tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-365621332024-03-05T20:44:35.023-05:00The Black Birettaa cleric opinesBlack Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.comBlogger583125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-80534640539356137302023-06-22T10:44:00.000-05:002023-06-22T10:44:06.451-05:00The Installation Mass for the Most Rev. Timothy C. Senior<iframe width="480" height="270" src="https://youtube.com/embed/eEPwvaaAe5k" frameborder="0"></iframe>Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-58971764877123274392020-11-15T17:34:00.013-05:002020-11-17T15:46:44.151-05:00My Take on the McCarrick Report<div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="c299f-0-0" style="background-color: white; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="c299f-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #050505; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; text-align: center; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrRbd7a4ZeUecJXqXmpvtiGUT7fYs3J4gn1gvI3BeMy657xsPZFG3Q03mryTGZTn3qQamCdPP342zhVvTIMdXqLdN4vQMuVn_M4aJWufaKx-J8MOFXlpCuiLgW23IpHLquQqc8tg/s934/2020111014110_ada5806f88a86863340810d5cfa501bb6f1fa3cf69bb4d8064158e288099d4fc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="622" data-original-width="934" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrRbd7a4ZeUecJXqXmpvtiGUT7fYs3J4gn1gvI3BeMy657xsPZFG3Q03mryTGZTn3qQamCdPP342zhVvTIMdXqLdN4vQMuVn_M4aJWufaKx-J8MOFXlpCuiLgW23IpHLquQqc8tg/w200-h133/2020111014110_ada5806f88a86863340810d5cfa501bb6f1fa3cf69bb4d8064158e288099d4fc.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJXCQhLqHFMTt4KmZNbY9PpQt2V95y-p5NVwaL75MCJlVxLUBmKlx8bH7PJZ7_todo-Nj49Q5xLvv4C0mMJgLjNbxvQmvwIsx-WPSy6awo67Kvz4zgKeHyAVPEUjfKNObZfo850Q/s500/cq5dam.thumbnail.cropped.500.281.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="500" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJXCQhLqHFMTt4KmZNbY9PpQt2V95y-p5NVwaL75MCJlVxLUBmKlx8bH7PJZ7_todo-Nj49Q5xLvv4C0mMJgLjNbxvQmvwIsx-WPSy6awo67Kvz4zgKeHyAVPEUjfKNObZfo850Q/w200-h113/cq5dam.thumbnail.cropped.500.281.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span face="system-ui, -apple-system, system-ui, ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif" style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><span data-offset-key="c299f-0-0" style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">The infamous </span><span><a href="http://www.vatican.va/resources/resources_rapporto-card-mccarrick_20201110_en.pdf" style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank">McCarrick Report</a><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">has been issued. Sickening to say the least. It disgusts me as a priest as his perversion tarnished the image of the vocation I and my brother clergy love so much. I heard the rumors and stories during my seminary career. Twelve years of minor and major seminary, from high school to college to major theology exposed me to the best and the worst in priestly formation. I had saintly and orthodox mentors and some disturbed, heterodox, and nasty ones. Some priests edified, some scandalized. There were very good ones, some not so good. During the last third of my formation period, I heard the rumors and stories from fellow seminarians who knew about “Uncle Teddy” and “his nephews.” </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #050505;">
</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #050505; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">While it is important to note that the former Cardinal McCarrick is exposed as the serial predator he was for his entire episcopacy, his perverse and aberrant immorality is only part of the equation. Yes, he preyed on young men (adolescent and adult). Not pedophilia (sex with pre-pubescent children) but ephebophilia (sex with post-pubescent teenagers and older). The worst crime was solicitation in the sacrament of confession and attempting to absolve accomplice of the sin against the Sixth Commandment of the Decalogue. Automatic excommunication for that alone.</span></div></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="1c7dl-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="1c7dl-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="1c7dl-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="feov8-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="feov8-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="feov8-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">The other component was his abuse of power. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="447gp-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="447gp-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="447gp-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="7bn9d-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="7bn9d-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="7bn9d-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Before he was a bishop, archbishop, then cardinal, Theodore McCarrick was a priest. Someone promoted him. Some prelates recommended him and got him on the terna (the list of three names the nuncio gives the pope for consideration for consecration to the episcopacy). What did these men know and when did they know it? </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="1hbbm-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="1hbbm-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="1hbbm-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="1cje4-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="1cje4-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="1cje4-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">The report mentions McCarrick’s fundraising skills. He was a true wheeler-dealer. He hosted Leona Helmsley at his birthday party in Manhattan in 2000. His ability to get money from donors was legendary.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="7nn6a-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="7nn6a-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="7nn6a-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="bmqq5-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="bmqq5-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="bmqq5-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Many ask, however, was that reason enough to promote him to the office of Bishop? Archbishop? Cardinal? Managerial and administrative talents are helpful since a bishop must be a good steward of his diocese but they are not the primary abilities to be sought. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="7ul69-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="7ul69-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="7ul69-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="erauo-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="erauo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="erauo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Canon 378.1 states the requirements for candidates to the episcopacy:</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="41qh9-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="41qh9-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="41qh9-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="cu7rk-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="cu7rk-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="cu7rk-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">1. outstanding in solid faith, good morals, piety, zeal for souls, wisdom, prudence, and human virtues, and endowed with other qualities which make him suitable to fulfill the office in question;</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="8mgts-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="8mgts-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="8mgts-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="5mbqo-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="5mbqo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="5mbqo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">2. of good reputation;</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="9ernm-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="9ernm-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="9ernm-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="7d2fj-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="7d2fj-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="7d2fj-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">3. at least thirty-five years old;</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="42kaf-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="42kaf-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="42kaf-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="f54pt-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f54pt-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f54pt-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">4. ordained to the presbyterate for at least five years;</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="24i59-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="24i59-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="24i59-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="85iu2-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="85iu2-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="85iu2-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">5. in possession of a doctorate or at least a licentiate in sacred scripture, theology, or canon law from an institute of higher studies approved by the Apostolic See, or at least truly expert in the same disciplines. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="98iu6-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="98iu6-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="98iu6-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="46veu-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="46veu-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="46veu-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Fundraising forte is not listed as such. Good morals and a good reputation are stipulated, however. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="etd5m-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="etd5m-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="etd5m-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="2ot5t-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="2ot5t-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="2ot5t-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">No allegations of sexual abuse to women or girls have been made against McCarrick. Only to men and boys. Was McCarrick part of the notorious Lavender Mafia? Who knows? Perhaps he was advanced by those who had a similar inclination? It has happened before inside and outside the church.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="6l5jt-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="6l5jt-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="6l5jt-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="2gahm-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="2gahm-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="2gahm-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">It is a real possibility is that those of like mind theologically and politically could have lifted him up the proverbial ladder. Clericalism is not about what a priest wears nor his liturgical preference. Clericalism is about entitlement and abuse of power. It is the good-old-boys club. The cronyism and careerism enable ambitious clerics to rise through the ranks.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="3976o-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="3976o-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="3976o-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="bi845-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="bi845-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="bi845-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Sadly, the few prelates who are guilty of clericalism tarnish the image of all clerics (cardinals, bishops, priests, deacons, etc.) The overwhelming majority of those in Holy Orders are not in the sacred ministry for what they can get out of it. A very few are. Sycophants appease their superiors in the hopes of being ‘rewarded’ with good assignments, ecclesiastical honors, and promotions. Clericalism is not about cassocks and not about being made a monsignor. Clericalism is raw ambition. Seeking and abusing one’s position in the diocese. It’s helping your friends and classmates, not because of their abilities but because you owe them a favor or need one yourself. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="1mqi9-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="1mqi9-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="1mqi9-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="9n1ji-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="9n1ji-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="9n1ji-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Teddy got favors and he gave favors. That is as much part of his dark legacy as is the preying on seminarians and young priests. He may be the most prolific offender, but he is not the only one. I have known many good priests who were overlooked despite their natural and beneficial talents in order that less competent but more ambitious ones could be put on diocesan boards, councils, and committees. Likewise, there have been excellent priests serving their local bishops with solid and objective advice.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="5n2eb-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="5n2eb-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="5n2eb-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="a4se-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="a4se-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="a4se-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">One of my former bishops of happy memory asked me when he was newly consecrated and installed as our Ordinary, what I liked about the Diocese of Harrisburg. I said that our presbyterate has one of the best esprit de corps and camaraderie anywhere. Sacerdotal fraternity is always a hallmark of any good diocese, and there are plenty. </span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="8lr7a-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="8lr7a-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="8lr7a-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="u589-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="u589-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="u589-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">I also suggested that the bishop consider rotating one or two priests in the chancery office, on presbyteral council, personnel board, et al., so that every priest learns first-hand what diocesan administration is about and the cloak of mystery is dismantled. That way, it is not always the same clique running the show. The bishop needs a diversity of opinions and a spectrum of counsel rather than a gang of yes-men and lackeys.