I need to write a Bishop Martino script. Everyday it would search the internet for Bishop Martino and scrape the story and post it. Bishop Martino makes me miss Archbiship Burke less. Scranton’s Bishop Martino Speaks Out on Misericordia University – Again! This is not a bishop who cares what the media thinks of him, but is truly a pastor of his flock.
The Anchoress posts at the First Things blog about Sr. Sandra M. Schneiders and what she had previously written in an email that got published in regards to the recently announced apostolic visitation of women’s communities in America.
I saw this yesterday at the National Catholic Reporter and Sr. Schneiders email quite irked me, though I figured it would be good not to post on it while “irked.”
I am not inclined to get into too much of a panic about this investigation–which is what it is . . . I do not put any credence at all in the claim that this is friendly, transparent, aimed to be helpful, etc. It is a hostile move and the conclusions are already in. It is meant to be intimidating. But I think if we believe in what we are doing (and I definitely do) we just have to be peacefully about our business, which is announcing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, fostering the Reign of God in this world. We cannot, of course, keep them from investigating. But we can receive them, politely and kindly, for what they are, uninvited guests who should be received in the parlor, not given the run of the house. When people ask questions they shouldn’t ask, the questions should be answered accordingly.
So read what The Anchoress has to say on this first since she puts it quite well. But to give a taste:
Sister and her associates seem to have birthed a form of Religious Life that no longer receives “everyone as Christ” but parcels out the hospitality like upper-crust dames who will nod at the social climbers (and even condescend to having them to tea, if it will dispense with an obligation) but who will have the place fumigated once the undeserving have finally been shown the door. Sounds like she’ll count the teaspoons, too.
Can you hear the obedience and humility from the tone of this letter. If you can you have much better hearing than myself. I do wonder what are the questions they shouldn’t ask. My guess would be “Don’t ask us about faithfulness to the Magisterium.” Though I do have to remind myself not to think of these communities as whole blocks because there are faithful Catholics living in these communities where what has happened has been a major cross for them.
I remember when I first read the sisters piece I had quite a good laugh at the following.
I have come to the conclusion that Congregations like ours [the kind represented by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) in this country] have, in fact, birthed a new form of Religious Life.
Yes a form of Religious Life that does not reproduce itself (thankfully). Progressives have sometimes been called mules because of the fact that there way of life is quite sterile and attracts so few vocations to their way of religious life. When religious life becomes just social work then why take vows? just become a social worker. Blessed Mother Teresa quite disliked when people thought of her work with the poor as just social work.
Well, that’s where I am on this. I refuse to go into a panic over it. There are better things to do. Always glad to hear from any of you on any of this.
What an attitude to take concerning an Apostolic Visitation. Guilty conscience? Surely they realize they have become hotbeds of dissent. If the Democratic Party has monastic life it would be identical to most of these communities. Or maybe it would be more accurate to say if the U.N. had monastic communities since their websites always have links to the U.N. and almost never to the Vatican and I am not just being snide here.
Jesus said “By their fruits you will know them.” Dissent and shrinking communities has been the fruit. They have been pavers of good intentions. That being said, we should pray for Mother Clare Millea, who is leading the visitation project and for the religious communities. I have to admit that when I first read of the apostolic visitation of women’s communities in America I was thinking “Smack down!”, which is not the right attitude for a follower of Christ. So I will go with “Thy will be done” in regards to the visitation instead.
Diogenes has some good questions in response to a Newsweek/Washington Post article by Aloysious Mowe, SJ calling the Church’s theology and discipline sexist and misogynist.
Here’s what I don’t understand. An agnostic or atheist or radical libertarian treats the Church’s claims with skepticism because he has declared himself immune from her authority. Fine. On its own terms that makes sense. But how can a Catholic — and still more a Catholic priest — make use of this skepticism? More to the point: having picked up the tool of skepticism to undercut doctrine A and doctrine B, how does he put it down again to accept as valid doctrines C through Z? If I claim the Church is wrong about, say, the sacrament of Orders — whereas the common opinion of my own social class in my own time has it right — how can I know the Church is a reliable teacher regarding those doctrines I cherish, such as the duty of charity, or the universal destination of goods, or the Resurrection? How can I know these doctrines won’t themselves be exposed as frauds twenty years from now? How can I acquit myself of that self-serving arbitariness I impute to the apostles and the Church fathers?
