminating its consequences. If I steal something and amforgiven I still need to restore the item or be punished. If I kill someone,even if I am forgiven, I still have to go to prison because of the on-goinggrief for the family and friends of the deceased and the negative implicationsfor society of the taking of human life. If I gossip about someone the mischiefI have caused is not removed by my forgiveness. For this reason the Church hasalways added penance to forgiveness.After the absolution the priest will give a penance,an act of restitution usually in the form of prayers. In the early Church thesepenances we more like the sentences of a court in the sense that the penitent wouldbe deprived of communion for a significant period – years in the case of gravesins. In addition they would have to make amends or at least demonstrate theirdetermination to avoid sin in future. In this context the penance would beexpressed in terms of the acts to be carried out and for how long (the numberof days). Just as in our criminal justice system the sentence given by a courtcan later be modified, through the parole system if a prisoner is deemedreformed, so the Church can also modify her previous penances. When thishappened in the early Church communion was restored a specified number of daysearlier than originally determined.

An Indulgence, in the early Church, was theformal reduction in the penance imposed following absolution for sins expressedin a number of days. Even when the practicalities of Confession changed theterminology remained the same. Consequently, until the time of Pope Paul VI inthe 1970s Indulgences were expressed in numbers of days. Many people got theidea from this that it referred to the number of days a person’s time inPurgatory would be reduced by even though the Church has no claim determine thesituation in Purgatory. It simply meant that the higher the number of ‘days’specified the greater the value of the work of restitution and the great therectification of the temporal effects of sin. Think of it in practical terms –any genuine act of love and mercy goes some small way to overcoming theinsidious effects of sin in the world. Saint Paul expresses it thus:

NowI rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what islacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church

Col.1:24

Thiswhole article is a spin-off from my previous article on Purgatory (9^thDecember) since this is the context in which Indulgences are most known, butwhat is the connection? As a result of carrying out an act of charity(including prayer for others, fasting, practical or financial assistance) youbecome a better person. At the same time you make the world a better place. Thebenefits to yourself are personal and not transferable but the effect on theworld is for the good of all. The doing of good to and for others is termed vicarioussatisfaction. Both your personalsanctification and the vicarious satisfaction which accompanies it have theirultimate origin in Christ and his universal sacrifice. We cannot do good forourselves or others without his grace. Therefore the Church, building upon the image of heavenly treasuredescribed by Christ, talks of the treasure of the Church. This treasure can be expended forthe good of others, including those in Purgatory. Though the Church has nocontrol over Purgatory she can praythat God will take into account what she, through the grace of Christ, has doneto improve the world be of benefit for the purification of our predecessors.The Church has no right to influence thepurgatorial process but she does have the promise that God will hear ourprayers.

TAC Bishop received into the Catholic Church

2012-01-09T00:01:00.000Z

Robert Mercer, the Episcopal Visitor of the Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC) in the UK, has been received into full communion with the Catholic Church. The TAC is an international grouping of ‘continuing’ Anglican Churches set up in 1991 to provide a home for those who reject the changes made in the Anglican Communion, from which they departed. It is characterized by a catholic interpretation of Anglicanism in both doctrine and liturgy. In recent years it has been in discussion with the Holy See over the possibility of corporate reunion with the Catholic Church. As part of this process its constituent churches have declared their full agreement with the Catechism of the Catholic Church. These discussions, together with requests by certain Church of England Bishops, led to the establishment of the Ordinariates in Britain and the USA.

The Former Anglican Bishop

Mr Mercer was a member of the Community of the Resurrection, an Anglican Religious Order, for 49 years. He served as the Anglican Bishop of Matabeleland (in communion with Canterbury) from 1977 to 1989. In that year he joined the Anglican Catholic Church in Canada (now a constituent Church of the TAC) where he was Metropolitan Bishop. On retirement in 2005 he settled in England and acted as the episcopal representative of the Canadian body to its minute English offshoot.

The Reverend Robert Dolling

It is interesting to note that the Mass on the occasion of Mr Mercer’s reception was according to the Book of Divine Worship, a Vatican-approved liturgy for use in North America by Anglican-use Catholic parishes (see my article on 3rd January). It is also significant that it took place in a TAC church. Does this mean that the TAC in England is about to cross the Tiber? By the way the church was built in the nineteenth century by a then-famous High Church cleric Robert Dolling who, like most of his contemporary Anglo-Catholic clergy combined beautiful worship with devoted care for the poor and sick. His ‘Ten Years in a Portsmouth Slum’ shows how Christianity is for all classes and sorts of people at a time when the Church of England showed little interest in the industrial poor. If the recent converts to the Church from Anglicanism can bring that tradition of worship and service with them we will all be enriched.

God's holy image is before us

2012-01-06T00:01:00.000Z

Until the last few years the word ‘icon’ waslargely unknown to most westerners. It was a technical word used todescribe certain pictures found widely in eastern Christianity – bothCatholic and Orthodox. Christian icons are paintings, usually on wood,with a Christian subject such as Our Lord, his Mother, or one of theSaints. Their creators consider their very production to be acts ofprayer. People pray in front of them. Priests offer incense beforethem. They are kissed and used in personal prayer. People interactwith them and their lives are changed through encountering the sacred realityportrayed in them.

In the eighth century a great controversy arosein the Church because the Eastern Roman Emperors, who ruled from Constantinople(current-day Istanbul), abolished icons from the Churches in theirjurisdiction, claiming that they were blasphemous. They pointed to theteaching, received by Moses in the first of the Ten Commandments:

I am theLord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house ofslavery; you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make foryourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, orthat is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them.

Exodus20.2-5

The Second Council of Nicaea in 787 should bedear to every Catholic heart though, my guess is, few have even heard ofit. It rejected the teachings of those who said that there could be norepresentation of God, of angels, of Our Lady or the Saints. It declaredas an authentic and authoritative truth – a dogma – that since theimage of God in human form is revealed in Christ, this image could not beequated with a pagan idol and nor could artistic representations ofit. This dogma applies to sacred representational art in general and notjust to a particular artistic genre. The Church encourages her members toworship God through the veneration of sacred images. We worship God alonebut we give great honour (veneration) to those people and things which point ustowards God.

Why doesthe Church hold what is, to many, such an outrageous position? She doesso because her teaching is based on her adherence to an even more outrageousbelief. She actually believes that Jesus Christ is God himself madeMan. He is not a Godlike man or a man adopted by God nor simply a goodman nor even just a prophet – he is the same God who made the wholeuniverse. Jews and Moslems reject this as obvious nonsense. It isthe basis of the original split from Judaism. In theory, Jews couldaccept Jesus as a prophet, and indeed, Islam actually does just that. What they cannot stomach is the belief that he is God. But if ouroutrageous claim is true ordinary men have actually seen, touched, spoken toand eaten with God! And, if so, then God can now be represented becausehe has made himself visible for all time. The representation of a falsegod is one thing: the representation of the true God, as he represented himself,is another. A false god is the work of human hands and, although it canbe made to look as though it has life, it is in fact a dead thing. On theother hand, though a statue of Jesus Christ is a piece of wood or marble itrepresents a living reality and draws us into that reality.

Icons arenot intended to show the skill of the artist. They are not about artisticexpression. They seek to draw the viewer into a greater reality. We see aman, but the image leads us to God. When approached with the rightintention, a sacred image opens up our knowledge of God and our connection tohim. The veneration of the image follows, logically and spiritually, fromour belief in the incarnation of the Lord. ‘Incarnation’ refers to God‘taking flesh’. God, who is ‘invisible and far away’ becomes ‘visible andnear to us’.

In thisperiod of Christmas we have seen the Lord and his mother represented oninnumerable cards on television and the crib at church. We are about to moveinto that phase of Christmas where we move the spotlight to the wider scene.With the Epiphany the three visitors from the east represent the world outsidecoming to pay homage to Jesus. What we would have seen, had we been there, wasthree men carrying boxes. What we ‘see’ when we apply faith to history is thatGod incarnate is the Saviour of the world – not just the Jewish Messiah. If weseek we will find God. He speaks to us in, and through, history provided thatwe have the eyes and ears of faith.

This article is based on an extract from my book

'How Catholics See God - the Image of God in Catholic Imagery'

Now available for $8.99 from Amazon.com

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What is the Mass really about?

2012-01-05T05:30:00.000Z

Part 6 - TheAnamnesis

Unde etmemores, Domine, nos servi tui, sed et plebs tua sancta, eiusdem Christi Filiitui Domini nostri tam beatae passionis, necnon et ab inferis resurrectionis,sed et in Coelos gloriosae ascensionis: offerimus praeclarae maiestati tuae detuis donis ac datis. Hostiam puram, Hostiam sanctam, Hostiam immaculatam. Panemsanctum vitae aeternae, et Calicem salutis perpetuae.

Therefore, OLord, as we celebrate the memorial of the blessed Passion, the Resurrectionfrom the dead, and the glorious Ascension into heaven of Christ, your Son, ourLord, we, your servants and your holy people, offer to your glorious majestyfrom the gifts that you have given us, this pure victim, this holy victim, thisspotless victim, the holy Bread of eternal life and the Chalice of everlastingsalvation.

