The Curt Jester – Page 51 – Punditry, Prayer, Parody, Polemics, Puns from a Papist Perspective

The Weekly Francis – Volume 289 – 16 October 2019

by Jeffrey Miller October 16, 2019October 16, 2019

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 26 September 2019 to 16 October 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

Homilies

Messages

16 October 2019 – Message for the World Food Day 2019

Speeches

26 September 2019 – To participants in the General Assembly of “Talitha Kum”

Papal Tweets

“As we close the #SeasonOfCreation today, we entrust the #AmazonSynod to St. Francis of Assisi.” @Pontifex 4 October 2019
“The willingness of a Cardinal to shed his own blood, symbolized by the red colour of his clothing, is guaranteed when it is rooted in compassion, received from God, and given to his brothers and sisters.” @Pontifex 5 October 2019
“In the #GospelOfToday, Jesus shows us that the measure of faith is service. ”We are useless servants“ is an expression of humility and availability that does so much good for the Church. #Angelus” @Pontifex 6 October 2019
“So many of our brothers and sisters in Amazonia are bearing heavy crosses and awaiting the liberating consolation of the Gospel, the Church’s caress of love. For them, and with them, let us journey together. #SinodoAmazonico http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20191006_omelia-sinodo-amazzonia.html” @Pontifex 6 October 2019
“I ask you to accompany this important ecclesial event with prayers, so that it may be experienced in fraternal communion and docility to the Holy Spirit, who always shows the ways for bearing witness to the Gospel. #SinodoAmazonico” @Pontifex 7 October 2019
“Jonah is stubborn in his faith convictions, and the Lord is stubborn in His mercy. Because the Lord always wants to heal and to save, not to condemn. #SantaMarta” @Pontifex 8 October 2019
“May the Holy Spirit, the builder of fraternity, give us the grace to walk beside one another. May He make us courageous as we experience unprecedented ways of sharing and of mission.” @Pontifex 10 October 2019
“The Lord always reminds us how precious we are in His eyes, and He entrusts us with a mission.” @Pontifex 11 October 2019
“Let us pray for our communities, that by giving witness to the joy of Christian life, they may see a flowering of the call to holiness.” @Pontifex 12 October 2019
“Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession.” @Pontifex 13 October 2019
“The #GospelOfToday shows us that the ultimate goal is the encounter with Jesus. He alone frees us from evil and heals our hearts. Only an encounter with him can save, can make life full and beautiful. http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20191013_omelia-canonizzazione.html” @Pontifex 13 October 2019
“The Lord gives each of us a vocation, a challenge to discover the talents and abilities we possess and to put them at the service of others.” @Pontifex 14 October 2019
“How do we root out hypocrisy? There’s a good medicine that can help us not be hypocrites: point the finger at ourselves and say to the Lord ”Look at the way I am, Lord!“, and say it with humility. #SantaMarta” @Pontifex 15 October 2019
“Today we ask for the grace to allow ourselves to be amazed by God’s surprises, to not hinder His creativity, but to encourage hearts to encounter the Lord. #GeneralAudience” @Pontifex 16 October 2019
“Let us work together so that every person can have access to adequate food, according to the will of God. #ZeroHunger http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/food/documents/papa-francesco_20191016_messaggio-giornata-alimentazione.html” @Pontifex 16 October 2019

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 288 – 03 October 2019

by Jeffrey Miller October 3, 2019October 3, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 22 September 2019 to 3 October 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

