Angelic Doctor

Today is the feast of Saint Thomas Aquinas, OP (in the Ordinary Form calendar; March 7th in the Extraordinary Form calendar), also known as the Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) or the Doctor Communis (Common Doctor). Other doctors in the church include St. Augustine (Doctor Gratiae); St. Bonaventure (Doctor Seraphicus); St. Anselm (Doctor Magnificus); St. Bernard (Doctor Mellifluus); St. John of the Cross (Doctor Mysticus); St. Therese of Lisieux (Doctor Amoris); and the famous mentor of Aquinas, St. Albert the Great (Doctor Universalis); to name a few.

ROME, DEC. 3, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Moral theology based on St. Thomas Aquinas is among one of theology's most popular branches today, says a Vatican official, but this popularity has come about only after decades of disdain.

Archbishop Jean Louis Bruguès, secretary of the Congregation for Catholic Education, spoke about his journey with moral theology when he delivered an address at a conference last Friday in Rome, which marked the 30th anniversary of the St. Thomas Aquinas International Society.

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17. Among the Scholastic Doctors, the chief and master of all towers Thomas Aquinas, who, as Cajetan observes, because "he most venerated the ancient doctors of the Church, in a certain way seems to have inherited the intellect of all."(34) The doctrines of those illustrious men, like the scattered members of a body, Thomas collected together and cemented, distributed in wonderful order, and so increased with important additions that he is rightly and deservedly esteemed the special bulwark and glory of the Catholic faith. With his spirit at once humble and swift, his memory ready and tenacious, his life spotless throughout, a lover of truth for its own sake, richly endowed with human and divine science, like the sun he heated the world with the warmth of his virtues and filled it with the splendor of his teaching. Philosophy has no part which he did not touch finely at once and thoroughly; on the laws of reasoning, on God and incorporeal substances, on man and other sensible things, on human actions and their principles, he reasoned in such a manner that in him there is wanting neither a full array of questions, nor an apt disposal of the various parts, nor the best method of proceeding, nor soundness of principles or strength of argument, nor clearness and elegance of style, nor a facility for explaining what is abstruse.

18. Moreover, the Angelic Doctor pushed his philosophic inquiry into the reasons and principles of things, which because they are most comprehensive and contain in their bosom, so to say, the seeds of almost infinite truths, were to be unfolded in good time by later masters and
with a goodly yield. And as he also used this philosophic method in the refutation of error, he won this title to distinction for himself: that, single-handed, he victoriously combated the errors of former times, and supplied invincible arms to put those to rout which might in after-times spring up. Again, clearly distinguishing, as is fitting, reason from faith, while happily associating the one with the other, he both preserved the rights and had regard for the dignity of each; so much so, indeed, that reason, borne on the wings of Thomas to its human height, can scarcely rise higher, while faith could scarcely expect more or stronger aids from reason than those which she has already obtained through Thomas.

19. For these reasons most learned men, in former the highest repute in theology and philosophy, after mastering with infinite pains the immortal works of Thomas, gave themselves up not so much to be instructed in his angelic wisdom as to be nourished upon it. It is known that nearly all the founders and lawgivers of the religious orders Thomas, fearful least any of them should swerve even in the slightest degree from the footsteps of so great a man. To say nothing of the family of St. Dominic, which rightly claims this great teacher for its own glory, the statutes of the Benedictines, the Carmelites, the Augustinians, the Society of Jesus, and many others all testify that they are bound by this law.

20. And, here, how pleasantly one's thoughts fly back to those celebrated schools and universities which flourished of old in Europe - to Paris, Salamanca, Alcalá, to Douay, Toulouse, and Louvain, to Padua and Bologna, to Naples and Coimbra, and to many another! All know how the fame of these seats of learning grew with their years, and that their judgment, often asked in matters of grave moment, held great weight everywhere. And we know how in those great homes of human wisdom, as in his own kingdom, Thomas reigned supreme; and that the minds of all, of teachers as well as of taught, rested in wonderful harmony under the shield and authority of the Angelic Doctor.

1. But, furthermore, Our predecessors in the Roman pontificate have celebrated the wisdom of Thomas Aquinas by exceptional tributes of praise and the most ample testimonials. Clement VI in the bull In Ordine; Nicholas V in his brief to the friars of the Order of Preachers, 1451; Benedict XIII in the bull Pretiosus, and others bear witness that the universal Church borrows lustre from his admirable teaching; while St. Pius V declares in the bull Mirabilis that heresies, confounded and convicted by the same teaching, were dissipated, and the whole world daily freed from fatal errors; others, such as Clement XII in the bull Verbo Dei, affirm that most fruitful blessings have spread abroad from his writings over the whole hurch, and that he is worthy of the honor which is bestowed on the greatest Doctors of the Church, on Gregory and Ambrose, Augustine and Jerome; while others have not hesitated to propose St. Thomas for the exemplar and master of the universities and great centers of learning whom they may follow with unfaltering feet. On which point the words of Blessed Urban V to the University of Toulouse are worthy of recall: "It is our will, which We hereby enjoin upon you, that ye follow the teaching of Blessed Thomas as the true and Catholic doctrine and that ye labor with all your force to profit by the same."(35) Innocent XII, followed the example of Urban in the case of the University of Louvain, in the letter in the form of a brief addressed to that university on February 6, 1694, and Benedict XIV in the letter in the form of a brief addressed on August 26, 1752, to the Dionysian College in Granada; while to these judgments of great Pontiffs on Thomas Aquinas comes the crowning testimony of Innocent VI: "His teaching above that of others, the canonical
writings alone excepted, enjoys such a precision of language, an order of matters, a truth of conclusions, that those who hold to it are never found swerving from the path of truth, and he who dare assail it will always be suspected of error."(36)

22. The ecumenical councils, also, where blossoms the flower of all earthly wisdom, have always been careful to hold Thomas Aquinas in singular honor. In the Councils of Lyons, Vienna, Florence, and the Vatican one might almost say that Thomas took part and presided over the deliberations and decrees of the Fathers, contending against the errors of the Greeks, of heretics and rationalists, with invincible force and with the happiest results. But the chief and special glory of Thomas, one which he has shared with none of the Catholic Doctors, is that the Fathers of Trent made it part of the order of conclave to lay upon the altar, together with sacred Scripture and the decrees of the supreme Pontiffs, the Summa of Thomas Aquinas, whence to seek counsel, reason, and inspiration.

23. A last triumph was reserved for this incomparable man-namely, to compel the homage, praise, and admiration of even the very enemies of the Catholic name. For it has come to light that there were not lacking among the leaders of heretical sects some who openly declared that, if the teaching of Thomas Aquinas were only taken away, they could easily battle with all Catholic teachers, gain the victory, and abolish the Church.(37) A vain hope, indeed, but no vain testimony.

