Such a headline:
“Pope imposes financial oversight for saints after abuses”
You would think those saints in Heaven wouldn’t be such spendthrifts. I guess they get giddy with their mansions in our Father’s house.
Still I got to love phrases like:
Vatican’s multimillion-dollar saint-making machine
Although there was very good reason for reform as bureaucracies tend towards corruption. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints is not necessarily staffed by saints to say the least.
The books estimated the average cost for each beatification at around 500,000 euros ($550,000), with much of the proceeds going to a few lucky people with contracts to do the often time-consuming investigations into the candidates’ lives. The family of one well-known investigator, for example, also had the Vatican monopoly on printing the documentation for each saintly cause, studies that often amount to dozens of volumes.
While candidates who inspire wealthy donors would sprint ahead, those with less wealthy fans would languish. American saints often cost the most precisely because the most money was donated, and the postulator could spend it on the best researchers to get the cause through, according to the book “Avarice” by journalist Emiliano Fittipaldi.
This shows one reason why I am thinking ahead for my own canonization. I was thinking about running a GoFundMe campaign to make sure I have the necessary bucks to sustain the costs involved. Plus I just can’t rely on large crowds of people chanting “Santo Subito” after I die, especially the people that knew me.
Another phrase I liked in the article was “science-defying miracles” – take that science. That might be a common view of miracles, but an incorrect one. I like this explanation from Catholic Answers
A miracle may be defined as an event that occurs in nature but that has a cause lying outside nature, that is, a supernatural cause. Miracles are not violations of the laws of nature. The way we know if an event is a miracle is by seeing if it could have been caused by natural forces.
The language in this article cracks me up.
Martyrs, or people who were killed for their faith, get a free pass and can be beatified without a miracle.
Martyrs are encourage by that “free pass”, dying for their faith is such a shortcut.
Still it does remind me of that wonderful line in Flannery O’Connor’s “A Temple of the Holy Ghost”:
“She could never be a saint, but she thought she could be a martyr if they killed her quick.”
Still as awkward as this article was at times in how it was worded, it is at least one that tried to do the subject some justice. However clumsily that was.
In the Gospel of John is today’s reading regarding The Woman caught in adultery.
One aspect of this situation is similar to other instances when the scribes and the Pharisees confronted Jesus with a situation.
“This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him”
Again the Scribes and the Pharisees betray their zeal for the law had nothing to do with the underpinnings of the Mosaic law in the natural law. They were not offended by this rupture of the marital bond or how adultery is so often used in the scriptures to point to our relationship with God and betraying him pursuing idols instead.
Instead they see Jesus as a rival teacher and are willing to set him up for their own purposes. They want Jesus to scandalize his followers by possibly disobeying the Mosiac law.
“Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such. What do you say about her?”
I would think quite possibly they interpreted the instances when Jesus showed mercy to sinners as a weakness to be exploited. “He ate with sinners.” They were scandalized by mercy, yet were not scandalized by their own lack of justice. Those without mercy often don’t even understand justice.
So while there is so much to draw from this event, there is one aspect I had not considered before.
“And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.”
Looking at this anew I realized just how surprising the scribes and the Pharisees reaction was. They had setup a trap and had no concern with Jesus’ answer other than that it would reflect badly on him regarding his followers. The surprise is that they ended up listening to him and subsequently counting themselves as sinners. I also find it interesting that the eldest among them left first. He had gained enough wisdom to go beyond the myriad rules and still see himself as a sinner. His response probably helped the others to realize the same.
The prideful scribes and the Pharisees were humbled by their own acknowledgment that they were not without sin. Often when we are confronted by our sinfulness we double-down by rejecting the thought or whip up a defensive wall made of excuses and justifications.
So it is pretty awesome that they heard what Jesus had to say and accepted the grace to humble themselves by leaving.
- Excerpts from “The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament.”
This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 25 February 2016 to 9 March 2016.
The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s The Weekly Francis. Jimmy Akin came up with this idea when he started “The Weekly Benedict” and I have taken over curation of it.
Angelus
Daily Homilies (fervorinos)
- 25 February 2016 – A name or an adjective
- 29 February 2016 – Salvation in the little things
- 1 March 2016 – The forgiveness equation (1st March 2016)
General Audiences
Homilies
Speeches
- 27 February 2016 – To the General Confederation of Italian Industry – Confindustria
- 29 February 2016 – To the “Carabinieri Company of Rome St Peter’s”
Papal Tweets
- “Open your heart to mercy! Divine mercy is stronger than the sins of men” @Pontifex 3 March 2016
- “Jesus Christ, with his closeness and tenderness, leads sinners into the place of grace and pardon. This is the mercy of God.” @Pontifex 4 March 2016
- “May the Lord free us from all temptation that separates us from what is essential in our mission and help rediscover the beauty of faith.” @Pontifex 5 March 2016
- “The Jubilee of Mercy is a propitious occasion to promote in the world ways to respect life and the dignity of each person.” @Pontifex 6 March 2016
- “My life, my attitude, the way of going through life, must really be a concrete sign of the fact that God is close to us.” @Pontifex 7 March 2016
- “Small gestures of love, of tenderness, of care, make people feel that the Lord is with us. This is how the door of mercy opens.” @Pontifex 8 March 2016
- “God has caressed us with his mercy. Let us bring God’s tender caress to others, to those who are in need.” @Pontifex 9 March 2016
There are not many instances where my headbangin’ tendencies and my Catholic faith cross.