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="4omr9-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="4omr9-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="4omr9-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">I went for broke and added another suggestion since we were in the car on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and could not go anywhere due to holiday traffic backup. I asked that he possibly solicit many proposals from among all the clergy and a few of the religious and laity on possible candidates for the episcopacy. Not a ballot or vote for his successor, since the Catholic Church is not nor should it be a democracy. (These names would not necessarily be for future consideration for our diocese alone, rather, names to be submitted for his perusal to submit to the Nuncio for any diocese). </span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">My thought was that rather than a few select ‘nominators’ who in essence become virtual ‘electors’, it would be more beneficial to solicit suggestions from a larger pool. He replied that it would be too many names. I said if you found the same name mentioned many times by many people (priests, deacons, etc.) and from different areas of the diocese, that might be an indication that this man has visible talents people recognize. Not a popularity contest but a survey of qualifications. And he can always ignore those names proposed and/or come up with his own list. The names would remain secret but if people knew the process, they would have more confidence in the system. </span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f1fi7-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">If every bishop submitted three to five names each year to the nuncio with reasons for their nomination, and if those names were influenced by some of the suggestions of the local church, it might prevent a potential McCarrick from rising through the ranks and climbing the ecclesiastical ladder. When it is announced that the Holy Father has appointed a new bishop, perhaps there should be bans (announcements) before the consecration/installment to allow a short period of time for anyone with credible and grave concerns to voice them before the appointment takes effect. We do that for upcoming weddings and for upcoming ordinations to the diaconate and to the priesthood. Obviously, any claims need to be vetted and if not substantiated, ignored. However, a few bad eggs might be weeded out which would prevent future regret.</span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="f2lgo-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f2lgo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f2lgo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="brcfv-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="brcfv-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="brcfv-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">Sexual abuse of minors by clergy is obviously a heinous scandal. So, too, is the abuse of power where clergy of all ranks take advantage of their legitimate authority and use it to satisfy their own personal agendas, desires, and career. That is the disgrace of true clericalism, not what language is spoken at Mass nor what kind of alb a priest wears.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="biqup-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="biqup-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="biqup-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0" style="background-color: white; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #050505;">McCarrick and those like him are the souls of cronyism and careerism. Get ahead and help your buddies do likewise. Owing favors and cashing in favors, be they sexual or ecclesiastical. Like I’ve said before, the problem we have in the church is not of the church. The Church herself needs not to make apologies for it was not the Bride of Christ who sinner, however, it was members of the Church who did horrible things or who allowed these things to continue. Bad apples IN the church are culpable, not the divine institution itself. </span></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #050505;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="e4o6j-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #050505;">Church leaders must finally acknowledge the three-fold attack of the Evil One: bad theology, bad liturgy, and bad morality. Heterodox and dissident doctrine is supported by liturgical abuse and vice versa as expressed in the axiom </span><i style="color: #050505;"><b>lex orandi, lex credendi</b></i><span style="color: #050505;">. (the law of prayer + the law of belief, in other words, worship & doctrine) They feed on one another. The third element is equally integrated and organically connected: bad morality. Bad behavior is nourished by false doctrine and by irreverent and illicit worship. Hence, one can say </span><i><b><span style="color: #050505;">lex orandi, lex credendi, lex </span><span style="color: red;">vivendi</span></b></i><span style="color: #050505;">. (the law of living, i.e., morality)</span></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="64g1k-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="64g1k-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="64g1k-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="85a98-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="85a98-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="85a98-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">All three need to be addressed and remedied. Bad theology, bad liturgy, and bad morality are not confined to clergy, either. The faithful are also susceptible to these aberrations. They deserve no less than the best of what Holy Mother Church offers. The fullness of truth (doctrine), the fullness of grace (sacraments), and the fullness of good shepherdship (hierarchy) are the patrimony of our religion. Diluting, tampering, or abusing any or all of these cause considerable harm and damage.</span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="2ve8t-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="2ve8t-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="2ve8t-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br data-text="true" /></span></span></div></div><div data-block="true" data-editor="5bcvn" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; white-space: pre-wrap; widows: 2;"><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">McCarrick is not a singular anomaly. There have been others and there will be others yet to come. Even Our Divine Lord had His Judas, one bad apple among the Twelve. Nevertheless, prudent, fair, and charitable oversight can do a lot to promote the common good. Good priests and good bishops should not be unjustly tarnished by McCarrick and his cohorts, yet, neither should they lessen their diligence to prevent this from happening again. Let's root out real clericalism, not the absurd persecution of personal taste and preference (<i>de gustibus non disputandum est</i>) but the power manipulation by clerics who take advantage of both priests and laity alike.</span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;">We need to pray for McCarrick's abused victims especially the 'nephews' and pray for all clergy mistreated by those like Teddy so they could advance a <i>puer</i> or promote a crony. Pray for those good priests who need support to persevere. Yes, this scandal has brought enormous disappointment and disgust. It does not, however, have to end in discouragement or despair. Our Lady, Queen of the Clergy and Mother of Priests, pray for us. </span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>Fr. John Trigilio, Jr.