I have often wondered the same thing. They dig out the foundation of the Catholic faith and then want to stand on empty air proclaiming themselves Catholics. If the Church can get foundational things wrong then only a fool would follow her. The only reason to be Catholic is because it is true – that’s it. I just don’t understand what their ecclesiology can possibly mean other than just being a form of Catholic tribalism. If I believed what they believed of the Church I would denounce the Church as evil and would want no part of it. The Protestant so-called Reformers were at least honest in realizing their theology of the Church was quite at odds with the Church.
Amy Welborn will now be primarily blogging at Beliefnet with Via Media which promises to be more along the lines of Open Book with blogging on a wider variety of topics than happened at Charlotte was Both.
Well that means that finally on Beliefnet they will have content I will actually enjoy to read.
Moloch has raised his ugly head to post.
Sometimes it seems there is hardly a bad idea that someone won’t attempt.
THE Vatican has put a stop to a joint Pentecostal service planned by the Newcastle and Maitland Catholic and Anglican bishops.
The confirmation service was scheduled for May 31 at Christ Church Cathedral, and was promoted as a “very exciting and special” event.
Parishes encouraged church members to consider being confirmed on that day.
But Rome intervened, forcing its cancellation, citing the possibility of “confusing messages” being given to churchgoers.
It is unclear how the headquarters of the Catholic Church learned of the service, as no formal notification was given.
It is a blow for the two bishops, as well as Bishop David Walker of the Catholic Diocese of Broken Bay, who together signed an agreement last year called the Tri-Diocesan Covenant to work towards common goals.
It committed the dioceses to improve relations between the Catholic and Anglican communities.
The “request” was made by the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which is the central governing body of the Catholic Church handling most affairs relating to official public worship.
I pray for unity, but this type of attempt at a false unity brings us no closer. When you don’t have a valid priesthood you simply do not have the Sacrament of Confirmation. Pretending otherwise is not ecumenism.
Several years ago there use to be a joint Catholic/Anglican parish in the Diocese of Richmond under there previous bishop. In response I wrote a parody of what the bulletin would look like for the St. Thomas Moore & King Henry VIII
Roman/Anglo-Catholic Church.
Mrs Blair also revealed that every time she did not use contraception, “I seemed to have a baby” in a discussion about the Church’s attitude to birth control and abortion.
She said: “How could I have done all the things I have done if I hadn’t used contraception?”
Yeah, how could she have raised money for Planned Parenthood and all of her other efforts for the culture of death if she didn’t use contraception? We are not wonderfully made you know after all. God didn’t include a fertility off/off switch on our foreheads. Gee didn’t our creator know about careers? You can read all throughout scripture where people brag about careers and not their children. Raising up children for the Kingdom of Heaven just does not compare to a career. All of those executives when they get older lament that they did not spend more time at work instead of their family. Carl Olson has a nice quip to add
Indeed, how could she go about telling people what the Church must do to survive and grow if she hadn’t been busy ignoring the teachings of the same Church? Whatever the intentions, the logic is sterile, although apparently not purposely so.
Cherie Blair also managed to express some other silliness.
The Catholic Church is losing congregations by alienating women and failing to give them a public role, Cherie Blair said last night.
Church leaders must modernise the role of women in order to halt the decline in church attendance, she said. Mrs Blair, herself a Catholic, said: “One of the fundamental weaknesses of modern Christianity is its ambivalence to women, and particularly for Catholicism.
“Until the traditional churches fully resolve their relationship with the female half of the population, how can they expect Christianity to have a future in the modern world?
“Traditionally, it was women who passed religion on to their children and who kept the Church going through good times and bad, but when it comes to the public face of Christianity, women are virtually invisible.
You have to wonder if she has ever been to daily Mass or attended any groups meeting in a church where women are the large majority of people involved. There have been plenty of articles out there complaining about the lack of men being involved in a parish – but for Mrs. Blair facts don’t matter when it comes to feminist gripes. I guess Blessed Mother Teresa was not part of the “public face of Christianity” or the fact that Catholic churches are filled with the examples of great women saints. I guess she must of got tired of saying all those “Hail Joseph’s” – oh wait.