24. Therefore, venerable brethren, as often as We contemplate the good, the force, and the singular advantages to be derived from his philosophic discipline which Our Fathers so dearly loved. We think it hazardous that its special honor should not always and everywhere remain,
especially when it is established that daily experience, and the judgment of the greatest men, and, to crown all, the voice of the Church, have favored the Scholastic philosophy. Moreover, to the old teaching a novel system of philosophy has succeeded here and there, in which We fail to perceive those desirable and wholesome fruits which the Church and civil society itself would prefer. For it pleased the struggling innovators of the sixteenth century to philosophize without any respect for faith, the power of inventing in accordance with his own pleasure and bent being asked and given in turn by each one. Hence, it was natural that systems of philosophy multiplied beyond measure, and conclusions differing and clashing one with another arose about those matters even which are the most important in human knowledge. From a mass of conclusions men often come to wavering and doubt; and who knows not how easily the mind slips from doubt to error? But, as men are apt to follow the lead given them, this new pursuit seems to have caught the souls of certain Catholic philosophers, who, throwing aside the patrimony of ancient wisdom, chose rather to build up a new edifice than to strengthen and complete the old by aid of the new-ill-advisedly, in sooth, and not without detriment to the sciences. For, a
multiform system of this kind, which depends on the authority and choice of any professor, has a foundation open to change, and consequently gives us a philosophy not firm, and stable, and robust like that of old, but tottering and feeble. And if, perchance, it sometimes finds itself scarcely equal to sustain the shock of its foes, it should recognize that the cause and the blame lie in itself. In saying this We have no intention of discountenancing the learned and able men who bring their industry and erudition, and, what is more, the wealth of new discoveries, to the service of philosophy; for, of course, We understand that this tends to the development of learning. But one should be very careful lest all or his chief labor be exhausted in these pursuits and in mere erudition. And the same thing is true of sacred theology, which, indeed, may be assisted and illustrated by all kinds of erudition, though it is absolutely necessary to approach it in the grave manner of the Scholastics, in order that, the forces of revelation and reason being united in it, it may continue to be "the invincible bulwark of the faith."(38)

25. With wise forethought, therefore, not a few of the advocates of philosophic studies, when turning their minds recently to the practical reform of philosophy, aimed and aim at restoring the renowned teaching of Thomas Aquinas and winning it back to its ancient beauty.

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31. While, therefore, We hold that every word of wisdom, every useful thing by whomsoever discovered or planned, ought to be received with a willing and grateful mind, We exhort you, venerable brethren, in all earnestness to restore the golden wisdom of St. Thomas, and to spread it far and wide for the defense and beauty of the Catholic faith, for the good of society, and for the advantage of all the sciences. The wisdom of St. Thomas, We say; for if anything is taken up with too great subtlety by the Scholastic doctors, or too carelessly stated-if there be anything that ill agrees with the discoveries of a later age, or, in a word, improbable in whatever way-it does not enter Our mind to propose that for imitation to Our age. Let carefully selected teachers endeavor to implant the doctrine of Thomas Aquinas in the minds of students, and set forth clearly his solidity and excellence over others. Let the universities already founded or to be founded by you illustrate and defend this doctrine, and use it for the refutation of prevailing errors. But, lest the false for the true or the corrupt for the pure be drunk in, be ye watchful that the doctrine of Thomas be drawn from his own fountains, or at least from those rivulets which, derived from the very fount, have thus far flowed, according to the established agreement of learned men, pure and clear; be careful to guard the minds of youth from those which are said to flow thence, but in reality are gathered from strange and unwholesome streams.

Leo XIII, Aeterni Patris, 1879

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31. If one considers all this well, he will easily see why the Church demands that future priests be instructed in philosophy "according to the method, doctrine, and principles of the Angelic Doctor," since, as we well know from the experience of centuries, the method of Aquinas is singularly preeminent both of teaching students and for bringing truth to light; his doctrine is in harmony with Divine Revelation, and is most effective both for safeguarding the foundation of the faith and for reaping, safely and usefully, the fruits of sound progress.

Pius XII, Humani Generis, 1950

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The recommendation of Leo is still valid: 'those who to the study of philosophy unite obedience to the Christian faith are philosophers indeed; for the splendor of the divine truth, received into the mind, helps the understanding and not only detracts in no wise from its dignity, but adds greatly to its nobility, keenness, and stability ... The immortal Pontiff recalled that the method, the principles and the teaching of Aquinas had, down the centuries, been specially favored not only by learned men but by the supreme teaching authority of the Church... If today also, he insisted, philosophical and theological reflection is not to rest on an 'unstable foundation' which would make it 'wavering and superficial'... it will have to draw inspiration from the 'golden wisdom' of St. Thomas... Now that a hundred years of the history of thought have passed we are able to appreciate how balanced and wise were these appraisals. With good reason, therefore, the Supreme Pontiffs who succeeded Leo XIII, and the Code of Canon Law itself ... have repeated them and made them their own ... The words of the [Second Vatican] Council are clear: the Fathers saw that it is fundamental for the adequate formation of the clergy and of Christian youth that it preserve a close link with the cultural heritage of the past, and in particular with the thought of St. Thomas; and that this in the long run, is a necessary condition for the longed-for renewal of the Church

John Paul II, allocution Perennial Philosophy of St. Thomas for the Youth of Our Times, L'Osservatore Romano, Dec. 17, 1979

Msgr William Smith Dead at 69

The Archdiocese of New York has lost another giant.  Only two weeks ago they said good-bye to Father Richard John Neuhaus.  Today it was Msgr. William Smith.  Smith was a brilliant scholar, moral theologian and seminary professor (St. Joseph, Dunwoodie).  bio

 

A regular host on EWTN, Monsignor Smith was also a permanent fixture at Saint Joseph Seminary, Dunwoodie.  His staunch orthodoxy annoyed a few ecclesiastical bureaucrats so he never moved up or fast on the church food chain, but to those of us who had the privilege of being his students and disciples, he was like an American version of Cardinal Ratzinger.  Dry wit, Smith was the quintecential faithful son of the Church.  Loyal to the Magisterium and obedient to the Roman Pontiff, he never diluted what he taught for the sake of political correctness.  Had he been rector of some of the more problematic seminaries in the USA, you can be sure he would have removed dissident theologians A.S.A.P. and there would not have been any immoral shanannigans going on in the wee hours of the night, either.  We could have used a cadre of Bill Smiths to reform and renew the seminaries across America and restore orthodox doctrine, reverent worship and moral probity.  I never had the honor of attending Dunwoodie as a seminarian but I did have Msgr. Smith as a guest professor for the annual seminarian seminar sponsored by Opus Dei at Arnold Hall every Easter week while I was in the seminary.  He also spoke on seversl occasions for the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy.  He, Fr. George Rutler and Fr. Ken Baker, SJ, were regulars when Fr. Bob Levis had our annual convocations for 19 years at Gannon University in Erie, PA.  If he had been bishop, that diocese would have been a pinnacle of wisdom and grace and many vocations would have come from it.  I had to telephone him on several consultations involving medical moral and bioethic problems and Msgr. Bill Smith cut through the fat and got right to the meat.  A modern day Aquinas when it came to moral theology.  He will be sadly missed on earth and richly rewarded in heaven.