22 September 2019

General Audiences

25 September 2019

Homilies

Motu Proprio

30 September 2019 – Apostolic Letter in the form of Motu Proprio of the Supreme Pontiff Francis “Aperuit illis”

Speeches

Papal Tweets

“When we become ”spiritually lukewarm“, we become half-Christians, without substance. Instead, the Lord wants conversion, today. #SantaMarta” @Pontifex 26 September 2019
“The true face of love is mercy. Practicing it, we become a disciple of Jesus and the heart of the Father shows itself.” @Pontifex 27 September 2019
“We need others in order to live and to share the love and trust that the Lord gives us.” @Pontifex 28 September 2019
“It’s not just about migrants, it’s about all of us, about the human family, called to build together a world more in accord with God’s plan. #NotJustAboutMigrants
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/migration/documents/papa-francesco_20190527_world-migrants-day–2019.html” @Pontifex 29 September 2019
“The elderly and the young, together. This is the sign that a people cherishes life, that there is a culture of hope: the care of the young and the elderly. #SantaMarta” @Pontifex 30 September 2019
“The sweetness of God’s word leads us to share it with all those whom we encounter in this life and to proclaim the sure hope that it contains. #AperuitIllis http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/motu_proprio/documents/papa-francesco-motu-proprio–20190930_aperuit-illis.html” @Pontifex 30 September 2019
“May the Sunday of the Word of God help his people to grow in religious and intimate familiarity with the sacred Scriptures. #AperuitIllis
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/motu_proprio/documents/papa-francesco-motu-proprio–20190930_aperuit-illis.html” @Pontifex 30 September 2019
“Video #ExtraordinaryMissionaryMonth #MissionaryOctober” @Pontifex 1 October 2019
“May the memorial of our #HolyGuardianAngels strengthen in us the certainty that we are not alone. May it sustain us in proclaiming and living Christ’s Gospel for a world renewed in God’s love.” @Pontifex 2 October 2019
“The Word of God fills us with joy and this joy is our strength. We are joyful Christians because we have welcomed the Word of God in our hearts. This is the message for today, for all of us. #SantaMarta” @Pontifex 3 October 2019

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In robota Christi

by Jeffrey Miller September 26, 2019September 26, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

Recently I have noticed an upsurge in stories about robot priests/ministers/monks.

First off, I noticed CNA’s In robota Christi? Why robots can never be Catholic priests

The title was promising since it told the truth from the start.

Still the article contained some monumental stupidity.

In an interview with Vox, Franciscan Sister Ilia Delio, who holds the Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair of Theology at Villanova University, said that Catholicism should “reimagine” the priesthood and consider robots instead of, or alongside, men.

“The Catholic notion would say the priest is ontologically changed upon ordination. Is that really true?” Delio told Vox. “We have these fixed philosophical ideas and AI challenges those ideas – it challenges Catholicism to move toward a post-human priesthood.”

Delio said robotic priests would have certain advantages – including being incapable of committing sexual abuse.

So far I have never seen an instance where a theologian uses the word reimagine and something sane comes out of it.

Whenever you see the sentence “Is that really true” after some proposition you know this is going to be weaselly. That no argument will be put forward why it is not true. The other weaselly trick is to denote something always taught by the Church as a “notion”.

That there is an ontological change is affirmed by the Church.

CCC 1582: As in the case of Baptism and Confirmation this share in Christ’s office is granted once for all. The sacrament of Holy Orders, like the other two, confers an indelible spiritual character and cannot be repeated or conferred temporarily.

Which in turn references the following:

Council of Trent: CANON IX. – If any one saith, that, in the three sacraments, Baptism, to wit, Confirmation, and Order, there is not imprinted in the soul a character, that is, a certain spiritual and indelible Sign, on account of which they cannot be repeated; let him be anathema.

1767 Dz 960 But since in the sacrament of orders, as also in baptism and in confirmation, a sign is imprinted [can. 4], which can neither be effaced nor taken away, justly does the holy Synod condemn the opinion of those who assert that the priests of the New Testament have only a temporary power, and that those at one time rightly ordained can again become laymen, if they do not exercise the ministry of the word of God [can. 1 ]. But if anyone should affirm that all Christians without distinction are priests of the New Testament, or that they are all endowed among themselves with an equal spiritual power, he seems to do nothing else than disarrange [can. 6] the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which is “as an army set in array” (cf. Song. Ct 6,3), just as if, contrary to the teaching of blessed Paul, all were apostles, all prophets, all evangelists, all pastors, all doctors (cf. 1Co 12,29 Ep 4,11).

The idea that AI challenges these “fixed philosophical ideas” is also nonsense. A computer seems like such an excellent metaphor for the brain. That is if the brain is reduced to computation and memory. This is basically the view of the material determinists. It is really quite a bad metaphor. There is a reason the term “The hard problem of consciousness” came about.