We now have the sacramental presence of Jesus on thealtar. The Priest’s words make theexplicit connection between this presence and the historic events of theGospel. The principal points ofconnection are the death, the Resurrection and the Ascension of Christ. Once again this is not a simplerecollection of something in the past. Because we are in the presence of Jesus we are transported into theuniversal significance of these events. The sacrifice starts on the Cross, is vindicated in the Resurrection andis taken into heaven at the Ascension. We are present at Calvary and united in the death of the sacrificialvictim. We are raised to New Lifeas the Sacrifice is seen to be an acceptable offering by God the Father. We are in the presence of the Holy ofHolies where we are given the privilege of worshipping God because of ourLord’s Sacrifice which we have made our own.

This prayer is called the‘Anamnesis’ a term derived from a Greek word meaning ‘memorial’. The Catechism of the Catholic Churchexplains its meaning as follows:

§1363 In the sense of Sacred Scripture thememorial is not merely the recollection of past events but the proclamation ofthe mighty works wrought by God for men .… When the Church celebrates theEucharist, she commemorates Christ's Passover, and it is made present thesacrifice Christ offered once for all on the Cross remains ever present. "As often as the sacrifice of theCross by which 'Christ our Pasch has been sacrificed' is celebrated on thealtar, the work of our redemption is carried out."

§1365Because it is the memorial of Christ's Passover, the Eucharist is also asacrifice. The sacrificialcharacter of the Eucharist is manifested in the very words of institution…

Eucharistic Prayer 2

Memoresigitur mortis et resurrectionis eius, tibi, Domine, panem vitae et calicemsalutis offerimus

Therefore,as we celebrate the memorial of his Death and Resurrection, we offer you, Lord,the Bread of life and the Chalice of salvation …

EucharisticPrayer 3

Memoresigitur, Domine, eiusdem Filii tui salutiferae passionis necnon mirabilisresurrectionis et ascensionis in caelum, sed et praestolantes alterum eiusadventum, offerimus tibi gratias referentes, hoc sacrificium vivum et sanctum.

Therefore, OLord, as we celebrate the memorial of the saving Passion of your Son, hiswondrous Resurrection and Ascension into heaven, and as we look forward to hissecond coming, we offer you in thanksgiving this holy and living sacrifice.

EucharisticPrayer 4

Unde et nos,Domine, redemptionis nostrae memoriale nunc celebrantes, mortem Christi eiusquedescensum ad inferos recolimus, eius resurrectionem et ascensionem ad tuamdexteram profitemur, et, exspectantes ipsius adventum in gloria, offerimus tibieius Corpus et Sanguinem, sacrificium tibi acceptablile et toti mundo salutare.

Therefore, OLord, as we now celebrate the memorial of our redemption, we remember Christ’sdeath and his descent to the realm of the dead, we proclaim his Resurrectionand his Ascension to your right hand; and as we await his coming in glory, weoffer you his Body and Blood, the sacrifice acceptable to you which bringssalvation to the whole world.

The meaning of life

2012-01-04T05:00:00.000Z

On the last day of last year thePope contemplated the meaning of life in the context of the apparentaimlessness into which our lives and our society tends to drift. These are hiswords:

Another year is drawing to aclose, as we await the start of a new one: with some trepidation, with ourperennial desires and expectations. Reflecting on our life experience, we arecontinually astonished by how ultimately short and ephemeral life is. So weoften find ourselves asking: what meaning can we give to our days? Whatmeaning, in particular, can we give to the days of toil and grief? This is aquestion that ... runs through the heart of every generation and everyindividual. But there is an answer: it is written on the face of a Child Whowas born in Bethlehem two thousand years ago, and is today the Living One,risen for ever from the dead. From within the fabric of humanity, rent asunderby so much injustice, wickedness and violence, there bursts forth in anunforeseen way the joyful and liberating novelty of Christ our Saviour, Wholeads us to contemplate the goodness and tenderness of God through the mysteryof His Incarnation and Birth.

Since the Day of the Lord'sNativity, the fullness of time has reached us. So there is no more room foranxiety in the face of time that passes, never to return; now there is room forunlimited trust in God, by Whom we know we are loved. ... Since the Saviourcame down from heaven, man has ceased to be the slave of time that passes to noavail, marked by toil, sadness and pain. Man is son of a God Who has enteredtime so as to redeem it from meaninglessness and negativity, a God Who hasredeemed all humanity, giving it everlasting love as a new perspective of life.

The Church lives and professesthis truth and intends to proclaim it today with fresh spiritual vigour. ...Christ's disciples are called to reawaken in themselves and in others thelonging for God and the joy of living Him and bearing witness to Him. ... Wemust give primacy to truth, seeing the combination of faith and reason as twowings with which the human spirit can rise to the contemplation of the Truth;we must ensure that the dialogue between Christianity and modern culture bearsfruit; we must see to it that the beauty and contemporary relevance of the faithis rediscovered, ... as a constant orientation, affecting even the simplestchoices, establishing a profound unity within the person, so that he becomesjust, hard-working, generous and good. What is needed is to give new life to afaith that can serve as a basis for a new humanism, one that is able togenerate culture and social commitment".

To proclaim faith in the Wordmade flesh is ... at the heart of the Church's mission, and the entireecclesial community needs to rediscover this indispensable task with renewedmissionary zeal. Young generations have an especially keen sense of the presentdisorientation, magnified by the crisis in economic affairs which is also acrisis of values, and so they in particular need to recognise in Jesus Christ'the key, the centre and the purpose of the whole of human history'.

Ever since God sent Hisonly-begotten Son, so that we might obtain adoptive sonship, we can have nogreater task than to be totally at the service of God's plan.

Te Deum laudamus!' We praiseyou, O God! The Church suggests that we should not end the year withoutexpressing our thanks to the Lord for all His benefits. It is in God that ourlast hour must come to a close, the last hour of time and history. To overlookthis goal of our lives would be to fall into the void, to live without meaning.Hence the Church places on our lips the ancient hymn 'Te Deum'. It is a hymnfilled with the wisdom of many Christian generations, who feel the need toaddress on high their heart's desires, knowing that all of us are in the Lord'smerciful hands.

With hearts full of thanksgiving, let usprepare to cross the threshold of 2012, remembering that the Lord is watchingover us and guarding us. To Him this evening we wish to entrust the wholeworld. Let us place in His hands the tragedies of this world and let us alsooffer Him our hopes for a brighter future.

Rio Grande, Chair of St Peter & Walsingham

2012-01-03T00:01:00.000Z

Fr Steenson

Congratulations to Fr Jeffrey Steenson who has been appointed the first Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of The Chair of St Peter, erected on 1st January in the United States. This is the second ‘Ordinariate’ – or special jurisdiction – for ex-Anglicans within the Catholic Church, the first having been set up in England at the beginning of last year. Under special legislation an Ordinariate, whilst working closely with local dioceses, is directly subject to the Holy See. They are a response to an ecumenical need that allows a degree of continuity not just for ex-Anglican individuals, but for groups of worshippers. For forty years discussions have continued between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion which, had they been successful, would have led to the entry of the latter into the Catholic Church as an ecclesial entity. Unfortunately, Anglicanism has moved further away from Catholic belief and practice such that corporate reunion seems impossible. However, what is impossible for the whole of Anglicanism is now possible for small remnants seeking to live in full communion with the Church whilst retaining some elements of their Anglican identity.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that a special provision for ex-Anglicans has been made. Fr Jeffrey Steenson, the new Ordinary, was the Anglican Bishop of Rio Grande but he has not moved directly from this to his new Ordinariate in the same way that Mgr Keith Newton did in England. Fr Steenson has been a Catholic since 2007 and a Catholic priest since 2009, having been ordained under a special pastoral provision which applies only in the USA. This provision has existed since 1979 after the United States National Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith had reacted favourably to the proposals that had been put before them to allow certain married ex-Anglican ministers to become Catholic priests. These priests act as Pastors of personal parishes – local jurisdictions based on the person of the priest rather than on a geographical area – within ordinary Catholic dioceses. They may use either the Roman Rite liturgy or a special – Vatican approved – form using those parts of the Anglican liturgy acceptable to the Catholic Church. It is expected that a similar liturgy will emerge for use in existing and future Ordinariates.

Meanwhile, in the Church of England the never-ending round of debates about women Bishops continues. The meeting of General Synod is said to be on a knife-edge. These are troubling and anxious times once again for Anglican ‘catholic traditionalists.’ So, is the Ordinariate the answer to their prayers? For some yes, for many no. Mgr Newton, the head of the English Ordinariate, is on record saying ‘…you can’t become a Catholic because you simply want to escape the problems of the Church of England – you have to want to become a Catholic.’