March for Life 2009

If you ask me, it looked like 500 priests and almost twice as many seminarians attended the Vigil Mass for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on Wednesday evening, Jan. 21st. Two dozen bishops and about half a dozen cardinals concelebrated the Holy Mass with a standing room only congregation (seating capacity 3,500). The following day, anywhere from 250,000 to half a million (500,000) men, women & children marched to the Supreme Court. Most secular news agencies boycotted any and all coverage of the March, despite the huge volume of pro-life anti-abortion protesters in attendance. Not surprising since the same secular media were conspicuously silent when 300,000 young people came to Word Youth Day in Rome, 2000. If 1% of the number who attended this years March for Life had been there on the Mall to support same-sex marriages, the press would have given it gavel-to-gavel coverage and told viewers that thousands attended. We could have had a million or more Pro-Life marchers, and the press would have kept quiet OR causually remark that a few thousand participants were in attendance.

More distressing than the miniscule (if any) media coverage of the March for Life is the plethora of rationalizations being offered by Catholics for voting Obama-Biden undid 35 years of Pro-Life blood, sweat and tears of Pro-Life work. Some have commented that the Pro-Life movement needs to forget the political process of changing immoral laws and opt for changing the hearts of citizens to abandon immoral ideas like supporting abortion. What these people do not realize is that it is NOT a question of EITHER/OR (aut ... aut in Latin), rather as Pope Benedict points out on numerous occasions, Catholicism is the religion of the great BOTH/AND (et ... et in Latin). In other words, we need to change the hearts of citizens AND change the laws. Immoral laws do not force good people to do bad things, but they do enable people of weak will or weak morals to do evil under the guise of legality. Good laws will not force people to be good but will make doing good easier and will help those of weak will resist since what they contemplate is illegal. Saint Thomas Aquinas gave the best definition of law:

rationis ordinatio ad bonum commune, ab eo qui curam communitatis habet, promulgata

ORDINANCE OF REASON PROMULGATED BY HE WHO HAS CARE OF THE COMMUNITY FOR THE COMMON GOOD

Hence, for any law to be morally binding, it must be RATIONAL and it must serve the COMMON GOOD. Abortion is irrational since the unborn child is no threat to the mother. There is never a medical condition that requires the killing of the fetus. There may be complications in giving birth but the baby can always be allowed to be born (or removed without directly killing him/her) and also save the lfe of the mother. It is a false argument to invoke the threat to the life of the mother as OB-GYN doctors attest that despite difficult pregnancies, they never HAVE to kill one to save another. Neither baby nor mother need to be murdered. One may die INDIRECTLY and NATURALLY but then there is no unjust killing. Check out the NICU in most hospitals and you will find premature babies being treated and surviving many problems and conditions which are feasibly overcome, yet often a doctor somewhere along the way advises to 'terminate the pregnancy' to avoid a 'complication.' In other words, KILL the baby without even trying to save his or her life. Imagine if we did that to toddlers and teenagers or to middle agers or the retired. Extraordinary means are never obligatory but ordinary means of today were once the extraordinary means of yesteryear.

Abortion is not only IRRATIONAL it is also a crime against the COMMON GOOD. There is more than one victim in abortion. Besides the unborn, the mother suffers from her crime, the biological father suffers, the doctor and nurse who performed the heinous deed hurt themselves (in their conscience), and all of human society suffers whenever an INNOCENT PERSON is UNJUSTLY KILLED. How many diseases could have been cured by now HOWEVER, the discoverer of the cure for cancer was aborted and not allowed to live? Could there have been peace already between the Israeli's and Palestinians had the right diplomat been allowed to be born rather than aborted? God could be sending us the medical, political, economic, scientific and religious heroes we desperately need, yet our sick society has prevented the rescue due to the legality and availability of ABORTION. We could be our own worst enemy.

Therefore we NEED to change the immoral laws just as our nation needed to outlaw slavery and segregation. Should Rosa Parks have not committed civil disobedience in 1955? Should she have gone to the back of the bus and waited for hearts to change in the South? Of course not. She and Dr. Martin Luther King sought to change BOTH hearts and laws and thus restore JUSTICE to all men and women, regardless of color or creed. Why then are Pro-Lifers been told to go to the back of the bus and wait for the hearts of pro-choice pro-abortionists to change? Even the 13th and 15t amendments did not eradicate all forms and instances of racism but the law is still there which the racist cannot deny and if he disobeys can be prosecuted. We need the law of the land, federal and state, to protect the civil and human rights of unborn human children just as we have laws to protect citizens of color, gender and religion. That is serving the COMMON GOOD.

Lest We Fool Ourselves

History was made today when the first African-American President was sworn into office. Ironically, the U.S. Supreme Court had decided in 1857 that blacks, whether slave or free, were legally non-persons and therefore could not vote nor run for office. Worse yet, the highest court of the nation decided that states could consider and treat African-Americans as personal property of their slave masters even if other states considered them free men. It took people of faith and good will to get the 13th amendment to the Constitution ratified and thus end slavery and it took the 15th amendment to recognize the right of black Americans to vote.

Had no one challenged the infamous Dred Scott decision of 1857, Barak Obama would never have been able to be elected President. Thanks be to God, our nation came to its senses and finally outlawed slavery and segregation. Sadly, our nation is still committing a grave miscarriage of justice in denying the same civil and human rights we say every man, woman and child enjoys regardless of color, race or religion, when we deny it to the unborn. Babies in the womb are as much human as a white or black, woman or man. Human DNA and genes are present in the unborn as they are in those who were formerly slaves. Human nature is not defined by color or location. Whether in the womb or outside the womb; whether in a free state or a slave state; human beings are human and as such they are legal persons and they have an inalienable RIGHT TO LIFE AND LIBERTY.

The Supreme Court was WRONG in 1857 and it was WRONG in 1973. It was wrong to defend slavery and it was wrong to defend abortion. African-Americans were called negroes, blacks and other terms, but none of those words could change or alter their metaphysical nature,i.e., HUMAN. Likewise, whether we call them zygotes, embryos or fetuses, the unborn child is still HUMAN and is still a PERSON regardless of what the Supreme Court says.

We have a Catholic Vice President who openly and staunchly supports Roe v. Wade despite the fact that he himself admits that human beings exist from the moment of conception. Today, as Fr. Z (WDTPRS) points out, the CURRENT White House webpage makes it UNAMBIGUOUS and UNEQUIVOCAL, President Obama supports Roe v. Wade and abortion:

WOMEN

Reproductive Choice

• Supports a Woman's Right to Choose: President Obama
  understands that abortion is a divisive issue, and respects those who disagree with him. However, he has been a consistent champion of reproductive choice and will make preserving women's rights under Roe v. Wade a priority in his Adminstration. He opposes any constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court's decision in that case.
  
• Preventing Unintended Pregnancy: President Obama was an
  original co-sponsor of legislation to expand access to contraception, health information, and preventive services to help reduce unintended pregnancies. Introduced in January 2007, the Prevention First Act will increase funding for family planning and comprehensive sex education that teaches both abstinence and safe sex methods. The Act will also end insurance discrimination against contraception, improve awareness about emergency contraception, and provide
  compassionate assistance to rape victims.