</i></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>Director of Pastoral Formation, Mount St. Mary's Seminary</i></span></span></div><div class="_1mf _1mj" data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0" style="direction: ltr; position: relative;"><span data-offset-key="f5jvo-0-0"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><i>President, Confraternity of Catholic Clergy</i></span></span></div></div>Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com0Emmitsburg, MD 21727, USA39.7045417 -77.32693069999999111.394307863821155 -112.48318069999999 68.014775536178846 -42.170680699999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-60817033855662683332015-06-12T10:20:00.001-05:002015-06-12T10:20:38.547-05:00Happy Fathers Day Dad<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JHo7mYTakqc" width="459"></iframe>Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-16481991621954344602014-07-18T12:11:00.000-05:002014-07-18T12:11:00.602-05:00CCC 2014 Convocation Complete Success<a href="http://www.catholic-clergy.org/" target="_blank">Confraternity of Catholic Clergy</a> (www.catholic-clergy.org) met for its annual convocation July 8-11 in Hanceville, AL, at the <a href="http://priestretreat.com/" target="_blank">priest retreat house</a> of the <a href="http://olamshrine.org/" target="_blank">Shrine of Most Blessed Sacrament</a><br />
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Keynote speaker was the Most Rev. Salvatore Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco. Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Charles Connor and Matt Fradd also spoke at the conference.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Matt Fradd</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">On July 9, twenty-nine priests from across the United States
gathered in Hanceville, Alabama for the annual Confraternity of Catholic Clergy
convention. For the first talk, they welcomed Matt Fradd, one of a new breed of
evangelists and apologists who are conversant in popular culture and are
developing creative approaches to reach youth and young adults. Matt brought to
the members of the CCC key information and resources for dealing with a
pastoral issue which is both pervasive and daunting - pornography.<br />
<br />
Matt told the story of his own journey from porn addiction to renewal of faith
and a lifestyle of freedom. He was eight years old the first time he stumbled
across pornography in the home of a relative. The attraction led to a habit and
eventually addiction. Having become an agnostic and cynical about religion, he
nonetheless attended World Youth Day in Rome in 2000, which was for him a
life-changing experience. His new found faith let him to seek chastity and
freedom from pornography. He stressed that chastity does not mean reaching a
place where temptation is gone, but a daily choice to love authentically.<br />
<br />
The most valuable thing in Matt's talk was a practical pastoral strategy that
any priest or deacon can immediately put to use. He described porn addiction as
a seven step "activation sequence" which can be consciously countered
by a "deactivation sequence." He further gave the CCC member priests
four questions they can ask of a penitent: How often do you fall? How old were
you when you started looking at porn? Have you talked to anyone about this
outside confession? Do you want to stop? These questions help the priest assess
if the penitent has a serious problem with porn and gives the priest a chance
to invite him or her to meet outside of the sacrament for further help.
Effective resources for someone struggling with porn include: </span><u><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">theporneffect.com</span></u><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, </span><u><span style="color: blue; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">integrityrestored.com</span></u><span style="font-size: 12pt;">, </span><b><span style="color: #006621; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">reclaimsexualhealth</span></b><span style="color: #006621; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.com</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. Finally, Matt
provided for each participant in the conference information on the
accountability software CovenantEyes and a copy of the book Delivered: True
Stories of Men and Women Who Turned From Porn To Purity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br />
The members of the CCC were grateful to have these new, effective tools for
helping people gain freedom in the painful and difficult struggle against
pornography.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Scott Hahn</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The second talk of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy was by the
renowned Biblical scholar-convert-apologist Scott Hahn. He spoke about the New
Evangelization, with the intent of showing that this recent summons of the
Church is not a catchphrase, a program, or a slogan, but an urgent priority,
rooted deeply in the Church's mission and nature.<br />
<br />
The concept of a New Evangelization goes back to Pius XII, who was searching
for new ways to proclaim the Gospel to the modern world. To this end he
appointed Angelo Roncalli, the future John XXIII, to lead a commission to see
if the Church was ready for a new council to finish the work of Vatican I.
Though Roncall concluded that the time for a new council had not arrived, the
seed had been planted in his mind, and thus he called Vatican II when he was
elected pope. He was followed by Paul VI, who consciously chose to be named
after the great evangelizing apostle of the New Testament. In view of the many
journeys of John Paul the Great, people tend to forget that Paul VI was the
first "traveling pope," with trips to the United States, Portugal,
Uganda, Columbia, and other countries. John Paul II first used the phrase
"new evangelization" during his trip to Poland in 1979. It was an
unscripted phrase, drawn from his heart, in reaction to the deprivation of faith
he saw as the result of years of communist control. He wanted to re-evangelize
the de-christianized. The next time he used the phrase was on his visit to the
United States, when he saw the need for the gospel to be proclaimed to those
whose faith had suffered from secularism and materialism. <br />
<br />
The key insight offered by Dr. Hahn for accomplishing the New Evangelization is
to see it in light of the sacraments, in particular, the Eucharist.
Evangelization is not just a proclamation of the Gospel message, successful
when a person responds in faith. It is the beginning of a journey, a
preparation for entering the family of God, requiring conversion and
catechesis, the final goal of which is the Eucharist. To take part in the New
Evangelization means to bring those already "sacramentalized" to find
in the Eucharist the abundant grace of salvation which they hear proclaimed in
Sacred Scripture. In the New Evangelization, priests have a privileged mission
of spiritual fatherhood, becoming spiritual life-givers through the sacraments.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The morning talk for the second full day of the Confraternity of
Catholic Clergy Conference was by Fr. Charles Connor, prolific author and
scholar, Professor of Theology and Church history at Mount Saint Mary Seminary
Emmitsburg, Maryland, and host of numerous programs on EWTN. In is talk Fr.