The easy problems of consciousness, says Chalmers, are those which cluster around phenomena such as the difference between wakefulness and sleep; the ability to discriminate, categorize, and react to environmental stimuli; our ability to make verbal reports of our mental states; and the deliberate control of human behavior. Problems related to these phenomena are termed “easy” by Chalmers because he believes they can all be more or less explained by a thoroughly materialist neuroscience.

The hard problem of consciousness, however, is the problem of why we are conscious at all. Why do we have this “movie” playing inside our head at which we serve as the spectators of our own thoughts and feelings, memories and imaginings? Materialist neuroscience, Chalmers argues, provides impressive objective accounts of how certain brain areas correlate with certain kinds of conscious experience. But it simply doesn’t have an explanation for the subjective experience of consciousness. The Catholic Thing: Daniel McInerny

The idea that we are going to create consciousness via algorithms just in not rooted in what we do know. I have read plenty of SF stories that by multiplying the number of connection to simulate the brain’s synapses that there would come some point where consciousness involved. This idea has not really gone away.

SF writer Vernon Virge’s term “Singularity” is used to describe the near-future point that machine intelligence will be infinitely more powerful than all human intelligence combined. Kind of a Moore’s Law for consciousness. Other ideas as seeing the soul as a “ghost in the machine” via Cartesian Dualism has also fueled this mistake. The hard problem of consciousness will remain, but St. Thomas Aquinas in Question 76. The union of body and soul provides a much sounder basis two work on that does not make these errors.

As for robotic priests not being capable of committing sexual abuse. Well that would depend on how they are designed and programmed. If you really believe robots will evolve true consciousness and free will, this does not follow. Plus come on, has she not read any of Asimov’s Robot stories and how the three laws were circumvented?

Thankfully the article did contain some sanity. For example from Sister Mary Christa Nutt, RSM.

Robots cannot be priests because they are incapable of having an intellect or a will with which to cooperate with God’s grace.

“It has to do with our Catholic understanding of the need for human mediation, cooperation with interior grace,”

I would be so tempted with thinking this article was an Onion piece with having both a Sister Delio and Sister Nutt. The simplest statement was provided by theologian Kevin Miller.

“Catholics must look to Jesus Christ. And Jesus is, decidedly, not a robot.”

Okay enough of the more serious objections to Franciscan Sister Ilia Delio and this whole idea and have some fun.

Now if robot priests were actually capable of sarcedotal actions I can think of some features I would like.

ConfessionBot – Would be equipped with no ocular sensors and all memory would be short term and volatile. Plus no speech pattern detection or any form of digital fingerprinting. For people less worried about security options, some sort of login so you can select a ditto option. Maybe also an option to select a school of spirituality you would like the ConfessionBot to use for quick spiritual suggestions. Truth detection could be used to determine level of sorrow for sins and to deliver the proper penance.
LiturgyBot – One simple algorithm “Say the black, do the red.” Possibly also equipped with a built-in Thurible. Maybe also equipped with a Pentecost system connected to in-ear monitors so everyone in the pews could hear the Mass in the language of their choice. Some parishes might decide to install the “Catholic Politician and Public Sinner” module to limit distribution of Holy Communion.
AltarBot – Would assist the PriestBots and provide experience if they decide to upgrade from AltarBot to PriestBot with a seminary and pastoral module.
ViaticumBot – Would be connected to healthcare networks to monitor the status of individual Catholics. Would rapidly deploy to ensure last rites would be delivered timely along with an Apostolic Pardon. Equipped also with a chrism oil dispenser.
BaptismBot – Totally waterproof with a proper baby handling manipulator arms. The main version of this bot would require the sarcedotal module to be the proper minister under Robot Canon Law, but other versions without this module would just require consciousness for emergency situations.
FundraiserBot – Especially equipped with rhetorical skills to compel people to provide money to pay for facilities and all these bots along with helping to keep the BishopBot off the PastorBot’s backside.
BureaucratBot – Obviously used to staff diocesan offices along with bishop conferences to ensure other bots can’t get their assigned duties done. This bot would not require AI since intelligence has never been a requirement for bureaucrats and would probably hinder their hindering.
VisitingTheSickBot – What you want a bot for everything? Come on get off your ass.