• Supporting Stem Cell Research: President Obama and Vice President Biden believe that we owe it to the American public to explore the potential of stem cells to treat the millions of people suffering from debilitating and life-threatening diseases. Obama is a co-sponsor of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007, which will allow research of human embryonic stem cells derived from embryos donated (with consent) from in vitro fertilization clinics. These embryos must be deemed in excess and created based solely for the purpose of fertility treatment.

"From the first moment a woman dared to speak that hope -- dared to
believe that the American Dream was meant for her too -- ordinary women have
taken on extraordinary odds to give their daughters the chance for something
else; for a life more equal, more free, and filled with more opportunity than
they ever had. In so many ways we have succeeded, but in so many areas we have much work left to do."

-- Barack Obama, Speech in Washington, DC
November 10, 2005

President Obama has a long record of standing up for women. In Illinois, he
passed the Equal Pay Act to give 330,000 more women protection from pay
discrimination and passed another law that ensured victims of domestic violence
could seek treatment without losing their jobs. In the U.S. Senate, he
introduced and sponsored legislation to reduce unintended teen pregnancy,
strengthen families by supporting fathers who are doing the right thing and
cracking down on those who are not, guarantee workers paid sick leave, and
ensure that women are not receiving less pay than men for comparable work. And
throughout his career, in the Illinois Senate, the U.S. Senate, and the White
House, Obama has stood up for a woman’s right to choose.

Can those Catholics who voted for Obama-Biden now sleep with a clear conscience ??? FOCA will be soon down the pike and will unravel all the good done since Roe. Is this supposed to engender HOPE? Change for good or for bad?

Seminary Report Accurate, Encouraging and Reprimanding

Catholic World News (now with CatholicCulture.org) released this item today (see below). It is encouraging to know things are getting better in many seminaries but discouraging to know that there are still some brazen dissenters teaching their heterodoxy to future priests. As survivors of minor and major seminaries (1976-1988 high school, college and major theology), my classmates and I can vouch that significant improvements have been made but much more work needs to be done. The most encouraging news is the presence of Archbishop O'Brien. Former rector of Saint Joseph Seminary, Dunwoodie (Archdiocese of New York) and former Archbishop for the Military, he is currently the Archbishop of Baltimore and most likely to elevated to the red hat once his predecessor turns 80. O'Brien is a no-nonsense, practical, orthodox, and decisive man which the Church in America needs to clean out some of the dens of iniquity pretending to be houses of formation.

The first seminary visitation was a farce and accomplished nothing. Then the clergy sex scandals changed everything. While the actual number of pedophile (attracted to pre-pubescent boys or girls) priests was very small, the more disturbing revelation was the larger instances of ephebophile (attracted to post-pubescent and adolescent boys or girls) clergy. As the age of victims gets closer to legal adulthood, there are some who dangerously back-off and conspicuously keep silent since the issue of homosexual clergy then becomes evident. Immoral behavior and activity in the seminary was and is inevitably connected and associated with the simultaneous presence of liturgical abuses and theological dissent being taught and proliferated. Bad morality is bred and encouraged by bad liturgy and bad theology. LEX ORANDI, LEX CREDENDI, LEX AGENDI. Hence, conversely, when you have faithful faculty teaching orthodox Magisterial doctrine to seminarians in a place where reverent, valid, licit and edifying sacred worship is present, then the moral activity of the students is exemplary. In these places, like Mount Saint Mary Seminary, Emmitsburg, Maryland, you have an outstanding Rector (Msgr. Rohlfs) and a superb faculty who not only teach orthodox theology, but they also celebrate dignified and proper liturgies in the chapel which reaffirm what is taught in the classroom. When someone does evidence a moral problem, he is given the direction and discipline needed and if not corrected, dismissed. CONSISTENCY is what is needed. When seminarians see their professors being loyal, faithful and obedient to the rubrics of the Missal, the Code of Canon Law and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, then they too, will be drawn to follow the right path and God willing become good priests themselves oneday.

Jan. 15, 2009 (CWNews.com) - A Vatican investigation into American seminarians, undertaken in a response to the sex-abuse scandal, has given the institutions a passing grade but taken note of many difficulties.

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has quietly posted on its web site the final report of the apostolic visitation of seminaries in the United States. Dated December 15, the report, issued by the prefect and secretary of the Congregation for Catholic Education, offers a generally positive assessment of US seminaries but notes numerous problems. The apostolic visitation stemmed from an extraordinary April 2002 meeting between Roman curial prefects and cardinals and other leaders of the American hierarchy. Issued at the height of the clerical abuse scandal, the meeting’s final communique called for “a new and serious Apostolic Visitation of seminaries and other institutes of formation must be made without delay, with particular emphasis on the need for fidelity to the Church’s teaching, especially in the area of morality, and the need for a deeper study of the criteria of suitability of candidates to the priesthood.” The visitation’s final report observes that “an Apostolic Visitation is a blunt instrument but by no means an infallible one,” providing only a brief snapshot of life in US seminaries. Intended to assist US bishops and major superiors in fulfilling their responsibilities related to seminaries, the report chronicles developments from 2002 to 2005, when the visitations, coordinated by Archbishop Edwin O’Brien, began. Visitations were conducted in 2005 and 2006. The report then issued conclusions in several areas. While concluding that “in the great majority of diocesan seminaries, the doctrine on the priesthood is well taught,” the report nonetheless noted in some seminaries, students have an “insufficient grasp” of Catholic teaching and the distinction between the common priesthood of the faithful and the hierarchal priesthood is blurred. Some religious institutes speak primarily of “ministry” rather than the priesthood in a “mistaken attempt” not to offend opponents of Catholic teaching on women’s ordination. While praising bishops and major superiors for being “interested in and supportive of” seminaries, the report urged each bishop to make the seminary “the object of his most intense and assiduous pastoral care.” Although the majority of seminary rectors are “good and holy men,” not all are leaders who are “comfortable making difficult decisions.“ Rectors need to spend more time at the seminary, while frequent personnel changes among seminary faculty need to end. Praising “most diocesan seminaries” for the unity of their faculty with the Magisterium, the report nonetheless noted the presence of some faculty members who dissent from magisterial teaching; such dissenters are “out of kilter with the rest of the faculty and with the seminarians themselves.”

“Quite often,” the visitors found faculty who mocked magisterial teaching without “speaking openly against Church teaching.”

“More widespread dissent” exists in other places, “particularly in institutes run by religious,” and in these places, “there can be no possibility of a unity in direction.” Dissenting superiors and faculty members, the report observed diplomatically, need to be removed. The report also observed that the formation of laity “really ought to take place elsewhere” than at a seminary, which exists for the formation of candidates to the priesthood. If lay formation must take place there, laity should not “routinely be admitted” to certain areas.