Iron Maiden pay respects at Blessed Oscar Romero’s tomb
Iron Maiden paid tribute to Blessed Oscar Romero during the British heavy metal band’s stop in El Salvador on their current world tour.
During a concert at the Estadio Jorge Magico Gonzalez in San Salvador, El Savador’s capital, a crowd of 9,000 people cheered when the band’s drummer Nicko McBrain put on a t-shirt featuring an image of the murdered priest and the slogan, “Saint Romero of the Americas”.
Before the concert, McBrain and his bandmate, guitarist Janick Gers, visited Blessed Romero’s tomb in the Crypt of San Salvador Metropolitan Cathedral, Associated Press reports.
Now I knew Nicko McBrain joined a Presbyterian church in Florida around 1999, so this is rather interesting.
Now this is rather odd,
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s main archdiocese has taken the unusual step of publicly saying Pope Francis had been badly advised when he directed harsh words to local bishops during his visit in mid-February.
The pope told a gathering of local bishops in February not to be career-minded clerics, saying, “We do not need ‘princes,’ but rather a community of the Lord’s witnesses.”
The pope also urged them to maintain unity and show more transparency. “If you have to fight, fight. If you have to say things, say them, but do it like men: to the face,” Francis told the bishops.
An editorial published Sunday on a website of the archdiocese of Mexico City also said that some of the pope’s comments had been misinterpreted by “reporters more focused on histrionics than the deep meaning of the words.”
“The Mexican bishops have been accompanying the suffering, downtrodden people, devoting their lives to others and not living like ‘princes,’” the editorial said.
It denies local bishops are out of touch with the people, and says the pope’s comments “might be due to someone near him who gave him bad advice.”
The editorial ends with the question: “Who gave the pope bad advice?” Source
Wow I am going to move to Mexico where apparently they have perfect bishops with no amount of clericalism.
Well, maybe not. It is true the Pope can be a bit of a scold at times like his Christmas speech to the Curia. Still this seems very thin-skinned to me. Say for example the Pope was misinformed, than such bishops unconcerned about a worldly career would not be concerned that they were mischaracterized. That they issued an editorial regarding this is a “Doth protest too much” moment.
I heard a very unique homily on the parable of The Prodigal Son. Unique in a good way.
It was a soliloquy delivered from the perspective of the older brother as he speaks about his anger at his brother and father and fleshes out his feelings and reflects on them. Is he just in his anger and being treated unfair? Is he trying to buy his Father’s love by duty? Does he have gratitude for what he has or is he jealous of his brother? There is a whole chain of thoughts expressed to where he comes out the other side seeing his own faults.
I found this rather powerful and a interesting way to get the point across. Listening to it I was hoping that he would finish the soliloquy and not try to expand by trying to explain further – since it was perfect as it was. He did leave it alone.
Now this is not a technique I would want to see used all the time. Turning a homily into a drama audition. Yet used sparingly by someone in a skillful manner I found it a rather effective way to reflect on the reading,
When I have heard the pastor of this church preach I have been impressed. There is a vigor and thoughtfulness to his homilies. Plus more to the point I actually remember the points made in them after Mass. Usually I suspect the Holy Water font contains the water from Lethe.
This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 22 January 2016 to 29 February 2016.
The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s The Weekly Francis. Jimmy Akin came up with this idea when he started “The Weekly Benedict” and I have taken over curation of it.
Angelus
Daily Homilies (fervorinos)
General Audiences
Homilies
- 17 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Holy Mass at the Ciudad Juárez fairgrounds
- 22 February 2016 – Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy: Jubilee for the Roman Curia
Messages
Speeches
- 12 February 2016 – Meeting of His Holiness Pope Francis with His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia – Signing of the Joint Declaration (Havana – Cuba, 12 February 2016)
- 12 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey: Address of the Holy Father during the flight from Havana to Mexico City (Papal Flight, 12 February 2016)
- 16 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Greeting to children attending catechism classes at the Cathedral of Morelia
- 17 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: In-Flight Press Conference from Mexico City to Rome (Papal Flight, 17 February 2016)
- 17 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Farewell greeting of the Holy Father
- 17 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Meeting with the world of labour at the Bachilleres College in the state of Chihuahua (Ciudad Juárez, 17 February 2016)
- 17 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Visit to the penitentiary (CeReSo n. 3) of Ciudad Juárez
- 26 February 2016 – To participants in the Congress on the Encyclical Deus Caritas Est of Benedict XVI on the tenth anniversary of its publication
- 29 February 2016 – To His Holiness Pope Abuna Matthias I, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 28 January 2016 to 17 February 2016.
The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s The Weekly Francis. Jimmy Akin came up with this idea when he started “The Weekly Benedict” and I have taken over curation of it.