The need to be in full communion with the Catholic Church is the key. If you come to believe that the Catholic Church is the original, and only comprehensively authentic source of Christianity, you need to join her or you will be living a lie. If you don’t need to join, don’t ! This doesn’t mean that you cannot start from a negative – after all the rejection of sin (negative) is the first stage to eternal life (positive). In my case – as an ex-Anglican Minister – the need started to manifest itself in a very negative way. I began to realize that the problem with the debate about women priests and bishops is that it seemed to be about he role of women but was really a profound disagreement about the nature of priesthood. The sacrificial – catholic – view of priesthood that I held was clearly at odds with the official view and with the view of the vast majority of Anglicans. I had a radically different view of the nature of the problem for ‘traditional catholic’ Anglicans to almost all of my friends. I could not see how setting up a separate jurisdiction within the Church of England could change the fact that our views were totally inconsistent with that body – what we needed was an autonomous ecclesial body (a continuing church). I supported a separate jurisdiction as a stepping-stone to independence (rather like the Scottish Nationalist Party!).

Even before this jurisdictional solution was rejected I had become even more negative! Following the logic that my views were inconsistent with those of Anglicanism I began examining the Church of England anew. Instead of seeing it as a branch of the Catholic Church whose leaders were denying our heritage, or even as a schismatic Church in which it was possible to live a ‘catholic’ life, I began to recognize it as an ecclesial body based on a deliberately ill-defined form of pragmatic Protestantism. From this negative sprang the positive. The problem was not with the Church of England but with me! I had tried to impose on it my own catholic views rather than seeking to change myself. Without first recognizing that I was not already a Catholic – let alone a Catholic priest - I could not become a Catholic and I needed to if I did not want to live a lie.

Therefore, the Ordinariates are not a convenient jurisdictional solution for Anglicans who feel that their Church has left them behind and become heretical – what they need is a purified separate body of Anglican origin. NO, the Ordinariates are fully integrated into the Catholic Church. Her members are Catholics in good standing, their beliefs are identical with other Catholics, they are subject to the teaching and jurisdiction of the Pope. You cannot, and should not join, if you cannot accept and promote in good faith all that the Catholic Church believes and promotes.

A Christmas message from Nigeria

2012-01-02T01:30:00.000Z

The fire of hatred or the light of love?

In the Christmas liturgical season the Church has juxtaposed the joy of the Incarnation with the consequences of discipleship. On the day immediately after Christmas we celebrate the first Christian martyr, Stephen. The following day we celebrate the propagation of the Gospel with John the Evangelist, to be followed by the martyrdom of the Holy Innocents. On the 23rd December I introduced a video by Fr Barron with the reminder that Christianity is a radical Faith, not a sentimental retreat from reality. This is why the Church intertwines the liturgy of the martyrs, evangelists and the Incarnation of Our Lord.

For the second year running this reality has been tragically acted out in Nigeria. The al Qaeda-linked Islamist group Boko Haram killed 41 Christians whilst celebrating the Incarnation and wounded about 100 others. Just as in the Troubles in Northern Ireland the motivations are a mixture of religious hatred and ethnic rivalry. The northern tribes feel disadvantaged economically in respect to the south and the two areas are also split between Christianity and Islam. Therefore, it is easy to blur the political, ethnic and religious motives and to get support on the basis of these very mixed motives.

In a statement on the website of the Nigerian Catholic Church Bishop Augustine Ukwuoma has described the violence as ‘a purveyor of disintegration and an impediment to socio-economic development, stressing that Nigeria can only survive as an entity in an atmosphere of peace and brotherly love.’ Here we have the contrast between two forms of religious radicalism. The path of violence has a long history. The Zealots of Jesus’ time sought to restore the kingdom of God through the violent overthrow of the occupying Roman power. By comparison Jesus sought to bring about the kingdom of God by far more radical means – the conversion of souls. Christianity does not preach submission to God but the love of God. God could force us to do what we do not will but then we would be slaves. When our hearts and minds are free to love, even if we are physically enslaved, we are – by contrast – free.

Violence, by definition, is a denial of life. Christianity accepts the concept of the martyr and clearly those who died whilst at prayer are witnesses to God (the literal meaning of martyr is witness). Par excellence Christ is the ultimate witness. But they are witnesses not because they perpetrate violence but because they are the victims of it. What sort of a god do those who use violence believe in? Is their god so weak that he needs to kill to show how great he is? I have argued elsewhere that self-defence can be justified but it is always second best. It would always be better to win over the potential aggressor by extending to him the love of God. As the Bishop says Nigeria – and one could say human society in general – can only survive on the basis of lives lived in peace and brotherly love.

Mother of God, pray for us

2012-01-01T05:00:00.000Z

Solemnity of the Mother of God

Octave Day of Christmas

Of course, Mary isnot the mother of God in an absolute sense, since that would mean that were theultimate cause of everything and therefore God herself! But she is the Motherof God Incarnate. The Greek word Θεοτόκος (Theotokos) was adopted by the Third Ecumenical Council– at Ephesus in 431AD – as a Christological dogma. It appears to be an honorary title for Mary, but is really aboutMary’s function in salvation. That which is born in Bethlehem is a human child,but more than a human child. The child that is born is not just good, orsuperhuman, he is God. He has a human nature and a divine nature but is unitedin one Person who is born of Mary.

The Octave of Christmas is the period of eight days, starting with Christmas Day, during which substantial parts of the Divine Office - the daily prayer of the Church - is repeated daily. It is as if the clock had stopped and the Church doe not want to let go of the great even of the Incarnation.

The joy of the Incarnation

2011-12-31T05:01:00.000Z

Towards a solution to the Western crisis

2011-12-30T04:00:00.000Z

Just before Christmas the Pope, in a speech to the RomanCuria, addressed the crisis of European Christianity in these words:

Even if suchvalues as solidarity, commitment to one’s neighbour and responsibility towardsthe poor and suffering are largely uncontroversial, still the motivation isoften lacking for individuals and large sectors of society to practiserenunciation and make sacrifices. … Some quite fundamental questions emergefrom this crisis: where is the light that is capable of illuminating ourperception not merely with general ideas, but with concrete imperatives?

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

He identifies the solution as Faith and proceeds to makeconcrete points to explain his point. We must, first of all, experience theuniversal (catholic) nature of the Christian family. We are all sons anddaughters of God, however different we may be in most other respects – athought which is most apt today on the Feast of the Holy Family. Therecognition of Christ in each other links us together in a deep union. Weshould not approach the Faith to get to Heaven, avoid Hell or to seek self-fulfilment. Faith is not about what is goodfor us but is an ‘encounter with Jesus Christ, inflaming us withlove for God and for others, and freeing us from seeking our own ego.’ When weare united to others and motivated by love for them it becomes natural for usto adore God, especially in the Blessed Sacrament:

God is notjust some possible or impossible hypothesis concerning the origin of allthings. He is present. And if he is present, then I bow down before him.

The nearerwe are to God the greater our recognition of our sinfulness and our need forconfession and absolution, Our encounter with Christ brings us joy:

Where doesit come from? How is it to be explained? Certainly, there are many factors atwork here. But in my view, the crucial one is this certainty, based on faith: Iam wanted; I have a task in history; I am accepted, I am loved.

So, if we are to renew Western society we need to look, notjust to economic solutions, but to concrete Christian Faith built on unity,love for others, adoration of God, recognition of our own sinfulness and joy inrecognising our true purpose in life.

Saint Thomas of Becket, pray for us.

2011-12-29T05:01:00.000Z

FEAST IN ENGLAND AND WALES

Martyr

Twelfth century Archbishop of Canterbury.

Murdered whilst celebrating Mass on the orders of the King because he stood up for the rights of the Church.

In England and Wales today is the Feast of Saint Thomas Becket. His martyrdom is a classic tale of the clash between the authority of the Church and the power of the state. He was Lord Chancellor (a bit like a Prime Minister) under King Henry II. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by the King as his placeman within the Church who would loosen the ties to Rome and Church independence in general, he turned out to be a defender of the Faith. Thomas Becket was not even a cleric at this time he was appointed to Canterbury but once consecrated and in position, proved to be very ascetic. He refused to accept the authority of the King over the Church. As a feast within Christmas week we might reflect that the small, apparently insignificant, individual who is in the manger is subject to no other authority and that as his body Holy Church is autonomous of the state in respect to belief and spiritual practice.

Answers to yesterday's quiz

2011-12-29T04:59:00.000Z

1. Is the Pope preserved from sin? No

2. What is a ciborium? A vessel used at Mass for the bread which becomes the Body of Christ

3. Who was the angel who announced the good news to Mary? Gabriel

4. How many decades are there on a rosary? Five

5. How often, as a minimum, must a Catholic make a sacramental confession? Once a year

6. Does the Immaculate Conception relate to the birth of Jesus? No, it refers to the conception of Mary

7. Can Catholic clergy be Married? Married men may become Deacons. Priests of the Roman Rite may not marry (unless they come under the special law relating to convert Anglican Ministers. Married men of the Eastern Catholic Rites may be ordained Priest. Married men may not be Bishops)

8. What is a pyx used for? To carry the Blessed Sacrament to the sick who are to receive communion.

9. How many days are there from Easter to Ascension Day (presuming that the latter has not been transferred to a Sunday), and why? Forty days, the period between the Resurrection of Jesus and his return to Heaven

Holy Innocents, pray for us.