Remember when candidate Obama talked his foreign policy, of talking to others, of not dictating things. Well it looks like he will treat the enemies of our country better than Catholics and those who are pro-life.
US President Barack Obama has picked Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius to be his health secretary to carry out his ambitious healthcare reform program, the White House said.
A senior administration official told AFP Saturday that Sebelius had accepted the offer to serve as secretary of health and human services, a position Obama had first offered to former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle, who withdrew over tax questions.
Obama will make the announcement Monday at the White House, the official said. [reference]
This a a slap in the face of all faithful Catholics. That a Catholic who has been told by her bishop not to present herself for Communion is the acceptable choice as Secretary of Health and Human Services. That a person with close ties to an abortionist “Killer” Tiller who makes other abortions seems like upstanding citizens. They knew all this and still went ahead. Surely he could have found someone without these problems – after all the Secretary of HHS does not have to be a pro-abortion Catholic – though it seems that way. This appointment means that he will dictate to us and will not consider what Catholics might think about this at all. If Catholics were a terrorist organization maybe he would treat us better. Of course we already knew how supportive of abortion he is. We suspected that all of his talk of being the president of the whole country was just empty rhetoric. No real surprises here. Though I wonder why I am so upset the total arrogance of this appointment? Well at least it is good news for Kansas, just bad news for the country.
Deacon Fournier notes:
It appears that the release of news was timed to occur on the same day that “Catholics United”, a group which works in concert with “Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good”, launched its new web site entitled “Catholics for Sebelius”. On that advocacy site this group stretches accuracy beyond anything they have done before. They argue that this Governor who has been told by her Bishop, Joseph Naumann, to refrain from presenting herself for Holy Communion until she takes “the necessary steps for amendment of her life which would include a public repudiation of her previous efforts and actions in support of laws and policies sanctioning abortion” is an acceptable choice for Catholics.
“Catholics for Sebelius”, I guess the Hell with obedience. Though at least Gov. Sebelius has the the sense not to present herself for Communion. These Democratic front groups pretending to be Catholic are a sickness of the type that so far only Bishop Chaput has denounced. But these groups have gotten more than their 30 pieces of silver from George Soros. John Podesta us to run the Soros-funded organization, Center for American Progress, and “admits that he works closely with Catholics in Alliance and Catholics United.” So again no surprise that President Obama’s Chief of Staff has close ties to this group and that there is coordination. So for the next four years we can expect plenty more insults and slaps to Catholics by the Obama administration.
According to Cardinal Mahony
According to the calendar, Ash Wednesday occurs this week and we begin another Lent.
Except for this year.
Lent actually began in 2007 for many thousands of families all across the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and we have been in a long and protracted season of Lent ever since. In what sense? The annual Lenten season calls us to reflect more deeply into our lives with God, to re-order our personal priorities according to the Gospel, and to live out increased personal sacrifice in our daily living.
Now no doubt for many families the downturn of the economy has lead to sacrifice and part of the Cardinal Message is to take that suffering and to unite it with Christ. Bishop Fulton Sheen said “the biggest waste in the world is wasted suffering” and that is certainly true. Though if we are going to mark the start of Lent as when suffering began I say Lent for L.A. started in 1985 when he was appointed Cardinal. He had a birthday yesterday so for L.A. Lent will only be another 2 years. Now that is pretty snarky for Lent or for anytime of the year really, but considering the state of the seminary and the lack of authentic Catholic teaching in the diocese I think appropriate.
Emily who is associated with the Missioners of Christ is working in Comayagua, Honduras with the after graduating college last year. The Franciscan Friars of the Renewal have provided her with space to start a community library. This library is geared toward the school children in the community that do not have access to the nearest public library.
I was sent the following information:
She and the Franciscans are to the point where they need to start filling the library with books. Sadly, purchasing mass quantities of books can be very expensive. Emily, has set up an Amazon wish list, which can be found here, for a number of books and other odd items needed in the library (like globes and such). Since the library is in Honduras, it is necessary for the books to be in a Spanish or in a Spanish/English edition. If you know of anyone who happens to have such books lying around the house and feels the urge to donate them via mail to the Missioners of Christ for the community library, which they are calling The Library of the Little Flower, Emily has put a mailing address on the project page.