Praising the criteria of admission of seminary candidates, the report nonetheless found grave deficiencies in seminary formation before the four years of theology formation. “Almost nowhere” has a propadeutic year before the two years of philosophical formation been implemented. While most college seminaries-- in which students receive philosophical formation-- are “good,” seminarians, before the four years of theology formation, are at times not formed with adequate oversight and are even not looked upon fully as seminarians. The report urged bishops to take a greater role in the acceptance or rejection of priestly formation candidates and noted that in some institutes, “lack of vocations has caused a lowering of standards,” with “possible wretched consequences.” The report took special note of moral problems, primarily associated with homosexual behavior, in some US seminaries. While the situation has improved because of “better superiors (especially rectors),” there are “still some places-- usually centers of formation for religious-- where “ambiguity vis-à-vis homosexuality persists," the document said. Commenting on the report, the Congregation for Catholic Education urges American Church leaders to pay special attention to the 2005 document from the same dicastery on criteria for admission to seminaries-- a document which states homosexual men are not appropriate candidates for priestly training. The report on the Apostolic Visitation does not take into account the public statements from several American seminary officials who, in response to the 2005 directive, announced that they would continue to accept candidates with homosexual inclinations.

The report also noted many seminaries’ “laxity of discipline” over students’ off-campus activities-- a problem avoided by Neocatechumenal Way seminaries. In some seminaries, “formation advisers” and psychologists delve into seminarians’ spiritual lives, while ascetic rules are lacking. The heart of seminary formation, the report continued, is prayer. “In the diocesan seminaries, the liturgical norms are generally obeyed, but this is not always the case” in religious institutes. Despite this general fidelity, some of the report‘s strongest criticisms come in the area of spiritual formation. “Regrettably, very few seminaries fix periods of time for prayer,” and “some seminaries” need to do more to introduce students to classical Catholic spirituality. The report exhorted seminaries to celebrate Mass, Lauds, and Vespers every day, including on weekends. “A great many seminaries” need to introduce seminarians to the Rosary, novenas, litanies, and Stations of the Cross-- otherwise, the seminarians “will be unprepared for ministry in the Church, which greatly treasures these practices.” The report also noted faculty members who criticize the discipline of clerical celibacy. While praising the intellectual formation seminaries offer in philosophy and theology-- with some seminaries being “truly remarkable”-- the report condemned the practice of sending students to community colleges for their philosophy classes. Criticizing widespread weaknesses in the study of Mariology, patristics, and Latin, the report noted that “even in the best seminaries,” some faculty members dissent from Catholic teaching on moral theology and the ordination of women. Dissent is widespread at some seminaries, “particularly in some schools of theology run by religious.” Offering strong general praise for seminaries’ pastoral formation programs, the report noted that in some places, bishops ordain men against the advice of rectors, while in “a few places,” the evaluation process was suspect-- with the non-ordained, and even non-Catholics, voting whether candidates should be ordained. “Such practices are to cease.”

The report’s generally positive conclusion noted that seminary formation has gradually improved since the 1990s-- “at least in diocesan seminaries”-- because of the appointment of “wise and faithful” rectors. The bottom line, according to the Apostolic Visitation: “The diocesan seminaries are, in general, healthy.”

Have Teenage Sons or Students?

7 Things Teenage Boys Most Need

Interview With Spiritual Director of Adolescents

WASHINGTON, D.C., JAN. 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Being the parent of an adolescent boy is legendary for its difficulty. But according to one priest who acts as a spiritual director and confessor for high school boys, just keeping in mind seven points can make for a better relationship with adolescent sons.

Legionary of Christ Father Michael Sliney suggests the following seven necessities for parents of adolescent boys:

1. Clear guidelines with reasonable consequences from a unified front; cutting slack but also holding boys accountable for their actions.

2. Reasonable explanations for the criteria, guidelines and decisions made by parents.

3. Avoiding hyper-analysis of boys' emotions and states of mind: avoiding "taking their temperature" too often.

4. Unconditional love with an emphasis on character and effort more than outcome: Encourage boys to live up to
their potential while having reasonable expectations. To love them regardless of whether they make it into Harvard or become a star quarterback.

5. Authenticity, faith and fidelity should be reflected in parent's lifestyles.

6. Qualities of a dad: Manliness, temperance, making significant time for family, putting aside work, and being a reliable source of guidance.

7. Qualities of a mom: Emotional stability, selflessness, loving service and extreme patience.

Convivial Condolences

Father Raymond de Souza preached the funeral homily today for Father Richard John Neuhaus. Immaculate Conception Church on East 14th Street, Manhattan, was PACKED to maximum capacity. Literally, standing room only. I estimated at least 75 or more priests and four bishops, including Archbishop O'Brien of Baltimore, concelebrated the funeral Mass with a congregation of young and old alike.


Fr. Raymond classified Fr. Neuhaus as a CONVIVIAL cleric, noting that in true William F. Buckley style, the former Lutheran theologian - now Catholic priest and scholar, was a true wordsmith. He used and properly so, such verbiage as CONVIVIUM, WINSOME and EGREGIOUS.


He was convivial because he truly found great joy and consolation in being a Priest. He enjoyed the truth, discussing, debating and defending it. He enjoyed life and the good things in life always employing those indispensible moral virtues of temperance and prudence. Whether a good meal, a good drink, a good cigar or a good conversation, Father Neuhaus enjoyed these not for epicurian or selfish reasons, but because as the Angelic Doctor, Saint Thomas Aquinas taught so well, the human will is oriented to the Good and therefore, whatever is good we desire and should pursue, but always realizing there is a HIERARCHY of goods. Prudence guides us to exercise some restraint (temperance) in our pursuit of legitimate goods knowing that often we must curtail, constrain or even be willing to sacrifice them for HIGHER GOODS, such
as the salvation of our souls and the souls of others, as well. Jesus was not a workaholic nor was He a hedonist. Our Divine Lord enjoyed the company and good meals provided by Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Unlike His cousin Saint John the Baptist who dined on wild locusts and honey,
Jesus ate and drank with sinners, publicans, prostitutes and tax collectors. Good, clean FUN is not only morally permissable it is sometimes necessary for the person.

Father de Souza's sermon was one of the finest I have ever heard and it was the most apropos. He began where most priests and deacons woefully and adversely omit: "we pray for the merciful judgment of Almighty on God on the immortal soul of Father Neuhaus for any sins he committed in life; for speedy purification of his soul; and for divine reward for all his goodness and acts of charity while he sojourned here on earth."

WOW! Actually praying for the soul of the deceased AND admitting the possibility, nay, the probability that we are all indeed SINNERS in need of mercy and forgiveness. Then the zinger: praying for expedient purgation. All this in 2009, no less. All too often, Catholic funerals have become miniature canonizations of the deceased. While it is NOT the proper time and place to identify and elaborate the sins, weaknesses and mistaskes culpably committed by the recently departed, nevertheless, I have been to many funerals of clergy and laity alike where the tone, text and presumption are that the dead person is already in heaven enjoying the Beatific Vision.

Too many funeral homilies omit any reference to Purgatory and simply make a statement of fact that the decedant is now in Paradise. Aside from the Roman Pontiff when he infallibly declares a person to be a Saint, no one else on earth can make such proclamations. How sad that many Catholics see no need to pray for the dead nor to even have Masses offered for the departed souls of their loved ones since Father or Deacon Joe said at the funeral, "we are assured that he/she is now with the Lord in heaven." Except for the funerals of Mother Teresa of Calcutta and Pope John Paul the Great, I personally would have reservations denying anyone else the need and the opportunity (and in fact the gift) of Purgatory to wash away all attachments to sin a person accumulated in life.