Angelus
Daily Homilies (fervorinos)
- 28 January 2016 – Without measure
- 29 January 2016 – From sin into corruption
- 1 February 2016 – There is no humility without humiliation (1st February 2016)
- 4 February 2016 – The greatest legacy
- 5 February 2016 – Ever decreasing
General Audiences
Homilies
- 2 February 2016 – Holy Mass on the occasion of the World Day of Consecrated Life
- 9 February 2016 – Holy Mass for the Capuchin Friars Minor
- 10 February 2016 – Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy: Holy Mass, blessing and imposition of the Ashes
- 13 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Holy Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexico City, 13 February 2016)
- 14 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Holy Mass in the area of the Study Centre of Ecatepec
- 15 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Holy Mass with representatives of the indigenous communities of Chiapas (San Cristóbal de Las Casas, 15 February 2016)
- 16 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Holy Mass with priests, men and women religious, consecrated people and seminarians (Morelia, 16 February 2016)
Messages
Speeches
- 1 February 2016 – To participants in the Jubilee for Consecrated Life (1st February 2016)
- 6 February 2016 – Jubilee for Prayer Groups of Padre Pio
- 9 February 2016 – Meeting with the Missionaries of Mercy
- 12 February 2016 – Meeting of His Holiness Pope Francis with His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia – Signing of the Joint Declaration (Havana – Cuba, 12 February 2016)
- 13 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Meeting with the Bishops of Mexico gathered in the Cathedral (Mexico City, 13 February 2016)
- 13 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Meeting with authorities, representatives of civil society and the diplomatic corps (Mexico City, 13 February 2016)
- 14 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Visit to the “Federico Gómez”” pediatric hospital (Mexico City, 14 February 2016)
- 15 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Meeting with families in the “Víctor Manuel Reyna” stadium (Tuxtla Gutiérrez, 15 February 2016)
- 16 February 2016 – Apostolic Journey to Mexico: Meeting with young people in the “José María Morelos y Pavón” stadium (Morelia, 16 February 2016)
Papal Tweets
- “God wants to live amidst his sons and daughters. Let us make space for him in our hearts.” @Pontifex 4 February 2016
- “Entering through the Holy Door means discovering the depths of the Father’s mercy, who seeks each of us personally.” @Pontifex 8 February 2016
- “In Mexico I will look into the eyes of the Virgin Mary and implore her to look upon us always with mercy. I entrust my journey to her.” @Pontifex 11 February 2016
- “Today is a day of grace. The meeting with Patriarch Kirill is a gift from God. Pray for us.” @Pontifex 12 February 2016
- “Dear Mexican friends, you are in my heart. Let us put our trust in the Blessed Virgin of Guadalupe who always looks on us with tenderness.” @Pontifex 12 February 2016
- “Mexico has a young face. This makes it possible to contemplate and plan for a future, for a tomorrow. This offers hope.” @Pontifex 13 February 2016
- “Mary is the woman who says yes, a yes of surrender to God, a yes of surrender to her brothers and sisters. May we follow her example.” @Pontifex 13 February 2016
- “Simply looking at you, O Mother, to have eyes only for you, looking upon you without saying anything…” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
- “Lent is a time for reconsidering our feelings, for letting our eyes be opened to injustice, to open our hearts to those suffering.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
- “May the Lord help us overcome the temptations of wealth, vanity and pride which seek to destroy the truth of the Gospel.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
- “Jesus is waiting for us and wants to heal our hearts of all that tears us down. He is the God who has a name: Mercy.” @Pontifex 14 February 2016
- “In the heart of every person is a desire to live in freedom, in a place where change is possible in fellowship and solidarity.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
- “Among the poor being treated worst is our planet. We cannot pretend all is fine in the face of the great environmental crisis.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
- “I prefer a family with a tired face from sacrifices made rather than a pretty one which is unfamiliar with tenderness and compassion.” @Pontifex 15 February 2016
- “We learn how to pray, just as we do to walk, speak and listen. If you tell me how you pray, I can tell you how you live.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
- “Our first calling is to learn how to say the “Our Father”. Father, help us to avoid the temptation of resignation.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
- “In Jesus I have met the one who is able to bring out the best in me.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
- “You have asked me for a word of hope: what I have to offer you has a name: Jesus Christ.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
- “Jesus would never ask us to be assassins; he calls us to be disciples. He would never send us to die. He invites us to life.” @Pontifex 16 February 2016
- “The mercy of Jesus embraces everyone in every part of the world: open your hearts!” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
- “Celebrating the Jubilee of Mercy means learning how to not remain prisoners of the past. It means believing things can be different.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
- “Dear prisoners, while you have experienced great pain, you can become prophets of a better society without violence and exclusion.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
- “All of us must struggle so that work can become a reality of humanization and a positive future.” @Pontifex 17 February 2016
- Complain that in the Latin Rite, fasting norms are rather wimpy when compared to Eastern Rite Catholics.
- Someone reminds you that you can personally adopt their Lenten fast yourself.
- Never mind.