September 26, 2019September 26, 2019 2 comments

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 287 – 25 September 2019

by Jeffrey Miller September 25, 2019September 25, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 30 August 2019 to 23 September 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

15 September 2019

General Audiences

Letters

30 August 2019 – Letter of the Holy Father Francis to His Holiness Bartholomew I, Archbishop of Constantinople, accompanying the gift of some relics of Saint Peter

Messages

Speeches

Papal Instagram

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 286 – 12 September 2019

by Jeffrey Miller September 12, 2019September 12, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 1 September 2019 to 12 September 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

Homilies

Messages

12 September 2019 – Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the Launch of the Educational Alliance

Prayers

8 September 2019 – Apostolic Journey to Madagascar: Prayer for the Workers in the Mahatzana Worksite (Antananarivo, 8 September 2019)

Speeches

Papal Tweets

“Try to keep quiet a moment and let God love you. Try to silence all the inner voices, and rest for a second in His loving embrace. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 5 September 2019
“No one is more insignificant than a priest left to his own devices; therefore, our prayer is that of our Mother: I am a priest because the Lord has regarded my insignificance with kindness (cf. Lk 1:48). #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 5 September 2019
“Let’s not forget that the names of our poorest brothers and sisters, written in heaven, have this inscription next to them: these are the blessed ones of my Father. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 6 September 2019
“Jesus proposes a first golden rule for everyone: ”Do unto others as you would have them do unto you“ (Lk 6:31); and he helps us to discover what is most important: to love us and help us. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 6 September 2019
“The Lord is the first to trust in you, and He also invites you to trust in yourselves; He invites you to encourage one another, and join Him in writing the most beautiful page of your lives. #ApostolicJourney #Madagascar” @Pontifex 7 September 2019
“Our life and our talents are the result of a gift woven between God and the many silent hands of persons whose names we will only know in Heaven. #ApostolicJourney #Madagascar” @Pontifex 8 September 2019
“Let us turn in prayer to the Holy Virgin on this day when we remember her birth, the dawn of salvation for humanity. #Angelus” @Pontifex 8 September 2019
“Akamasoa, ”City of Friendship“, is the expression of the God’s presence God who decided to live and remain always in the midst of His people. Seeing these radiant faces, I give thanks to the Lord who has heard the cry of the poor. #ApostolicJourney #Madagascar” @Pontifex 8 September 2019
“Happy are you, happy is the Church of the poor and for the poor, for she lives imbued with the fragrance of her Lord, she lives joyfully proclaiming the Good News to the throw-aways of the earth, to those who are God’s favorites. #ApostolicJourney #Madagascar” @Pontifex 8 September 2019
“What must one do to be a good Christian? The answer is simple: we have to do, each in our own way, what Jesus says in the Beatitudes. #ApostolicJourney #Mauritius” @Pontifex 9 September 2019
“Thank you for your warm welcome. May God bless you all you. May His love and mercy continue to accompany and protect you! #ApostolicJourney” @Pontifex 9 September 2019
“Christ is the hope of the world: His Gospel is the most powerful leaven of brotherhood, freedom, justice and peace for all peoples. #GeneralAudience” @Pontifex 11 September 2019
“Today we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary. I invite everyone to turn to Our Lady. Let her inspire you with a Christian outlook, so as to live like and imitate her Son Jesus ever more.” @Pontifex 12 September 2019
“I wish to endorse a global event, to take place on 14 May 2020 on the theme Reinventing the Global Educational Alliance. http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190912_messaggio-patto-educativo.html” @Pontifex 12 September 2019

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 285 – 05 September 2019

by Jeffrey Miller September 5, 2019September 5, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 3 August 2019 to 5 September 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