Connor set out to compare the insights and spirituality of the priesthood in
the writings of the two newly canonized popes, John XXIII and John Paul II.
People often try to contrast the two popes, as one being liberal and
progressive and the other conservative, but a careful look shows that they
present a consistent spirituality on the priesthood.<br />
<br />
The spirituality of the priesthood of St. John XXIII is found most clearly in
his encyclical on the anniversary of the death of St. John Vianny, Sacerdotii
Nostri Primordia, published in August of 1959. He extolls John Vianny as a
saint who "attracts and pushes us to the heights of priestly life."
John Vianny was a model of sacrifice and penance, who gave himself tirelessly
to God's people in priestly charity. His faithful chastity produced a generous
openness of heart to others. He taught that man's greatest privilege was to
pray, and encouraged a simple form of prayer, in which the Christian pours out
his heart in all simplicity, becoming a beggar before God.<br />
<br />
John Paul II became pope at a time when many theologians spoke of confusion
about the nature and role of the priest. To respond to this trend, he explained
and reflected on the theology of Vatican II on the priesthood. One finds his
insights expressed in his yearly Holy Thursday letters to priests, his book
Gift and Mystery, and his encyclical letter on priestly formation, Pastores
Dabo Vobis. There, John Paul affirms that the priest is ontologically
configured to Christ, the head of the mystical body and the spouse of the
Church. Celibacy is a treasure. The priest is called to a life of prayer,
offering himself to the one to whom he has been configured. He is a man who
"sits at the school of the Eucharist." John Paul's theology and
spirituality on the priesthood is completely at one with that of John XXIII.
Thus, Fr. Connor concludes, we do not need a new theology of the priesthood, as
if priesthood will otherwise become out of date. What we need is a
"refreshment" in the eternal truths of the mystery of the priesthood,
and for each priest to find his "today" in the "today" of
Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">On the afternoon of July 10, His Excellency Salvatore Cordileone,
Archbishop of San Francisco, delivered the keynote address at the annual
conference of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy. With clear and substantive
theological arguments, he exhorted the members of the Confraternity to explain
and defend the Church's teaching on marriage.<br />
<br />
Marriage is unique. No other human relationship is based on the three goods (or
bonae) of marriage: fruitfulness, faithfulness, and permanence. Sadly, people
fail to appreciate the nature of marriage, as is shown by widespread advocacy
for same sex marriage. This advocacy, though, has been a long time in the
making. By the use of contraception, people have stopped seeing fruitfulness as
part of marriage. By the legalization of no-fault divorce, people no longer
regard permanence as essential to marriage. (However, in spite of
"swinging" and experiments of "open marriage" fidelity does
continue to be valued.) Thus marriage in no longer viewed as a way of providing
for the well-being of children, but for the satisfaction of adults. It has
become re-interpreted according to what St. John Paul II called the utilitarian
ethic.<br />
<br />
The true nature and value of marriage has been guarded and proclaimed by the
church, because it is a natural symbol for the mystical union of God the soul
-- a union which, as Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI points out in Deus Caritas Est,
the two become one yet remain their distinct selves. The Song of Songs was, for
this reason, the book of the Old Testament most frequently commented upon
during the patristic period. There are also numerous references to marriage in
the New Testament, such as the wedding at Cana, the parable of the ten
bridesmaids, the teaching on the mystery of Christ and the Church in Ephesians
Chapter 5, and the wedding feast of the Lamb in the Book of Revelation. Perhaps
we are less aware of the nuptial imagery present in liturgy and church
architecture. A canopy over an altar represents a canopy used at Jewish
weddings. Veils used during liturgy, such as chalice veils, or more ancient
practices of placing a veil in front of the altar or over the hands of
communicants at the altar rail, is reminiscent of a marriage veil. The altar
cloth has been understood to symbolize the bed clothes of the marriage bed.<br />
<br />
Because marriage thus symbolizes the possibility and hope of intimacy with God,
it is of the highest importance that priests explain and defend the institution
of marriage. Just as it will be harder for a child to see God as a loving
Father when he lacks the presence of a loving father in his life, so it will be
harder for people to grasp Christ's offer of spiritual intimacy if they have no
knowledge or experience of the truth of marriage. Archbishop Cordileone thus
encouraged all the members of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy with the
words of St. John Paul II, "Do not be afraid." We should proclaim the
truth in charity and be willing to suffer for the truth. We have a rich
tradition - the theology of the body, a true understanding of freedom, a
correct view of the human person, a sense of the transcendent nature of the
person. We should not let the pressure of the present culture make us reticent
about speaking up on behalf of marriage. We are not in the situation of many
lay people who might lose their jobs or be blocked in their careers if they
stand up for marriage. If we defend the institution of marriage, the worst that
can happen to us is that people will be angry at us and call us names. In fact,
defending marriage may even be the key to the new evangelization. When people,
especially young people, see the truth of the Church's teaching about marriage,
they will be led to conclude that if the Church is right about this one
important area of life, she might be right about everything else too.