2011-12-28T05:01:00.000Z

Tomb of the Holy Innocent
in the Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem

Once more, in this week of Christmas we turn to martyrdom. A martyr is, literally, a witness and we are all called to witness. Today though we recall the event during which King Herod attempted to kill Jesus by killing all babies within his age range. These were innocent victims who had no understanding but who were in a state of grace. In a more allegorical sense we might reflect about how those in power have tried to destroy or corrupt the Faith through the ages and, in the process, have destroyed the lives of innocent victims.

Holy Innocents' Day Quiz

2011-12-28T05:00:00.000Z

1. Is the Pope preserved from sin?

2. What is a ciborium?

3. Who was the angel who announced the good news toMary?

4. How many decades are there on a rosary?

5. How often, as a minimum, must a Catholic make asacramental confession?

6. Does the Immaculate Conception relate to thebirth of Jesus?

7. Can Catholic clergy be Married?

8. What is a pyx used for?

9. How many days are there from Easter to AscensionDay (presuming that the latter has not been transferred to a Sunday), and why?

Answers tomorrow

Answers to yesterday's quiz

2011-12-28T04:58:00.000Z

1. What Religious Order was Luther a member of? Augustinian

2. What is the Roman Rite? The Latin Church, over which the Pope is Patriarch. The term can also apply to the form of Mass used in the Latin Church.

3. What is the cloth used to clean the sacred vessels called? Purificator

4. What is the liturgical colour for Advent? Violet

5. Where is the Blessed Sacrament reserved? Tabernacle

6. What does the term ‘Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus mean? Outside the Church there is no salvation

7. How many children did Mary have? One

8. Who was the first Pope? Saint Peter

9. What is the literal meaning of the word ‘catholic’? Universal

Saint John the Evangleist, pray for us.

2011-12-27T05:00:00.000Z

On the Feastof Saint John the Evangelist, we recall that the Incarnation of Our Lord needs tobe known throughout the world. Few of us are Evangelists, nor do we write booksor stand up in front of hundreds of people. But everyone knows someone. Ifeveryone spoke to someone about his or her need for Christ, the work of Godwould be significantly advanced.

Saint John's Day Quiz

2011-12-27T04:59:00.000Z

1. What Religious Order was Luther a member of?

2. What is the Roman Rite?

3. What is the cloth used to clean the sacredvessels called?

4. What is the liturgical colour for Advent?

5. Where is the Blessed Sacrament reserved?

6. What does the term ‘Extra Ecclesiam nulla salusmean?

7. How many children did Mary have?

8. Who was the first Pope?

9. What is the literal meaning of the word‘catholic’?

Answers tomorrow

Answers to yesterday's quiz

2011-12-27T04:49:00.000Z

1. Who in the Bible saw a burning bush? Moses

2. What is the period of preparation for Easter called? Lent

3. At Mass what is a corporal? The square of cloth on which the bread and wine are placed for consecration.

4. Where was Jesus born? Bethlehem

5. What was John the Baptist’s mother called? Elizabeth

6. What is the period of preparation for Christmas called? Advent

7. At Mass what is a pall? A stiffened piece of cloth, placed on the chalice to avoid contamination.

8. Is Jesus human or divine? Both

9. Who was the first Pope? Peter

Saint Stephen, pray for us.

2011-12-26T05:01:00.000Z

Giotto

Today we recall the first person ever to be killed as a direct cause of his faith in Jesus Christ his Lord and Saviour. The martyrdom of Saint Stephen is recounted in the Acts of the Apostles:

Youstiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the HolyGhost: as your fathers did, so do you also. Which of the prophets have not yourfathers persecuted? And they have slain them who foretold of the coming of theJust One; of whom you have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who havereceived the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it. Nowhearing these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed with theirteeth at him. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looking up steadfastly toheaven, saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. Andhe said: Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on theright hand of God.

Andthey crying out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and with one accord ranviolently upon him. And casting him forth without the city, they stoned him;and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man, whosename was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, invoking, and saying: Lord Jesus,receive my spirit. And falling on his knees, he cried with a loud voice,saying: Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, hefell asleep in the Lord. And Saul was consenting to his death.

Acts 7. 51-59

The Christmas season may seem a strange time to talk of martyrdom, but the Church is very realistic. The Incarnation of God is not like it is often portrayed on Christmas cards. Yes, it is a time of great joy because our salvation is assured but it will only be achieved through his suffering and death. Likewise we need to give our lives to him.

Saint Stephen's Day Quiz

2011-12-26T05:00:00.000Z

1. Who in the Bible saw a burning bush?

2. What is the period of preparation for Eastercalled?

3. At Mass what is a corporal?

4. Where was Jesus born?

5. What was John the Baptist’s mother called?

6. What is the period of preparation for Christmascalled?

7. At Mass what is a pall?

8. Is Jesus human or divine?

9. Who was the first Pope?

Answers tomorrow

Answers to yesterday's quiz

2011-12-26T04:49:00.000Z

1. How many sacraments are there? Seven

2. What is the feast of the Holy Spirit called? Pentecost

3. When is the Feast of the Sacred Heart? The Friday after the second Sunday after Pentecost

4. What are the traditional square hats worn by clergy called? Birettas

5. What is a sin of omission? Not doing something you should do.

6. What did Arians believe about Jesus? He is a subordinate divinity – not God incarnate

7. God created ex nihilo. What does that mean? God created out of nothing.

8. What is the outermost vestment worn at Mass? Chasuble

9. What is a sacristy? A room where the priest vests.

Hodie Christus natus Est (Christmas, Antiphon, Male Voices)

2011-12-25T05:30:00.000Z

Who is born today?

2011-12-25T05:05:00.000Z

He is perfect in Godhead

perfect inmanhood

being trulyGod and truly man

He has arational soul and body

He isconsubstantial with God the Father according to the Godhead,

He isconsubstantial with us according to the Manhood

As a man heis identical to us in all but sin

As God hehas always existed

His motheris the Mother of God because his in her child the divine and human natures inone Person

His naturesare distinct but his Person is indivisible

The unity ofhe Person is expressed in one will

(Councils ofNicaea, Constantinople, Ephesus and Chalcedon)

Having madehimself visible he can be represented and venerated

(SecondCouncil of Nicaea)

The HolySpirit proceeds from him and from the Father (Fourth Lateran Council, SecondCouncil of Lyon and the Council of Florence)

He is madeaccessible to use through the sacraments. He comes to us under the form ofbread and wine in the Eucharist and involves us in his sacrifice in that samesacrament. (Fourth Lateran Council and the Council of Trent)

He is ourSaviour through whose grace, following baptism and repentance, we are providedthe means to gain righteousness. (Council of Trent)

He has giventhe Catholic Church the authority to speak in his name (First, Third and FifthLateran Councils, the Councils of Constance and Florence, the First and SecondVatican Councils)

He willjudge us at our deaths, and the world at the end of time (Fourth LateranCouncil, Second Council of Lyons, Councils of Florence and Trent, SecondVatican Council)

Jesus we adore you

Stephen Ward ‘How Catholics see God’

See http://amzn.com/1463627831

Christmas Day Quiz

2011-12-25T05:00:00.000Z

1. How many sacraments are there?

2. What is the feast of the Holy Spirit called?

3. When is the Feast of the Sacred Heart?

4. What are the traditional square hats worn byclergy called?

5. What is a sin of omission?

6. What did Arians believe about Jesus?

7. What does it mean to say that God created ex nihilo.
8. What is the outermost vestment worn by the celebrant at Mass?

9. What is a sacristy?

Answers tomorrow

Comrades, prepare for revolution

2011-12-23T04:00:00.000Z

No, Ihave not been taken over by the spirit of the recently dead 'Dear Leader'of North Korea - Kim Jong-il but by the revolutionary message of our own dearleader, Jesus Christ. In the following video Fr Barron makes vividly clear thatAdvent and Christmas are not about the sentimental mush that even manyChristians think it is, let alone the consumerist extravaganza of our shoppingmalls, but a radical proclamation about the power and victory of God. He showshow the liturgical readings from Isaiah place the arrival of the Lord in thecontext of the toppling of empires and the call by God to respond to hisrevolutionary call to overcome the usurpers who claim what truly belongs tohim.

The Jesus revolution

2011-12-23T03:59:00.000Z

What is the Mass really about?

2011-12-22T05:00:00.000Z

Part 5 – The Consecration

In this series on the Mass we come to the point at which the words of Christ at the Last Supper are said by the Priest. The casual observer mightthink that all that is happening here is recitation of the Biblical story ofthe Last Supper. However, there is a unique relationship between our Lordand the Catholic Priest. This is not a relationship of greater holiness than the ordinaryChristian – all Christians are called to be equally holy. Nor is it a relationship of superiority – in God’s eyes weare all equal. It is arelationship by which, and through which, the one unique Priesthood of Christ ismade present and effective. Starting from that point it becomes clear that when theCatholic Priest says the words under discussion here, in the context of theMass, it is Jesus who is saying the words and Jesus who performs the actions.