25 August 2019

General Audiences

28 August 2019

Messages

Speeches

Papal Tweets

“Saint John the Baptist who bore witness to the Messiah by dying for the truth, pray for us!” @Pontifex 29 August 2019
“In our daily relationship with Jesus, and in the strength of His forgiveness, we rediscover our roots.” @Pontifex 30 August 2019
“Video” @Pontifex 31 August 2019
“In today’s Gospel, Jesus invites us to selfless generosity, to open the path towards a much greater joy: that of participating in God’s own love. #Angelus” @Pontifex 1 September 2019
“Now is the time to rediscover our vocation as children of God, brothers and sisters, and stewards of creation. In this #SeasonOfCreation, I invite everyone to dedicate themselves to prayer.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” [@Pontifex 1 September 2019][Tw01FF575D4D-024B-4BC3-9624-032621CE6D42]
“This is the season for letting our prayer be inspired anew by closeness to nature, which spontaneously leads us to give thanks to God the Creator.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” @Pontifex 1 September 2019
“This is the season to reflect on our lifestyles and to undertake prophetic actions.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” @Pontifex 1 September 2019
“We are beloved creatures of God, who in His goodness calls us to love life and to live it in communion with the rest of creation.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” @Pontifex 2 September 2019
“Creation, a place of encounter with the Lord and one another, is “God’s own social network”, which inspires us to raise a song of cosmic praise to the Creator.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” @Pontifex 2 September 2019
“May God, the lover of life, grant us the courage to do good without waiting for someone else to begin, or until it is too late.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2019/documents/papa-francesco_20190901_messaggio-giornata-cura-creato.html” @Pontifex 2 September 2019
“The Holy Spirit, when we invite Him into our wounds, anoints our painful memories with the balm of hope, because the Spirit restores hope.” @Pontifex 3 September 2019
“I invite you all to join me in prayer, that God, the Father of all, may consolidate fraternal reconciliation throughout Africa, which is the only hope for solid and lasting peace. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique #Madagascar #Mauritius” @Pontifex 4 September 2019
“I invite you, each within your own heart, to pray for our brothers and sisters who have lost their lives or who are suffering because of the hurricane in the Bahamas” @Pontifex 4 September 2019
“The pursuit of lasting peace is a mission that involves everyone. It calls for strenuous, constant and unceasing effort, because peace is like a delicate flower trying to blossom on the stony ground of violence. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 5 September 2019
“Try to keep quiet a moment and let God love you. Try to silence all the inner voices, and rest for a second in His loving embrace. #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 5 September 2019
“No one is more insignificant than a priest left to his own devices; therefore, our prayer is that of our Mother: I am a priest because the Lord has regarded my insignificance with kindness (cf. Lk 1:48). #ApostolicJourney #Mozambique” @Pontifex 5 September 2019

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 284 – 28 August 2019

by Jeffrey Miller August 28, 2019August 28, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 8 August 2019 to 28 August 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

General Audiences

21 August 2019

Letters

8 August 2019 – Chirograph of the Holy Father for the new Statutes of the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR)

Papal Tweets

“May the Lord open our hearts to the needs of the poor, the defenseless, those who knock on our door to be recognized as a person.” @Pontifex 22 August 2019
“All of us have been created in the image and likeness of God and have the same dignity. Let us stop slavery! #IDRSTA” @Pontifex 23 August 2019
“May God who remembers us, God who heals our wounded memories by anointing them with hope, God who is near to lift us up from within, help us to build up the good and to console hearts.” @Pontifex 24 August 2019
“In today’s Gospel, Jesus explains how in Heaven there is no ”limited number“, but in order to get there, already in this life we must pass through the ”narrow gate“: loving God and our neighbour. And this is not easy! #Angelus” @Pontifex 25 August 2019
“Whoever draws near to God will not stumble, but strives ahead: beginning anew, trying again, rebuilding.” @Pontifex 26 August 2019
“The light of God enlightens those who welcome it.” @Pontifex 27 August 2019
“We ask for the grace not to be lukewarm Christians, living on half measures, letting love grow cold.” @Pontifex 28 August 2019

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The Weekly Francis – Volume 283 – 21 August 2019

by Jeffrey Miller August 21, 2019August 21, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

This version of The Weekly Francis covers material released in the last week from 4 August 2019 to 21 August 2019.

The Weekly Francis is a compilation of the Holy Father’s writings, speeches, etc which I also post at Jimmy Akin’s blog.