Archbishop Cordileone offered a final, practical way to participate in the new
evangelization - to celebrate the mass with care, reverence and devotion, and
thus "renew the Church from the heart."<br />
<br />
The members of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy deeply appreciated Archbishop
Cordileone's thought provoking and inspiring words, and have asked him to
continue to work with them as their Episcopal Advisor, which he as graciously
agreed to do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rev. Peter Pilsner, Deacon Thomas </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Boucek and Thomas McKenna
contributed to this article</span></i></div>
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<i>Archbishop Cordileone presented with the Pope St. John Paul the Great Award </i></div>
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<i>from Fr. Trigilio for his heroic defense of unborn human life and for traditional marriage</i></div>
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<i>Archbishop Cordileone, episcopal advisor to the CCC, Main Celebrant and Homilist at Mass in Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://ccc2015.com/" target="_blank">NEXT CONVOCATION: January 5-9, 2015 in Rome with the Australian Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, the British CCC, the Irish CCC, and the American CCC</a></span></div>
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<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-57203109805622964112014-04-04T12:54:00.004-05:002014-04-04T12:55:25.501-05:00Priests Battle the Pouring Dark of Loneliness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/priests-battle-the-pouring-dark-of-loneliness/" target="_blank"><img alt=" click here" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPTLClR76SwtNK3ISwGKJO7hrfC89otbHLdBv3IWWgHYFRDQySXFqeA7M_dpDRCDdC2So0evXFdvicDpCP_ktUsgQRgTexlnxktgUy4SsTZKa71WgzdW8tr_DaiUIEWNc9R4wWSQ/s1600/NCRlogo_tag.gif" /></a></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/priests-battle-the-pouring-dark-of-loneliness/">https://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/priests-battle-the-pouring-dark-of-loneliness/</a></span></b></i><br />
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As a diocesan priest working in parish ministry for over 25 years, I have experienced rectory life with other priests for the first half and alone for the second. Unlike priests of a religious community who live together, we diocesan priests live alone more quickly than ever. I was ordained 14 years before becoming a pastor. Today, most priests are ordained 3 to 5 years then are appointed pastor, usually in a parish where they live alone.<br />
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Living alone is part of the diocesan priesthood but it also warrants an even more aggressive effort by every priest to seek, foster and promote sacerdotal fraternity. When priests are alone too much, i.e., when they have no priest friends with whom they get together on a regular (monthly at least) basis, they can succumb to unhealthy responses. Alcoholism, gambling and other addictive behavior can often tempt a priest who lives alone. Even a strong daily prayer life is not enough. There are four pillars of priestly formation, both in the seminary and post-ordination. Spiritual, theological, pastoral and human formation and their corresponding ongoing formation are ESSENTIAL to healthy, well balanced clergy. The Lone Ranger syndrome can creep in when priests feel alone and abandoned by their bishop and presbyterate. Idiosyncrasies can get magnified and multiplied when a priest has no one to challenge and to support him as a peer. I would often tell seminarians and younger clergy to make it a PRIORITY to engage in and participate in priestly FRATERNITY. One of the goals of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy (a national association of priests and deacons) is to promote such fraternity but in connection with the other pillars of ongoing formation as well.<br />
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Keeping up to date with latest Vatican and Papal documents and statements is as vital to a parish priest as a lawyer or physician who attends conferences and seminars. Intellectual (theological) knowledge needs to be stimulated with discussion and information since we have a very sophisticated laity who read and hear about church pronouncements as soon as they are promulgated. Albeit they use the internet for their primary source, nevertheless, we live in a time where many souls get misinformed or they misinterpret current statements from popes and bishops. Only a priest who is up to date on the latest magisterial decrees can address these issues coherently.<br />
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It is well known that priests who stop or who diminish their prayer life often have a vocation crisis and sometimes leave the active ministry. Daily and regular prayer are indispensable and yet most newly ordained spend four to six years in the seminary where daily prayer is in common and at specific times. When they get ordained and are assigned to a parish, some have difficulty making the transition to being totally responsible for their spiritual life. No more spiritual or formation directors. Some clergy find being faithful to the Liturgy of the Hours and other devotions (rosary, etc.) as problematic due to their full schedule of parish ministry.<br />
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The "virgin martyr" syndrome is what I call it when a good and devout priest fools himself into thinking that DOING priestly work is the final end. BEING a priest is as important as DOING priestly work. This means that overextending yourself to the detriment of your health is not a prudent course for any ordained man. If Father Joe works so hard he has no time for daily prayer, for monthly fraternity, for annual retreat, then he is cheating himself and his people. Just as a general practitioner needs to be in good form to take care of his patients, priests need to be conscientious of their physical, mental and spiritual health and well being. The romantic dream of a priest who works so hard that he collapses at Mass with a fatal heart attack just never happens. What does happen is that a priest can become odd, eccentric, or just weird because he no longer has healthy interaction with brother priests and with well rounded members of the laity. He needs someone to encourage and someone to challenge him to take care of himself 100%. Dying on the job prematurely does not provide for the spiritual needs of the parish. Father needs his day off, his vacation as well as his retreat and monthly day of recollection (priestly fraternity) in addition to his daily routine of Mass, confessions, counseling, visiting the sick, teaching the faith, preparing homilies, et al. Today, many pastors who live in solitary assignments spend a large amount of time in meetings and with mundane business like fixing the roof, getting a new boiler, making diocesan assessments, balancing the budget, etc. The managerial responsibilities are legion but he can have the wise counsel of a good deacon and some competent laity to advise him as he shepherds the parish.<br />