The Mass, as a whole, is centred around the four actions of Jesus on that celebrated night: the taking of bread and wine, the thanksgiving, the breaking of bread, and the consumption of the bread and wine. They are to be found respectively at the Offertory (when the bread and wine are brought to the altar), during the Canon (Eucharistic Prayer), in the Fraction (when the host is broken) and in Holy Communion. However, this whole sacrificial series of actions is to be found in microcosm in the words of Consecration.

WhenJesus says, ‘this is my Body’ the bread becomes what he says it now is – His Body. When he says, ‘this is the cup of myBlood’ the wine becomes His Blood. This matters to us because Jesus taught that He is the only way toGod. If all we could offer were asample of our own produce – bread and wine – we could notreach God. Even Adam and Eve couldonly approach God because He allowed them to. This was the truth about the human condition even where sindid not yet exist. The existenceof sin creates another barrier to communion with God, this time of our ownmaking. We cannot reach God simplythrough trying hard to be good. Wecan only ever relate to God on His terms and that is accentuated even more byof the influence of sin. The onlything that we have to offer, which God has guaranteed will be effective andacceptable is the Sacrifice of the Son of God – His Body and HisBlood. If we do not offer the Bodyand Blood of Christ our own efforts have no value. If we do not have that Body and that Blood we cannot offerit. That is why we believe Hiswords when He says THIS IS my Body, THIS IS my Blood.

At the end of the Canon the Body andBlood of Christ are held up by the Celebrant to indicate to the Father that ouroffering is the sacrifice of Christ. Since 1088, a far more emphatic act of elevation has taken place afterthe consecration of the bread and, again, after the consecration of the wine. It is accompanied with genuflections,the ringing of bells, and the use of incense. In that year the Church had condemned the teaching ofBerengarius who taught that no change occurred at consecration and that thereremained only bread and wine. Aswell as condemning his position with words, the Church introduced thisceremony. It was a dramaticexpression, made at every Mass, which says ‘No, you are wrong, this IS the Bodyof Christ, this IS his Blood’. It follows from this that the Faithful are expected to look at what isbeing held up high and not bury their heads in their hands as they oftendo! Once the Priest has returnedthe Blessed Sacrament to the altar he genuflects in adoration. This is the time to bow your head andpay homage to your Saviour.

There are no variations in the wordsof consecration in the four Eucharistic Prayers of the newer form of Mass. This is, however, the only point whereEucharistic Prayer 1 and the historic Canon diverge slightly, as I haveindicated in the quotations. Thenewer form now provides a series of acclamations allowing the Faithful toexpress their joy as they greet the Lord.

Abortion of the undesireables

2011-12-21T02:30:00.000Z

American states where enforced sterilization
was enshrined in law in the 1920s

The sort of legislation that North Americans andWestern Europeans would call progress is aliveand well these days in Latin America. ‘Alive and well’ is ironic in this casebecause the ‘progress’ referred to is the legalization of abortion and itsassociated anti-life agenda. The Uruguayan government isproposing to legalize abortion up to the twelth week of pregnancy.

The Catholic Church in the country hascriticized media organizations for tacitly supporting this change by stiflingthe views of those who oppose it. Witnesses to a Church Committee on FamilyLife have accused organizations in North America of pressurizing the governmentto adopt their stance in order to reduce population growth.

Francis Galton
"Father' of eugenics
1850s

I wouldn’t venture to pronounce on the truth ofthese accusations of outside influence. It is, however, interesting to notethat if the arguments used relate to population control it varies from thenormal Western arguments for abortion. In the Westwe are usually told that abortion is a human rightencapsulating a legitimate choice of thewoman (though not usually the man). The problem with this is that it reduceshuman life to a consumerist choice. Population control, on the other hand, is aspecies of eugenics. Darwin and his disciple Galton believed that naturalselection should be given a helping hand.Galton argued that human intervention to help the weakallowed the feeble and retarded to exist and multiply. In order to avoid thiseugenicists sought to sterilize undesirables or aborttheir progeny. Hitler simply took the logical next step by exterminating undesirableswho had already been born. So, unlike the pro-choiceconsumerist agenda we have here an explicit attack onthe weak. Christian defence of the poor and the weak – encapsulated in theBeatitudes – is rejected in favour of supporting the strong.

The culture of death is inimical to God whateverits motive, be it individual selfishness or hatred of the poor and weakmasquerading as pseudo-science.

The God of history is the God of life

2011-12-20T05:30:00.000Z

The Blessed Trinity working in, and through, history

ThePope’s words last week to a university audience are an interesting example ofhis understanding of the relationship between faith and history:

…we do not create history by ourselves. God is not distant from man, He has comeclose to him, He became flesh. ... Patience is the virtue of those people whoentrust themselves to this presence in history, who do not let themselves bedrawn by the temptation to place all their hope in the present moment, in apurely horizontal perspective, in projects that are technically perfect but fardistant from the profound truth that gives human beings their greatest dignity:the transcendent dimension, the fact of being created in the image and likenessof God.

In his academic work, and in his ministry asPope, Benedict has held strongly to the concept of ‘continuity’. He has shownthat the Bible only makes sense when it ceases to be an ossified artifact to beexamined and probed and becomes a living dialogue between God and his Church.Similarly, the liturgy is a living means linking the God who revealed himselfin the historical events of 2000 years ago with ourselves via the dialogue thatour forebears have had with him through the ages. Our understanding of, andfaith in, God cannot be separated from history because God deals with us in,and through, time. God is to be found in the great and small things of life –in our lives and the lives of all his children. As a result every moment of ourindividual lives has a universal significance, as does the history of humanityitself.

Reflections on Heaven

2011-12-19T00:01:00.000Z

Aseries of three articles during Advent on Hell, Purgatory and Heaven

Unlike Hell, and even Purgatory, Heaven raises no doubts ormoral dilemmas for Christians. Even many non-believers would, by and large, like to believe that they would survivedeath. Some Christian groups are so convinced that God loves us all they cannotbelieve that allwill not be saved. They don’t represent a denomination of Christians, but a philosophy which could be described as UniversalDeterminism whichis very like Calvin’s concept of predestination except that none are predestined toHell but all arepredestined to Heaven. The reasons for the Catholic Church’s teaching on theafterlife, including Hell and Purgatory, are explained in previous articles. Iwill mention just one again here: love involves freedom of choice to love inreturn or to reject the proffered love. Heaven is the ultimate objective ofthose who respond positively to his love and cooperate with God in becomingChrist-like.

Like Catholic Tradition in general (see articles on thissubject) our teaching on Heaven comes down to us through several strands. Inthe New Testament there are numerous direct and indirect references to Heaven.Here are just four of them:

In my Father's house there are manymansions. If not, I would have told you: because I go to prepare a place foryou. And if I shall go, and prepare a place for you, I will come again, andwill take you to myself; that where I am, you also may be.

John 14.2-3

Lay not up to yourselves treasureson earth: where the rust, and moth consume, and where thieves break through andsteal. But lay up to yourselvestreasures in heaven: where neither the rust nor moth consumes, and where thieves do not break through, nor steal.For where your treasure is, there is your heart also.

Matthew 6:19-21

Blessed be the God and Father of ourLord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has regenerated us to alively hope, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To aninheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that can not fade, reserved inheaven for you,

1 Peter 1:3-4

And I heard a great voice from thethrone, saying: Behold the tabernacle of God with men, and he will dwell withthem. And they shall be his people; and God himself with them shall be theirGod.

Apocalypse 21.3

The first two are from Jesus himself. The first comparesHeaven to a building – a mansion, whilst the second is more about a state inwhich if your treasure – that which motivates and gives meaning to your life –is God it is incorruptible and, therefore, eternal. The quote from Saint Petertakes up the word ‘incorruptible’. He is saying that our adherence to theResurrection changes us – regenerates us – such that we are able to know Godsuch that ultimately we will be able to be in his presence for ever. In SaintJohn’s vision of Heaven Jesus is shown to reign over his people.

Moving now to the Fathers we find the explicit teaching thatthe qualificationfor entering Heaven is purity of heart:

‘After which redemption the reward andthe honours are assigned to those who have become perfect; when they have gotdone with purification, and ceased from all service, though it be holy service,and among saints. They become pure in heart, and near to the Lord, there waitsthem restoration to everlasting contemplation’

St Clementof Alexandria Stroma

St Cyprianconnects Heaven to the Communion of Saints and links the concept of salvationwith light, pointing to the concept of the Beatific Vision(the ability to see God as he really is):

‘What will be the glory and how greatthe joy to be admitted to see God, to be honored to receive with Christ, yourLord God, the joy of eternal salvation and light to greet Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and allthe patriarchs, and prophets, and apostles, and martyrs to rejoice with the righteous and the friends ofGod in the kingdom of heaven, with the pleasure of immorality given to us to receivethere what neither eye has seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into theheart of man!’

SaintCyprian To the people of Thibaris

SaintAugustine points out that, unlike in this world, in Heaven there can be nodoubt about God because those in Heaven know God and recognize his moralgoodness as a known fact.