Today, preachers mention how 'nice' the deceased person was. He or she may and probably was VERY NICE. Niceness is not salvific, however. Sometimes, we even hear that the dead person did many good deeeds in life and that they could truthfully be regarded as a GOOD person. Goodness is not enough. Even moral goodness is not enough to enter the Pearly Gates. HOLINESS (sanctity) is what Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition tell us is necessary for heaven. Sanctifying Grace justifes and redeems us and Actual Grace empowers us to DO holy deeds and to LIVE holy lives. When was the last time you heard the funeral homilist say with conviction that the person was truly a HOLY and DEVOUT Christian? An exemplary and PRACTICING Catholic? Instead, we are given a litany of anecdotes establishing that the deceased was basically a NICE guy and certainly no terrorist.

Obituaries are just as bad. "Wilma enjoyed crocheting and needle-point and was an active member of her monthly garden club ... Fred was an avid fisherman, loved golf and bowling and had a great sense of humor." While these statements may in fact be 100% accurate and true, SO WHAT? Since when do our hobbies get us into heaven? What happened to praising someone for their FIDELITY to their religion and to their marriage and family commitments? What about letting the outside world know that Ethel was a daily communicant and active member of her parish? What about letting others know that despite many years of physical pain, suffering, obstacles and harsh inconveniences, this person PERSEVERED and never lost faith? Better to be encouraged by that instead of wasting print space about who was a Penn State fan in life.

Father de Souza quoted the late Father Neuhaus who often remarked that "we were born to die," meaning that the reward of living a good and holy life in conformity to the Will of God is obtained in the next life after we die. Particular Judgment occurs at the moment of death and we are as culpable for our sins of omission as we are for of our wilful acts of disobedience.

Neuhaus never missed an opportunity to speak the truth. He loved the truth and discussed it with clarity and in charity. He was a great gift and asset to the Catholic Church in America and will be dearly missed.

Father Richard John Neuhaus is Called Home to the Lord

In paradisum deducant angeli;
in tuo adventu suscipiant te martyrus
et perducant te in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem.
Chorus angelorum te suscipatet
cum Lazaro, quondam paupere,
aeternam habeas requiem.

Reverend Father Richard John Neuhaus +

Father John Neuhaus died today at 10am this morning (Jan. 8th, 2009) and his funeral Mass will be on Tuesday, Jan. 13th at 10am at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, NYC. My last encounter with this brilliant man was on Memorial Day 2007 when he preached the Mass and Archbishop O'Brien, then Military Ordinary, was the celebrant. He preached like he wrote; succinct, erudite and witty. He spoke a several years earlier to the presbyterate of my diocese for our annual diocesan workshop. Some of the fellows did not like his unrepentent and unequivocal orthodoxy. When asked about ecumenism, he said AS A FORMER PROTESTANT THEOLOGIAN, that there is no reasonable hope for formal reconciliation between Catholics and Protestants since the latter does not have what the former has always possessed, i.e., an authoratative teaching and governing authority. Without a Magisterium and Papacy, there is no mechanism to implement any theological agreements. Were Catholicism to yield, then Catholics, clergy and laity alike, would obey. But Protestantism is consecrated individualism, hence, there is no solid hierarchy, certainly no Magisterium and no obvious chain of command. Therefore, Protestants are not obligated to obey or to yield no matter how many of their theologians and churchmen do so themselves. The essence of the Reformation was independence at all cost. This is why Neuhaus converted to Catholicism. He saw that there had to be a true church where the FULLNESS of Truth and the FULLNESS of Grace would be found. He acknowledged that his Lutheran background showed him that non-Catholic Christian churches have SOME truth but not the fullness as they only recognize 1/2 of Revelation (Sacred Scripture) while ignoring the other valid half (Sacred Tradition). Half an alphabet is correct but it is not complete. It is not that the Catholic Church is right and the Protestant Churches are wrong, rather, it is that the Catholic Church has the FULLNESS of truth and the reform churches have partial or only some of it by limiting themselves to sola Scriptura. Likewise, Catholicism has the FULLNESS of grace in having all Seven valid Sacraments, while Protestantism has one (baptism) and denotes the other six as 'orinances.'

This is not to say that Neuhaus was ant-ecumenical. He vigorously fought and argued for more dialog and cooperation on many issues, like defending the unborn. He contention, however, was that it is naive at best to dream the impossible dream of full and formal reunion of the Christian churches. The East split from Rome in the 11th century and the Protestanst left Rome in the 16th century. Both moved away from Rome and the Bishop of Rome. What was true then is true now. Seven Sacraments were instituted by Christ, not one and not three but SEVEN. Divine Revelation comes through BOTH Sacred Scripture AND Sacred Tradition. The authority of Christ is manifested in the Vicar of Christ and in the Successors of the Apostles in union with him. It does not reside theologians nor with the assembly of believers. Rank and file have no higher authority to move them back into unity since each individual conscience is autonomous in their system. Like the Old Soviet Union, you could have individual defectors cross the line and join the West but the only way whole countries and nations could do it (like Poland and East Germany) was to dissolve the the Wall and the Empire. The USSR had to disappear in order for the satellite countries to flee en masse and embrace democracy. Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Cramner, Knox, etc., made themselves 'popes' when they severed their ties to the real Pope in Rome.

Neuhaus espoused a realistic detente and perestroika with Protestantism and worked to cooperate on urgent moral issues, like abolishing abortion and defending marriage and the family. He loved his Protestant heritage but loved more his return home to Rome. He loved his separated brothers and sisters in their Protestant churches and treated them with dignity and respect. Unlike some in the ecumenical movement who patronize and condescend by pretending there are no substantive divisions among us, he spoke like a realistic diplomat from the Middle East who must contend with realities between Jews and Muslims, Israelis and Arabs. He affirmed that Protestantism enriched reverence and respect for the Written Word of God but he also defended the dogma that God speaks through both the Written and the Unwritten Word (Sacred Scripture AND Sacred Tradition). The absolute fullness of Revelation is therefore not the Written or even the Unwritten Word, but the WORD MADE FLESH. Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Son of God is the Word become Flesh and in the Holy Eucharist, the WORDS of Christ allow bread and wine to become His real, true and substantial Flesh and Blood, Soul and Divinity.

Dissident theologians in Catholic circles could learn volumes from Neuhaus. Loyalty and obedience to the Magisterium and the Roman Pontiff do not violate one's conscience or academic freedom anymore than obeying the Will of God can destroy the freedom of the human will. He had the honesty and decency to leave the church he could no longer follow totally and completely to come into full communion with the one he knew was telling and teaching the whole truth and not just parts of it. Dissident Catholic theologians today don't have the courage, guts or integrity to leave if they cannot obey and respect the Magisterium and/or the Pope. They remain to antogonize and confuse the faithful while cashing their paychecks on this side of the Tiber. If a theologian has problems with the Catechism, he has problems with the Church, with the Magisterium, with the Pope and ultimately with Jesus Christ Who started them all. Imagine mathmaticians disagreeing that 2+2=4 and still having a professor's job teaching math. Were someone to hold that 2+2=5, he or she would not have a job as a math teacher, in college, high school or grade school. Teach that Jesus was not the Son of God, that He was not a Divine Person, that He was unaware of His Divine nature, that He never intended to found a Church, etc., and you can still have tenure as a Catholic theologian in some colleges and seminaries, sad to say.