Angelus

4 August 2019

General Audiences

7 August 2019

Papal Tweets

“In the midst of all those passing things in which we are so caught up, help us, Father, to seek what truly lasts: your presence and that of our brother or sister.” @Pontifex 8 August 2019
“Indigenous peoples, with their variety of languages, cultures, traditions, and ancestral knowledge, remind us that we are all responsible for the care of Creation, which God has entrusted to us. #IndigenousPeoplesDay” @Pontifex 9 August 2019
“Basically, the Christian witness announces this alone: that Jesus is alive and that He is the secret of life. #StLawrenceMartyr” @Pontifex 10 August 2019
“Today’s Gospel invites us to abandon ourselves with simplicity and trust to God’s will, and to keep ”the lamps alight“, so we can brighten the darkness of the night. #Angelus” @Pontifex 11 August 2019
“Education with horizons open to transcendence helps young people to dream and to build a more beautiful world. #IYD2019” @Pontifex 12 August 2019
“Only when we experience God’s forgiveness are we truly reborn. We start again from there, from forgiveness. It is there that we rediscover ourselves: in confessing our sins.” @Pontifex 13 August 2019
“Let us ask for the grace to remember each day that we are not forgotten by God, and that we are His beloved children, unique and irreplaceable. Calling this to mind gives us the strength not to surrender before the adversities of life.” @Pontifex 14 August 2019
“Mary’s journey to Heaven began with that ”yes“ pronounced at Nazareth. Every “yes” to God is a step towards Heaven, towards eternal life. Because the Lord wants us all with Himself, in His house!” @Pontifex 15 August 2019
“Let us ask Our Lady to protect and sustain us; that we may have a strong, joyful and merciful faith; that she may help us to be saints, to meet her one day in Paradise.” @Pontifex 16 August 2019
“With God, the burdens of life rest not upon our shoulders alone: the Holy Spirit comes to give us strength, to encourage us, to bear our burdens.” @Pontifex 17 August 2019
“In today’s Gospel, Jesus reveals to us His most ardent desire: to bring to the earth the fire of the Father’s love: the fire that saves, that changes the world, starting from the change of each one’s heart. #Angelus” @Pontifex 18 August 2019
“Today we remember all the brave women who go out to meet their brothers and sisters in difficulty. Each of them is a sign of God’s closeness and compassion. #WomenHumanitarians” @Pontifex 19 August 2019
“In the uncertainty that we feel both inside and out, the Lord gives us a certainty: He remembers us.” @Pontifex 20 August 2019
“It takes more strength to repair than to build, to start anew than to begin, to be reconciled than to get along. This is the strength that God gives us.” @Pontifex 21 August 2019

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Why can’t Catholics offer Communion in individual disposable cups?

by Jeffrey Miller August 17, 2019August 17, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

From a Q&A article in the Boston Pilot by Father Kenneth Doyle

Q. I’ve been wondering about this for a long time. Why, at holy Communion, do we have to drink
from the same chalice that everyone else has used? It seems to me to be a very unsanitary practice, with all the germs and diseases that are around.

So my family and I do not partake of the precious blood of Jesus at Mass. Why can’t Catholics offer Communion in individual disposable cups, as some of the Protestant churches do? (Sherwood, Arkansas)

A. Over the years, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has several times answered inquiries regarding the risk of disease transmission from a common cup.

As the American Journal of Infection Control has explained (October 1998), within the CDC there is a consensus that a “theoretic” risk might exist, but that “the risk is so small that it is undetectable.” And further, “no documented transmission of any infectious disease has ever been traced” to this practice.

Anne LaGrange Loving, a New Jersey microbiologist who has conducted a study on the subject, stated in a Los Angeles Times article Jan. 1, 2005, that “people who sip from the Communion cup don’t get sick more often than anyone else” and that “it isn’t any riskier than standing in line at the movies.”

Nevertheless, common caution should be observed: Ministers should clean their hands thoroughly before distributing the Eucharist, and the Communion chalice should be washed with soap and hot water after every service. Those currently suffering from an active respiratory disease should have the good sense to receive the host only, not the chalice, and a number of Catholic dioceses have actually suspended the use of the Communion cup during outbreaks of influenza.

As to the manner of reception, Catholics, Episcopalians, and Lutherans typically use a common Communion cup, while Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists and evangelical congregations tend to pass out individual and disposable cups.