‘From all this, it will readily occur toany one that the blessedness which an intelligent being desires as its legitimateobject results from a combination of these two things, namely, that ituninterruptedly enjoy the unchangeable good which is God; and that it bedelivered from all dubiety, and know certainly that it shall eternally abide inthe same enjoyment.’

St Augustine The City of God

Moving now to the traditional Liturgy there is a very strongconnection made between the Saints, our union with them and their prayers, andthose who are chosen, in comparison to those who are damned. The Mass, seen from this perspective,is a participation in the worship of Heaven. Consequently, there is acontinuity between the Church on earth and that in Heaven – not only acontinuity but a communion. Furthermore, we are reminded that Heaven is not ourright, but God’s choice. However, we have his promise that, if we are committedto him, he will reward us with his eternal presence:

In communion with those whosememory we venerate, especially the glorious ever-Virgin Mary, Mother of our Godand Lord, Jesus Christ, and blessed Joseph, her Spouse, your blessed Apostlesand Martyrs,

Peter and Paul, Andrew, James, John,Thomas, James, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Simon and Jude; Linus, Cletus,Clement, Sixtus, Cornelius, Cyprian, Lawrence, Chrysogonus, John and Paul,Cosmas and Damian) and all your Saints; we ask that through their merits andprayers, in all things we may be defended by your protecting help.

Therefore, Lord, we pray: graciouslyaccept this oblation of our service, that of your whole family; order our days in your peace, and command thatwe be delivered from eternal damnation and counted among the flock ofthose you have chosen.

Roman Canon of the Mass

Saint Thomas Aquinas talks of Heaven as ‘the reward for ourlabours’ and of seeing God ‘face to face’, thereby expressing the beliefsreceived from Christ and the Apostles. He also expresses the communion of theSaints amongst themselves rather than just in relation to us. He describesclearly how we are fulfilled as people as all of our needs and desires are met.

The first point about eternal lifeis that man is united with God. For God himself is the reward and end of allour labours: I am your protector and your supreme reward. This union consists in seeingperfectly: At present we see through a glass, darkly; but then we shall seeface to face.

Next it consists in perfect praise,according to the words of the prophet: Joy and happiness will be found init, thanksgiving and words of praise.

It also consists in the completesatisfaction of desire, for there the blessed will be given more than theywanted or hoped for. The reason is that in this life no one can fulfil hislonging, nor can any creature satisfy man’s desire. Only God satisfies, heinfinitely exceeds all other pleasures.

Again, eternal life consists of thejoyous community of all the blessed, a community of supreme delight, sinceeveryone will share all that is good with all the blessed

Saint Thomas Aquinas Conference on theCreed

As the understanding of the Church increased the connectionsbetween Original Sin, Baptism and purification (sanctification) were developedand their relationship to Heaven clarified:

Those ‘pleasing to God through rightfaith and good work, merit to attain to eternal life.’

Fourth Lateran Council 1215

‘The souls of those who, after having received baptism, haveincurred no stain of sin whatever, and those souls who, after having contractedthe stain of sin, have been cleansed, either while in their bodies or afterhaving been divested of them … are received immediately into Heaven, and seeclearly God himself …’

Council of Florence 1439

‘Some of (the Lord’s) disciples are pilgrims on earth, whileother have died and are being purified, and still others are purified, seeingGod clearly himself …’

Second Vatican Council

Dogmatic Constitution Lumengentium 1964

In a seminal Papal document Pope Benedict XII describes therelationship between the passion of Christ and the Beatific Vision:

‘Since the passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ (thesouls of the saints) have seen and see the divine essence with an intuitivevision and even face to face …By this vision and enjoyment the souls of thosewho have already died are truly blessed and have eternal life and rest.’

Benedict XII Constitution Benedictus Deus 1336

So, from Holy Tradition what do we know about Heaven and howto get there? We can say that the image of God increases in us through grace and virtue (raisedto the supernatural state through baptism). The soul is an active participant,but with God’s help, the soul can live according to virtue. On earth we are inprogression and hence restless. When we attain Heaven our souls are at peace,but peace does not equal inertia since we will be actively involved in praising God.

Since our entry into Heaven results from our progress ofsanctification as individuals, albeit within the community of the Church, wecan be sure that our distinct personalities and individuality are not subsumedby unity with God. This is further demonstrated by the fact that the prayers ofindividual Saints are of value to us, as opposed to those of the inhabitants ofHeaven as a group.

In Heaven we will be happy in a waywe can only imagine on earth because we will be personally fulfilled by thesight of God. We will have knowledge of the true nature of God, which willignite a response of spontaneous love leading to complete satisfaction as theimage of God within us becomes crystal clear. Our union with others who aresimilarly fulfilled will widen our joy.

Praise be to God.

Previously in this series:

Hell 28^thNovember

Purgatory 9^th December

Faith is precious where life is precarious

2011-12-16T05:00:00.000Z

British soldiers in Helmand Province, Afghanistan

Ournews is full of the tragedy that is the war in Afghanistan and, from theBritish perspective, of the many death of our soldiers in Helmand Province. Aglimmer of light is given by news made available from the Catholic charity Aidto the Church in Need. They have provided written materialto help deepen the faith of Catholic soldiers at the request of British ArmyChaplain Fr David Smith who is reported as saying:

Many ofthese young people have been short-changed by the Catholic education system andhave left Catholic school not even knowing what the Blessed Sacrament is. It’sno wonder so many of them lapse from the practice of their faith. So I decidedto try and do something about it.

With thehelp of the material provided he has developed a process of catechesis. Hecomments:

TheSacraments are celebrated, catechesis is given and help and support is offeredto our young people doing a very demanding job in the service of their country.No more so than in Afghanistan at the moment.

No one wouldwish for a war in order to promulgate the Faith but there is no doubt that inthe midst of luxury the impetus to consider the meaning and origin of life isvery weak. Where life is precarious its value becomes evident and itspossession precious.

What has the Church got to do with diplomacy?

2011-12-15T05:00:00.000Z

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone
Secretary of State of His Holiness the Pope
(Head of Papal dipomacy)

The news that the governments of Australia andIndonesia are shortly to appoint Ambassadors to the Holy See set me to thinkingabout the whole concept of Papal diplomacy. As a sovereign entity 179 stateshave diplomatic relations with the Papacy, a practice started in something likeits present form in response to the Reformation. Before then the Pope wouldsend representatives (legates) to deal with particular issues as they arose orto raise Papal taxation. The urgency of keeping in touch with crucial eventswhich might have led a state to renounce the Catholic Church brought into sharpfocus the need for men on the ground on apermanent basis. In response, states started to appoint permanent diplomaticrepresentatives to the Holy See.

In the contemporary Church Nuncios (from theLatin for envoy) have status and functions equivalent to secular Ambassadors inrelation to their dealings with the state. In addition they have anecclesiastical jurisdiction within the area of the state. Their dealings withgovernments mainly concern informing the Holy See of policies and trends havingimplications for the Church and representing the concerns of the Church to thestate.

It might be asked why the Catholic hierarchywithin each state cannot represent the Catholic position to the government andwhy they need an external ecclesiastic involving himself with their internalChurch government. It is essential to hold in balance two things: althoughappointed by the Pope, Bishops hold ordinary jurisdiction as successors of theApostles directly from Christ – they are not Papal ‘curates’; but the Pope hasimmediate supreme jurisdiction over the whole Church. Therefore, in theday-to-day exercise of their ministry Bishops (of dioceses) do not have to reportto the Pope. At the same time the Pope can intervene where necessary to ensureconformity. Unlike Diocesan Bishops, Nuncios can be thoughtof as exalted Papal ‘curates’ since their jurisdiction is such as the Pope delegatesto them. Accordingly. The actions of a Nuncio within the Church amounts toactions by the Pope. Legislation of the Council of Trent makes this distinctionclear by insisting that Nuncios should not prevent (diocesan) Bishops fromexercising their ordinary jurisdiction.

Whilst local Bishops should represent the viewsof the local Church publicly to governments and their people and should runtheir dioceses the Pope (through, or on the advice of his Nuncio) shouldrepresent the Church as a whole to both secular and local ecclesiasticalauthority. This represents on a local stage the respective roles of thesuccessors of Peter and the successors of the Apostles in general within thewhole Church.

'Miracle' by Sheen referred to the Vatican

2011-12-14T00:01:00.000Z

Amiraculous cure has been claimed for a baby in Peoria in the USA followingprayer to Archbishop Fulton Sheen who died in 1979. A Tribunal of the Churchhas investigated the event in which is is claimed that James Fulton Engstromwas delivered stillborn but an hour later, following prayer to the Archbishop,he was found to be alive and remains so a year later with no obvious medicalproblems. The undeclared details of the Tribunal’s verdict have been forwardedto the Vatican. If evidence is found in favour of a miracle the Archbishopcould be beatified.

Sheenwas a renowned theologian and evangelist who used modern media such as radioand television to explain the faith throughout the USA between 1930 and 1968 inaddition to publishing 73 books. He was ordained priest in 1919 and wasconsecrated Bishop in 1951. He was Auxiliary Bishop of New York until becomingBishop of Rochester (USA) in 1966. He resigned in 1969 to become a titularArchbishop.