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Burn out is one possibility. Other dangers include getting into inappropriate behavior, if not scandalous. Other fellows can become angry and bitter as they see political shenanigans as sycophants get influential chancery positions while hard working pastors barely get a hello from the bishop at any diocesan function. Discouragement encourages disdain and then guys become recluses, never attending any Chrism Mass, ordination or even priest funerals. The ostracization can be self imposed but it is detrimental to healthy priesthood. <br />
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Jesus sent His disciples out, "two by two" not one by one. When priests live alone, they need to pursue some fraternity to maintain their balance. Spiritual needs are obvious and even a workaholic pastor knows he needs his annual retreat which is why it is mandated by canon law. He also needs some regular contact and interaction with brother clergy, to pray, study and support one another. Some dioceses have realized the importance of priestly fraternity so that three to five priests live in one rectory yet each has his own unique and separate assignment even at other parishes. During the day, Father works at the parish office but in the evening, he has dinner with other priests and lives in a common house. This also assures that the priest has a decent and healthy diet where hot meals are provided at normal times. Too often, priests have bad dietary habits eating fast food in a hurry or something quick at the end of a long day. Good eating habits often are the first casualties for busy pastors and that can reduce Father's overall quality of ministry especially if he develops serious health problems. Other places have kept the pastors in their respective rectories and parishes but have a few priests get together 3 or more days a week at a common and nearby rectory where hot meals are provided in common. As some parishes cannot afford a full time cook with benefits, if three or more parishes split the bill, one full time cook can be hired and healthy suppers provided during the week. This also affords time for fraternity among the brethren.<br />
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The CCC and other priestly associations provide monthly afternoons of recollection and annual seminars or conferences where priests and deacons can get together and spend some quality time in prayer, study and fraternity. Because it is not mandatory, some priests may feel they do not need to make an effort to take precious time away from the parish for something like sacerdotal fraternity. I think that is very, very wrong and dangerous. Priests who live alone still NEED their brother priests. They may not live with others in the same home but they need the fraternal support only provided by one's peers and colleagues. Even if it is one phone call a week and one afternoon a month, priests need to make time to be with other priests. When a priest becomes too solitary, he can be tempted with bad habits or he can get strange and somewhat unsociable. <br />
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Yes, there are some fellows who are more introverted and enjoy being by themselves. Still, they NEED regular fraternal support and their brother clergy need THEM. It is not just what I get out of it, rather, what I can offer and bring to the table. Many a discouraged priest can be spared the shame of leaving if just one or two peers give needed counsel and advice. Everyone gets sick of ecclesiastical bureaucracy and politics but isolation is not an answer. Unless one is a hermit, even diocesan parish priests need some communal dimension from time to time. Whether it is the Fraternity of Priests, Emmaus, or the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, membership and participation in fraternal associations make a priest more balanced and even keeled.<br />
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When left alone too much and too long, Father's spiritual life may be exemplary but his emotional and social needs can be ignored and overlooked. He may resort to some obsessive compulsive response or turn to something more nefarious. Old, young, middle-aged, sick, retired, newly ordained and veterans; they all share in the same sacrament of Holy Orders. Just as there is a real college of bishops, there is a solidarity in the community of priests which transcends generations and geographical borders. In addition to the monthly chapter meetings and annual conferences, the CCC meets every five years with our Australian, British and Irish counterparts. This international quinquennial gathering in Rome promotes ongoing priestly formation in a wonderful way. The catholicity and universality of Holy Orders reminds us clergy that we are not lone rangers nor are we independent contractors. We are BROTHER priests who support each other in prayer and fraternally as well.Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-52607339307946638132014-02-07T12:57:00.000-05:002014-02-07T12:57:40.789-05:00UN is NUTS<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 18.0pt; font-variant: small-caps;">UN shows ignorance and
attempts interference<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Children
issued a sixteen page, 67-paragraph report on the Holy See on January 31, 2014.
It exposes the utter obliviousness of the UN to the distinction between the
Catholic religion and the sovereign independent nation of Vatican City.