It seems to me that the common cup more closely carries on the tradition of the Last Supper and highlights our joint sharing in the eucharistic sacrifice. In Matthew’s Gospel (26:27), for example, Jesus “took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you, for this is the blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins.’”

As one Lutheran parish in New Mexico explains it, Jesus “could have easily blessed all the wine that was already poured in the various cups that were already on the table on the night he was betrayed. But he didn’t. Instead he blessed the one cup to be given to many. The common cup fulfills this symbolism beautifully.”

While the answer is correct as far as it goes, it misses the mark by a long distance.

How about just “We don’t put the precious blood of Jesus in a plastic sip cup”. That pretty much says it all for me.

As Fr. Brendon Laroche on Twitter said:

Because every single one of those disposable cups would have to be purified and then buried or burnt up afterwards because they held the Precious Blood of Christ.

Once again concerning the lack of belief in the Eucharist among Catholics, to have a priest write several paragraphs to this question and only addresses health risk and symbolism is part of the problem. This could very well just be an oversight on the part of this priest. Some times we get deep into the weeds of a question and forget the totally obvious. Yet, don’t they even have an editor at the Catholic News Service?

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal specifies that sacred vessels be composed of noble metals, kind of leaves off plastic. Protestants have various devices for filling trays of these disposable cups with grape juice or wine. A variety of these devices range from simple one-click cup fillers to more complex devices with various tubes. Rather nightmarish to think of these sterile devices when it comes to Communion.

Thinking about the ignorance of so many Catholics regarding the Eucharist, I wonder how many realize that just receiving the Host, that they have fully received the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus. If there was ever an actual disease vector from sharing a common Communion Cup, the answer wouldn’t be disposable plastic cups, but simply restricting the Precious Blood.

The priest’s comment about how the common cup more closely carries on the tradition of the Last Supper is fairly accurate. Receiving under both forms has a higher sign value and the priest always receives under both forms. Still, at most Masses where the Precious Blood is distributed there is not really a common cup as often there are multiple EMHC’s distributing the cup.

August 17, 2019August 17, 2019 1 comment

Punditry

Credence Table Revival

by Jeffrey Miller August 15, 2019August 17, 2019

written by Jeffrey Miller

I am still thinking about the recent poll regarding the lack of belief in the Eucharist among Catholics.

So just posting as things cross my mind. I don’t want to make the mistake of saying “Fix this one thing” and everything will be fine. So this blogging will be on aspects and not making a systematic plan for renewal. Plus I will take this GKC quote in mind.

“The Reformer is always right about what’s wrong. However, he’s often wrong about what is right.” G.K. Chesterton

One of the things I have noticed in my own diocese over the years is the increased use of a credence table.

A small table of wood, marble, or other suitable material placed within the sanctuary of a church and near the wall at the Epistle side, for the purpose of holding the cruets, acolytes’ candles, and other utensils required for the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice.

Mainly the use I have noticed is that it is now being used for the purification of the vessels after Communion. As I remember before there were smaller credence tables in use and I have been seeing them increase in size to accommodate this use.

There is a reason I really don’t like this trend and I see it as part of the loss of faith in the Eucharist. For one thing, I love to watch a priest purify the vessels after Communion. Especially when done with careful attention. That this is truly the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ and you really want to make sure there are no leftover particles or his body or precious blood. For some priests, I think I could have come to faith in the Eucharist just by seeing their Eucharistic piety. The purification of the vessels is an important part of the Mass.

Unfortunately, I see the increased use of the credence table as if this rite was now the “cleaning of the dishes.” Moving from the altar to the side where usually you can not even see the priest purify the vessels, just his back. Although it is not the priest facing away, the deemphasis of the purification. I can see no reason either logistically or theologically to move this from the altar to the credence table.

Plus I get rather suspicious about such trends that usually start from some infertile mind of a liturgist somewhere and take off for no good reason that it is different.

I see this as more of a symptom than a cause. Truly though we have now for some time about the loss of belief in the Eucharist and so any deemphasis just makes no real sense.

August 15, 2019August 17, 2019 0 comment

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