The human person and economic enterprise

2011-12-13T04:30:00.000Z

Yesterday in the Vatican, Benedict XVI received representatives from theConfederation of Italian Cooperatives, and from the Italian Federation ofCooperative Credit Banks.

Inhis remarks to them the Pope dwelt on the importance Catholic cooperatives havehad in Italy since their emergence in the wake of Leo XIII's Encyclical"Rerum novarum". That document, the 120th anniversary of which fallsthis year, "favoured the fruitful presence of Catholics in Italian societythrough the promotion of cooperative and mutual societies, the development ofsocial enterprises and many other public works characterised by various formsof participation and self-management. The purpose of such activity has alwaysbeen to provide material support for people and constant attention to families,drawing inspiration from the Magisterium of the Church", he said.

“Theheart of cooperative efforts has always lain in the search for harmony betweenthe individual and community dimensions. This is a concrete e_xpression of thecomplementarity and subsidiarity which Church social doctrine has always soughtto promote between citizens and the State, a balance between safeguarding therights of the individual and promoting the common good, in order to develop alocal economy capable of responding to community needs. Cooperative activitiesare likewise characterised by their great concern for solidarity, while stillrespecting the due autonomy of the individual.

Mid-twentieth century factory

"Ina period of great change, of persistent economic uncertainty, and ofdifficulties in the world of work, the Church feels the need to announceChrist's message with renewed vigour. ... And you, dear friends, must be awarethat Catholic cooperatives have an important role to play in this field",the Holy Father told his audience.

BenedictXVI invited members of cooperatives to make their specific contribution"to ensure that the economy and the market never neglect solidarity",in order "to promote a culture of life and the family, and to favour thecreation of new families with access to dignified work which respects thecreation that God has entrusted to our responsibility and care". He alsoinvited them "to value man in his entirety, irrespective of any differencein race, language or religion".

Finally, the Pope recalled how Catholic cooperatives are characterisedby their "Christian inspiration, which must constantly guide them",because "for Christians loving others is not mere philanthropy but anexpression of the love of God. ... Never forget the importance of developingthis spiritual dimension as you seek to respond to contemporary challenges andsocial emergencies, in order to continue to work in the logic of gratuitousnessand responsibility, promoting wise and sober consumption".

(Vatican Information Service)

………………………………………………………..............................................................................

Althoughthe Church does not have an economic ideology such as capitalism or socialismit does have a concern for the human element of economic activity. Consequentlyshe cannot accept that human beings are simply interchangeable parts within aphenomenon beyond human control any more than she can accept that they are partof a centralized command and control system. Italian co-operatives of Catholicorigin present an interesting model for small to medium sized economicco-operation within a wider society, but they are merely an example of thewider Catholic emphasis on the human person which does not diminish whenentering the factory or office door.

(Stephen Ward)

What is the Mass really about?

2011-12-12T05:00:00.000Z

Part 4- Reflections on the prayer of Oblation

In this series on the Mass we are now nearly at the high point of the Canon (Eucharistic Prayer 1), but not quite. Before that the Priest must designate the nature of the offering. the word oblation derives from the Latin word meaning offering. The Priest is the means through whom the true Christian Priest - Christ - offers himself for us to the Father, through the Holy Spirit.

Giovanni Sforza di Marcantonio

Quamoblationem tu, Deus, in omnibus, quaesumus, benedictam, adscriptam, ratam,rationabilem, acceptabilemque facere digneris: ut nobis Corpus, et Sanguis fiatdilectissimi Filii tui, Domini nostri Iesu Christi.

Be pleased,O God, we pray, to bless, acknowledge, and approve this offering in everyrespect; make it spiritual and acceptable, so that it may become for us theBody and Blood of your most beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Duringthis prayer, the Priest extends his hands over the offering, recalling asimilar gesture used by the Priests of ancient Israel who, thereby, indicatedthe chosen victim they were about to offer to God. At Mass, the Celebrant indicates that it is not just breadthat is being offered, but this specific bread; not just wine, but this specific wine. In passing, it is opportune to remember that the Sacrificeis delineated visibly by a piece of white cloth known as the ‘Corporal’. There may be other bread and wine inthe vicinity of the altar but, by placing the chosen bread and wine on theCorporal the Celebrant is indicating that only this will constitute the Sacrifice onthis occasion. The word ‘Corporal’derives from the Latin word ‘corpus’ meaning ‘body’. The sacrifice is not just ‘spiritual’. The words of this prayer link thephysical and thespiritual. ‘This offering’ refersto the bread and wine brought to the altar and now indicated by the action ofthe Celebrant. The offering is‘made spiritual’ by the act of the Priest – it is ‘setaside’ for a holy purpose – to become forus the Body and Blood of Christ.

Eucharistic Prayer 2

Haec ergodona, quaesumus, Spiritus tui rore sanctifica, ut nobis Corpus et Sanguis fiantDomini nostri Iesus Christi.

Make holy,therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like thedewfall, so that they may become for us the Body and Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Eucharistic Prayer 3

Supplicesergo te, Domine, deprecamur, ut haec munera, quae tibi sacranda detulimus,eodem Spiritu santificare digneris, ut Corpus et Sanguis fiant Filii tui Domininostri Iesus Christi.

Therefore, OLord, we humbly implore you: by the same Spirit graciously make holy thesegifts we have brought to you for consecration, that they may become the Bodyand Blood of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ …

Eucharistic Prayer 4

Quaesumusigitur, Domine, ut idem Spiritus Sanctus haec munera sanctificare dignetur, utCorpus et Sanguis fiant Domini nostri Iesu Christi …

Therefore, OLord, we pray: may this same Holy Spirit graciously sanctify these offerings,that they may become the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ …

The Baptist's Cry announces the Lord

2011-12-11T05:30:00.000Z

The Pope has expressed three wishes for Christmas

2011-12-10T06:00:00.000Z

Beachy Head Lighthouse
England

‘My first wish, therefore, is that ourgaze, that of our minds and our hearts, not rest only on the horizon of thisworld, on its material things, but that it in some way, like this tree thattends upward, be directed toward God. God never forgets us but He also asksthat we don't forget Him.

Mysecond wish is that we recall that we also need a light to illumine the path ofour lives and to give us hope, especially in this time in which we feel sogreatly the weight of difficulties, of problems, of suffering, and it seemsthat we are enshrouded in a veil of darkness. But what light can trulyilluminate our hearts and give us a firm and sure hope? It is the Child whom wecontemplate on Christmas, in a poor and humble manger, because He is the Lordwho draws near to each of us and asks that we receive Him anew in our lives,asks us to want Him, to trust in Him, to feel His presence, that He isaccompanying us, sustaining us, and helping us.

Myfinal wish is that each of us contribute something of that light to the spheresin which we live: our families, our jobs, our neighbourhoods, towns, andcities. That each of us be a light for those who are at our sides; that weleave aside the selfishness that, so often, closes our hearts and leads us tothink only of ourselves; that we may pay greater attention to others, that wemay love them more. Any small gesture of goodness is like one of the lights ofthis great tree: together with other lights it illuminates the darkness of thenight, even of the darkest night.’

(VaticanInformation Service)

Reflections on Purgatory

2011-12-09T05:00:00.001Z

A series of three articles during Adventon Hell, Purgatory and Heaven

Purifying heat

Even many Christians do not like the idea of Hell but theyhave to accept that it is not only in the Bible but is on the lips of Jesushimself. This is reinforced for Catholics because it has the force of a dogmadefined by Ecumenical Councils. Purgatory is also a dogma, defined, or referredto, by four such Councils but its Biblical basis has always been challenged bynon-Catholics, especially by Protestants. It is associated with the Catholicpractice of praying for the dead and was one of the dividing lines betweenWestern Christians during the sixteenth century.

So what is the Catholic understanding of Purgatory? First ofall, though the word itself is not to be found in the Bible, the concept is alluded to. Furthermore, it hasbeen a consistent belief throughout the generations of the Church – in otherwords it is part of Holy Tradition. (See my series on Tradition). The followingwords of Jesus are a starting point:

‘Be in agreement with your adversaryin good time, while you are on the way to the court with him: otherwise perhapsthe adversary will deliver you to the judge, and the judge deliver you to theofficer, and you will be cast into prison. Amen I say to you, you will not getout of there until you repay the last farthing.’

Mt 5.25-26

Whoeverspeaks a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but he whospeaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in thisworld, nor in the world to come.’ Mt 12.32

Both passages speak of future judgement. In the first we are told to make ourpeace with God now for our sins and become righteous with the help of hisgrace. If we sin no more we will then go directly to Heaven. If, however, weprevaricate and only reject sin at the last moment before death we will not havereached perfection at our deaths and further purification will be needed – thisis the implication of ‘paying the last farthing’ before being released from’prison’. For our purposes the exact meaning of the sin against the Holy Spiritcan be set aside for another day. In relation to Purgatory the passage impliesthat some other sins can be forgiven after death.