Please Pray for Father John Neuhaus

 


Father John Neuhaus, Lutheran theologian convert to Catholicism and founder/publisher of First Things, is gravely ill.  Father George Rutler, another convert (from the Anglican Church), anointed him and asked that the faithful pray to Saint Joseph for a happy death for this staunch defender of orthodoxy and frequent commentator on EWTN.

The proper work of Catholic intellectuals, Neuhaus believes, is to reformulate
the unchanging doctrines (the "deposit of faith") and the church's non-doctrinal
teachings in the light of new experiences and insights. If they encounter
difficulties, the problem lies not with the church but with themselves. "I think
for myself not to come up with my own teaching," he writes, "but to make the
Church's teaching my own." Accepting church authority on faith is necessary, he
admits, but all thinking rests on some kind of prior faith: "The allegedly
autonomous self who acknowledges no authority but himself is abjectly captive to
the authority of a tradition of Enlightenment rationality that finally collapses
into incoherence."

from a book review at the NY Times

Christmas Season Ends This Sunday with Baptism of the Lord

Our Lady of Good Counsel




Marysville, PA


Diocese of Harrisburg


Christmas MMVIII

While not as equisite as Father Brighenti's parish in NJ, my little church was nicely decorated this year and many parishioners have expressed their appreciation for the Papa Benedetto style of the sanctuary. I moved the tabernacle to the center when I was first installed as pastor in June, 2002. We added the icons of the archangels for the 50th anniversary of the church in 2006. The crucifix on the right wall was redone with royal blue felt and gold framing back in 2003 (Opus Dei style).

Bishop Martin Lohmuller (retired auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia) and William Cardinal Keeler (archbishop emeritus of Baltimore) were the founding pastors of my two parishes, Our Lady of Good Counsel, Marysville (1956) and Saint Bernadette, Duncannon (1954).

We Three Kings of Orient Are

Epiphany Proclamation:

Dear brothers and sisters,
the glory of the Lord has shone upon us,
and shall ever be manifest among us,
until the day of his return.

Through the rhythms of times and seasons
let us celebrate the mysteries of salvation.

Let us recall the year's culmination,
the Easter Triduum of the Lord:
his last supper, his crucifixion, his burial,
and his rising celebrated
between the evening of the ninth day of April
and the evening of the eleventh day of April,
Easter Sunday being on the twelfth day of April.

Each Easter -- as on each Sunday --
the Holy Church makes present the great and saving deed
by which Christ has forever conquered sin and death.
From Easter are reckoned all the days we keep holy.

Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent,
will occur on the twenty-fifth day of February.

The Ascension of the Lord will be commemorated on the twenty-first day of May.

Pentecost, joyful conclusion of the season of Easter,
will be celebrated on the thirty-first day of May

And, this year the First Sunday of Advent will be
on the twenty-ninth day of November.

Likewise the pilgrim Church proclaims the Passover of Christ
in the feasts of the holy Mother of God,
in the feasts of the Apostles and Saints,
and in the commemoration of the faithful departed.

To Jesus Christ, who was, who is, and who is to come,
Lord of time and history,
be endless praise, forever and ever.

Amen.

---

20 + C + M + B + 09

Christus Mansionem Benedicat

(May Christ bless this dwelling place)

---

Polish, Slovak, Russian and German tradition is to use blessed chalk on the doorposts of the home at Epiphany. People are invited to inscribe the lintel of the home (the horizontal frame above the door) with the inscription shown on the reverse. The letters C M B come from the traditional (9th century) names for the "three kings" - Caspar, Melchior & Balthazar.

O God,
by your heavenly star,
you guided the Wise Men
to your beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

May your blessing come to rest on our home and all of us.
Make our lives wise with your wisdom,
true to your teaching,
and enlivened by your love.
May your Word made flesh
make his home among us. Amen.

---

print your own Three Kings House Blessing Card for Epiphany by copying above

Now That's What I Call Papal Attire

  

January 1, 2009 (OF: Mary, Mother of God) (EF: Circumcision of the Lord)

Merry Christmas (Buon Natale)

In the twenty-fourth day of the month of December;

In the year five-thousand one-hundred and ninety-nine from the creation of the
world, when in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth;

In the year two-thousand nine-hundred and fifty-seven from the flood;

In the year two-thousand and fifty-one from the birth of Abraham;

In the year one-thousand five-hundred and ten from the going forth of the people of Israel out of Egypt under Moses;

In the year one-thousand and thirty-two from the anointing of David as king;

In the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;

In the one-hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;

In the year seven-hundred and fifty-two from the foundation of the city of Rome;

In the forty-second year of the reign of the Emperor Octavian Augustus;

In the sixth age of the world, while the whole earth was at peace— JESUS CHRIST eternal God and the Son of the eternal Father, willing to consecrate the world by His gracious coming, having been conceived of the Holy Ghost, and the nine months of His conception being now accomplished, (all kneel) was born in Bethlehem of Judah of the Virgin Mary, made man. The birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the flesh.

thanks to www.catholicculture.org

sacerdotal stocking stuffer

and if you've been a good priest this year,
you might get one of these from Saint Nicholas

thanks to Hound of Heaven and Fr. Tim Finigan

for non-papists, it is a Pope Pius clock, with all 12 Pope Pius'

ach du lieber

und I varned him before about static electricity venn you do not use Kling-Free sheets


(I always have the nuns send mine to the dry cleaners)

Mamma Mia (Moja Matka)

Last Year (October, 2007), my beloved mother was honored with the Sisters of Saint Joseph Spirit of Courage Award. Yesterday, someone found a reference to that on the Web and forwarded it to me. Here it is as it shows why my family (my brother Mark and I) love her so much and are so proud of her and to be her sons. Last month, she accompanied me and Father Brighenti on a pilgrimage to Lourdes and Fatima. When we returned, I took her to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. She spotted Newt Gingrich and got his autograph as well as former US Ambassador to the Vatican, James Nicholson. Earlier this year, she met the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Pietro Sambi at the Vatican Embassy, when we were in town to celebrate my 20th Jubilee of Ordination. Since she was too ill to attend the Papal Masses in the Spring, His Grace was kind enough to give her a private audience a month later. Despite her youthful looks, she suffers from chronic back pain as a result of multiple disk injuries and degenerative arthritis. Nevertheless, the physical and emotional crosses she bears do not stop her from taking care of cloistered Carmelite nuns.

What is the SSJ Spirit
of Courage?

In 1997, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Northwestern Pennsylvania announced the beginning of The Courage To Come Back in the Erie Diocese. The Courage To Come Back program had a two-fold purpose: to honor individuals who have shown remarkable courage in recovery from accident, injury, illness, addiction or economic adversity; and, to raise funds to support the various community service projects of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

The Sisters of St. Joseph adopted the Courage idea because it was a natural fit with their many ministries of education, health care, care for the elderly, social work, finding shelter for the homeless and affordable housing for mothers and children. In celebration of the tenth anniversary of Courage, in 2006 the name was changed to the SSJ Spirit of Courage Awards.