The Fathers of the Church talk of the ‘fire of judgement’(Didymus, St Clement of Alexandria), ‘a process of purgation’ (St Augustine),the benefit to those in Purgatory of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and prayer(St Gregory of Nyssa, St Ambrose). The Second Council of Lyons (1274) and theCouncils of Florence (1439) and Trent (1563) describe Purgatory as a place ofpurification prior to entry into Heaven. Even the Second Vatican Council, whichsome Catholics – incorrectly – think relaxed Church teaching, says:

Some of (the Lord’s) disciples arepilgrims on earth, while others have died and are being purified, and stillothers are purified, seeing God clearly himself.

Lumen gentium

The notion of Purgatory can seem more comforting than thestark possibilities of Heaven and Hell, especially if you are not sure of goingto Heaven! Purgatory seems to be about giving us a second chance when we havemessed up on earth. But hang on, its NOT quite as comforting as that -Purgatory IS NOT a THIRD WAY after death, it is NOT a second chance.Protestants are right to say that the choice between accepting and rejectingGod – and the consequent outcomes of Heaven or Hell – are determined beforedeath. Probably thebest image of Purgatory is of a vestibule, or hall, connected to Heaven. Thosewho go through purgation are those who are definitely going to Heaven. TheChurch’s teaching is that those who are not in moral sin when they die, buthave not achieved righteousness – though they are destined for Heaven - are notyet in a state in which they can enter into God’s presence. Hence the need forfurther purification.

But if Jesus died for sin why the need for Purgatory? IfJesus took punishment at Calvary why further punishment? If Jesus paid ourdebt, why more debt? Doesn’t this diminish what Jesus did on cross? Belief inPurgatory implies an acceptance of the Catholic understanding of sin,redemption, grace and judgement. Christ’s sacrifice is NOT an impersonal legalact of pardon, but a personal, intimate plea to the Father to forgive thesinner. God does not simply forgive and forget our sins. The Father does notsimply hidebehind the image of Christ to obscure our sin. In Christ,through thesacraments, he gives us the means to become truly righteous. We are not treated as if we were righteous - we are expectedto becomerighteous. Provided we do not definitively reject God (moral sin) our prize issecure – but not automatically: our objective is achieved by a process ofpurification in this life and, if incomplete at death, in the next life. Justas adjustment to the ways of God in this world cause us pain and effort thereis similar pain in Purgatory. But it is not a pain caused by punishment so much as the pain felt by anathlete who strives to achieve his goals.

So, apart from arguments about Biblical authority one maindistinction between Catholics and non-Catholics concerning Purgatory is reallya discussion about grace – are we saved by imputing righteousness or by a process leading toactual righteousness? The second problem arises in relation to Catholic prayersfor those in Purgatory and associated indulgences. Protestants say that we areforbidden to pray for those who have died because God has already decided theirfate and we cannot influence it. This also turns out to be a position foundedon the Protestant view of grace outlined very briefly above. If salvation is achieved by a one-offevent or affirmation then those who are saved – or damned – are beyond thereach of our prayers and also beyond the need. But if salvation is a process those who are not damned will ultimately join God in Heaven. In this case,unless they have reached the end of the process, they still have needs. The wider question would be ‘Whydo we intercede at all? If your prayers for other living people are licit,indeed necessary, because they have needs why – providing for the sake of theargument that Purgatory exists – should those who are destined to Heaven, butstill have needs, not be prayed for? The Catholic Church does not depend onBiblical proof texts in relation to her belief concerning Purgatory but it is very tellingthat Luther, and later Protestants, have left the following verses out of theirBibles:

But the mostvaliant Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves from sin, forasmuch asthey saw before their eyes what had happened, because of the sins of those thatwere slain. And making a gathering, he sent twelve thousand drachms of silverto Jerusalem for sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the dead, thinkingwell and religiously concerning the resurrection, (For if he had not hoped thatthey that were slain should rise again, it would have seemed superfluous andvain to pray for the dead,) And because he considered that they who had fallenasleep with godliness, had great grace laid up for them. With godliness: Judashoped that these men who died fighting for the cause of God and religion, mightfind mercy: either because they might be excused from mortal sin by ignorance;or might have repented of their sin, at least at their death. It is therefore aholy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed fromsins.

2 Maccabees 12.43-46

To finish this piece I need tomention the issue of indulgences. A great scandal of the late medieval Church was the sale of indulgences. Luther, quiterightly objected strongly to this abuse but, unfortunately, threw the babyout with the bathwater. Instead of rejecting the abuse of indulgences he rejected indulgences themselves.To write extensively on indulgences now would divert our attention fromPurgatory, so I will undertake to write a separate article in the near future.For the moment I will simply comment that Catholics do not receive literal daysoff Purgatory for praying for the dead. The origin of the ‘days’ lies in thetime that had to elapse before a person could be restored to communion in theearly Church following the imposition of a penance for sin. What the Church hadimposed the Church could remit or reduce. So, in a modern context, if we prayfor the dead under certain circumstances this will become part of our ownpurification. This is similar to saying that if I pray for you I do somethinggood for youbut, along the way, it also makes me more acceptable to God.

Myarticle on Hell was published on 28^th November.

Anarticle on Heaven will be published before Christmas.

Immaculate Mary pray for us

2011-12-08T05:00:00.000Z

The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

Bartolome' Esteban Murillo
Immaculate Conception

Asthe result of the initial sin of our remote ancestors – in Biblical terms Adamand Eve – sin entered the world. The knowledge of good and evil has beenperverted so that what was created goodis used for self-gratification. Once there it cannot be removed by human means– this is the essence of the concept of original sin. This is clear from the teaching of Saint Paul:

For all havesinned, and do need the glory of God.

Romans 3.23

… thechildren were not yet born, nor had done any good or evil

Romans9.11

If these two quotations, by thesame Biblical author in the same book, are not to seem to contradict each otherit would seem that the first refers to actualsins committed by those who are capable, whereas the second refers to original sin. Consequently, each human being is due, from conception, to besubject to original sin.

If this were the conclusion of ourreligious insight we would be without hope, but of course it is not. As Mary says:

And myspirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

Luke 1.47

Through Jesus, our Saviour, we are given thegrace to overcome original sin. This grace is initially conveyed to us throughthe sacrament of Baptism. Original sin (and actual sin for those who areBaptized beyond the normal age of infancy and early childhood) is washed away,through our union with Christ. As a result of Baptism we are full of grace.This does not prevent us from sinning, hence the need for subsequent penance,but it does give us the God-given gifts needed to develop into righteous peoplein the sight of God.

So what does all this tell us about the dogmathat lies behind today’s feast – the Immaculate Conception?It tells us that, as a normal human being Mary could expect to have beentainted by original sin and that she, like us, was in need of a Saviour. Inthat case, what do we mean by saying that her conception was immaculate?In the first place, we need to clarify the terminology. I have lost count ofthe number of times I have heard, in television dramas or on the mouths of comedians,that this relates to Mary being conceived without the intervention of the humansexual act. What they are thinking of is the Virgin Birth of Christ, an eventwhich relates very strongly to Mary but is NOT the subject of this dogma. Otherpeople seem to think that we are claiming that she was conceived directly bythe Holy Spirit. Once again, this relates to the Virgin Birth. Catholicsbelieve that Mary was born in the normal human way as a result of sexualactivity by her parents. What the term immaculateDOES mean is that Mary was saved from the stain of original sin from the pointof her conception.

There is the tired old joke about when Jesussaid to those who wanted to stone the adulteress according to the Law. ‘Letanyone who is without sin throw the first stone’ says Jesus but, as they allslink away, a stone is thrown - by Mary! Okay it’sa joke, so lets not over analyse it. The reason I quote itis this: only Jesus is sinless by his very nature as God. Mary is in a state ofgrace, as we all are immediately after Baptism or Confession, BECAUSE she hasbeen saved by Jesus – like us. The only difference is the timing.

Remember the words of the angel to Mary: she is‘full of grace’. This is not just a salutation. To be full of grace can be putanother way – ‘you are saved’. Theoriginal Greek word is in the passive perfect tense. This means two things.First, that she is the passive recipient of God’s savingaction. Second, this action was in the past at the time the angel spoke.Therefore, God saved her from the mark of original sin at some time prior tothe annunciation appearance of the angel. The Catholic Church locates the pointof her salvation as her first moment of existence.

This is an example of where the implicitbelief finds expression at the very birth of our Faith but takes time to cometo full expression. It only became a dogma in 1854, but this alone does notmake it a novelty. After all our beliefs about theHoly Trinity and the nature of Christ only became dogmas in the fourth andfifth centuries, but they were not novelties at the timeeither.

So why does it matter? It means that Godprepared his way as he planned to send his Son into the world. He came to usthrough a person who had been nurtured in holiness from her conception. In asimilar way we can only come into contact with God, and take him to others, ifwe are first cleansed of the unholiness which taints our natures. Our Lady isthe precursor of what God has prepared for all those who will listen andrespond.

Wefollow in the model of Our Lady, the first Christian

StephenWard ‘How Catholics see God’

See http://amzn.com/1463627831