The quiet, daily acts of ordinary people who refuse to give up in the face of illness, injury or other adversity represent courage in its truest form. Yet, all too often, these people struggle alone with no fanfare and little or no recognition for their courage. They are the heart of the SSJ Spirit of Courage.

The highlight of the SSJ Spirit of Courage program is the Awards Dinner, which is held each fall. A variety of sponsorship opportunities for the dinner are available, all designed to give the appropriate recognition that is deserved for supporting the ministries and community service projects of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

The tremendous success of the SSJ Spirit of Courage has allowed the Sisters of St. Joseph to continue seeking and establishing ministries that serve the community. With nearly 350 Sisters and lay Associates, the congregation continues to affirm its mission of unity of neighbor with neighbor and neighbor with God by undertaking whatever ministry that might bring about unity and by continuously responding to the changing needs of the world.

Liz Trigilio

In 1955 Liz Trigilio graduated from St. Vincent’s School of Nursing, and having experienced various assignments during senior rotation, was happy to begin working in the emergency room. Eventually, because of her efficiency, skill, and discipline, Liz became the ER’s head nurse. Her career, she reflects, was both exciting and rewarding.

Early Years…Happiness and Grief

Liz married in 1958 and became pregnant in 1960. At eight months, she recognized troubling signs: no movement from her baby, spotting, and finally, 48 hours of labor. Mary Jo was born with hyaline membrane disease, so her undeveloped lungs limited oxygen intake. Unfortunately, at that time, no viable treatment was available, and Mary Jo died within three days.

During the next six years, Liz and husband John welcomed two sons – John and Joseph. John Jr.
resolved to become a priest by the time he made his first communion; in middle school, he gathered family around the coffee table – arranged as altar – to offer Mass…including sermon. John was so sure of his vocation, in fact, that he entered St. Mark’s Seminary in 9^th grade. Joseph was born 2 years later. Though close in age, he was entirely different from John. Joe loved the
outdoors and preferred fishing and hunting to books.

Five years later, the Trigilio family was completed with the births of Michael in 1966, and Mark, a
year later. Michael, at nine months, wasn’t meeting his physical milestones; further, Liz noticed that his calf muscles appeared enlarged. Eventually, his development lagged behind Mark’s. After some frightening visits to the ER, and blood work, a neurologist diagnosed Michael with Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy, a progressive and terminal illness. Still, Michael attended Blessed Sacrament, and Academy High School – confined then to a wheelchair – and Edinboro
University.

Life Lessons

Liz, continuing to nurse part-time, prepared tantalizing meals of homemade pasta for family and friends, welcomed guests galore, tended to Michael, and demonstrated her religious conviction. Husband John, a Sunday Catholic at the time of their marriage, grew to know and love the faith Liz epitomized. Liz also modeled her life on lessons from her sister Rita’s mother-in-law – “Look for the good in people” – and from the sisters at St. Vincent’s, who inspired her to “do good.” John and Liz never ended a day without kneeling together in prayer. Then and now, Liz regards herself unworthy of the blessings she’s received, even though her life has been filled with tragedy.

More Heartache

Michael’s muscular dystrophy progressed to the point that after three years of college at Edinboro
University, he became bed-ridden, requiring complete care; he could move only with assistance. For five years, Liz and John spent alternate nights with Michael, staying up, attending to his needs, and turning him every two hours to prevent bedsores. During this period, Liz began hand quilting to keep her awake, attentive to Michael’s call, and to offer a time for prayer and reflection. While she created 14 intricate and beautiful coverlets, which she could easily have sold, Liz gave away all but one of her heirloom pieces.

As Michael’s disease worsened, he lost nearly 60 pounds, but never complained. Faith-filled like
Liz, Michael prayed the rosary and trusted that “God listens.” In 1992, following a lung infection, Michael contracted pneumonia and died within hours. He was 26; physicians attribute Michael’s longevity, despite MD, to the extraordinary care he had received from his family.

Liz continued to work part-time, but John Sr. retired. Liz served family and community, sending
dinners to priests and older neighbors, and regularly visiting the Carmelite monastery. Again, crisis loomed when John Sr. was diagnosed with leukemia in 1995, necessitating chemotherapy and eventually, multiple blood transfusions each week.

In 1997, successive crises truly tested Liz, but empowered by her beliefs, she faced and endured
each trial with grace and serenity. At that time, Mark was diagnosed with leukemia, received chemotherapy, and was required to schedule regular check-ups. Months later, Joseph, then 33, was preparing to leave for a post July 4^th party. Though not demonstrative, he kissed Liz good-bye, and, sensitive to the deaths of Mary Jo and Michael, and particularly impacted by seeing Mark hospitalized, he asked: “Is something going to happen to me?” Liz calmed Joe’s worries, but his premonition would be fulfilled when his car was struck broadside by a speeding vehicle just minutes after leaving home. Joe was thrown through the sunroof, crushed, and killed instantly. The 17-year-old driver, drunk and high, had been speeding through the city at 75 miles per hour,
sideswiping parked vehicles and eluding capture.

When finally caught, the young man was arrested, jailed, and charged with vehicular homicide. At his trial, the Trigilio's showed such compassion that their forgiving response was featured in the Erie Times News. The young driver spent a very short time in confinement – possibly because of the Trigilios’ expression of mercy – however, should he break his probation, he is to be imprisoned for a minimum of seven years and the Trigilio family will be notified immediately.

Disheartened by Joe’s death, John Sr. seemed to lose hope; he died within six months. He had
undergone intensive treatment, receiving regular 12-hour sessions of IV therapy, and experiencing excruciating pain. When he told Liz he didn’t want to die in the hospital, she took him home where, once again, she served as nurse and loving caretaker. John died peacefully on the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, surrounded by Liz, Mark, and Father John.

In Faith and Hope

Ordained in 1988, Father John has served a number of parishes in the Harrisburg area and is currently pastor of Our Lady of Good Counsel and St. Bernadette’s churches. Additionally, he has co-authored six books (including Catholicism for Dummies), is president of a national association of priests (Confraternity of Catholic Clergy) and regularly travels to Alabama to shoot Web of Faith, an award-winning program aired on EWTN.

Mark, meanwhile, has undergone therapy for leukemia twice but has been in remission since 2004;
still, he must be re-evaluated semi-annually. Although his prognosis is good, with the family’s knowledge of this illness, a sense of concern is natural.

Clearly, Liz has known tragedy, yet she has known tranquility, born and nurtured through her profound faith. Today, she serves as medical officer, nurse, chauffeur, cook, and sacristan for Erie’s Carmelite monastery; travels with Fr. John; and enjoys counted cross-stitch. Younger than her six brothers and sisters, Liz has nursed her siblings through illnesses and mourned the deaths of three. Despite a host of personal heartaches, Liz has devoted herself to patients, family, and
community, exemplifying and honoring the ideals of Christian service. Like Florence Nightingale in profession, and like Christ in spirit, Liz Trigilio faces each joy, challenge, setback, and defeat with tranquility, not only modeling, but also inspiring both faith and courage.