Likewise, it exposes the real agenda at the UN to deify political correctness
and to usurp authority to make itself the supreme arbiter of human activity.<o:p></o:p></div>
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First of all, Vatican City is country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholicism is a religion. Yes, the sovereign
ruler of the smallest nation in the world is also, simultaneously, the supreme
head of the Catholic Church. Nevertheless, the United Nations is a political entity
that concerns itself with the interaction and interplay between autonomous
states. It has no jurisdiction, no competence and no business interfering with
any religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Has this august body made
any criticisms or critiques to the religious and spiritual leaders of Islam,
Judaism, Protestant Christianity or Eastern Orthodoxy? No and nor should it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Vatican City is a political entity, which comprises 110
acres and has a population of approximately 840 persons. It is literally the
smallest autonomous sovereign nation in the world, in both geographical and
demographical size.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The Holy See, on the other hand, is the official
ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Pope (Bishop of Rome) is both the supreme
head of the Catholic religion and sovereign of Vatican City. Nations around the
world have diplomatic relations with Vatican City and exchange ambassadors just
as the United States does with Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, France, Germany,
Italy, Spain, et al.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The papal
ambassador or apostolic nuncio represents the Pope as head of Vatican City when
he presents his credentials to the White House, 10 Downing Street, etc.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The UN knows this but insists on issuing a report as if
Catholicism itself were a political and not just religious entity. Catholics
around the world, be they clergy or laity, retain their respective autonomous
citizenship in their respective nation. It was presumed that the presidential
campaign of John F. Kennedy in 1960 dispelled once and for all the prejudiced
notion that Catholics cannot be patriotic citizens. We have no dual allegiance
or loyalty. The Pope is our spiritual head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He leads in matters of faith and morals while our individual civil
leaders (whether Presidents or Prime Ministers, Kings or Queens) retain their
legitimate secular authority over their citizenry.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What is most irksome is that the report ignores the progress
made by the late Pope John Paul II and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in response
to the sexual abuse of children by Catholic clergy. Any act of child abuse is
reprehensible and inexcusable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All
crimes against innocent children should be vigorously prosecuted and justly
punished. That applies to ALL perpetrators, however. While the press give front
page coverage to every priest who sexually abuses a child, they do not give
equal publicity to ministers of other religions, to scoutmasters, coaches,
teachers, and family members, especially parents and siblings, who commit the
same disgusting acts. Pedophilia is not limited to celibate Catholic clergy. In
fact, more 75% (78.5%) of child abuse in America is identified as neglect. More
than 15% (17.6%) is physical abuse and less than 10% (9.1%) is sexual abuse.
Even one act of abuse, physical or sexual, is repugnant and intolerable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Government (US Dept. of Health and Human Services) reports
show that 81.5% of child abuse is perpetrated by one or both parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>12% is done by persons not biologically or
legally related to the victims.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jerry
Sandusky was not a celibate Catholic priest. He was a married man, a football
coach, who was indicted on 52 counts of molestation. Is the UN going to
investigate and dictate to colleges and sports programs what should be done to
prevent abuse?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Billy Graham’s grandson, Boz
Tchividjian, recently (Sep. 2013) said that the Evangelical Sex Abuse Record is
much worse than Catholic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clergy of all
denominations have committed abuse against minors, as have other public
figures, like teachers, coaches, scoutmasters, etc. It is not a Catholic
phenomenon nor is it even primarily limited to one religion, career or
vocation. Protestant Ministers and Jewish Rabbis as well as Catholic Priests
have been found among those who abused children. Every religion, sadly, has had
some bad pastors. Yet, the UN acts as if this were a primarily Catholic issue.
Statistically, a much more overwhelming number of schoolteachers have abused
children in comparison to members of the clergy. Will the UN now speak to our
neighborhood schools and educational facilities? What about sexual misconduct
in the military?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Among politicians?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
The second egregious part of this report next to the unjust
presumption that sexual abuse of children is mostly a Catholic crime, is that
the report seeks to redefine and remake the Catholic religion in its own
politically correct image and likeness. Suggestions (exhortations at times)
proliferate the document like changing Catholic doctrine and canon law to allow
abortion, contraception and same sex marriage. Yes, as incredulous as it
sounds, this UN Committee recommends that children be taught and be given
access to the opportunity to use reproductive health measures like abortion and
birth control with the insinuation that to deny access is a form of abuse.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Unbelievable. Preposterous. Marriage should no longer be
limited to just one man and one woman in a sacred, permanent and faithful
covenant, according to the UN. Having children out of wedlock should be
completely acceptable, according to this report. Sexual orientation and
inclination of parents and children is inconsequential. The report betrays a
modern myth that sexual activity is a civil right that anyone and everyone has
rather than being a sacred gift from God entrusted to those united in Matrimony
for the exclusive purpose of unity (love) and procreation (life). If sex is a
right, then any and all forms of sex are also guaranteed, if you follow this
logic. The sixth commandment applies equally to those of a homosexual
orientation as to those with a heterosexual orientation. There is just one set
of Commandments, one Natural Moral Law and one share human nature. There is not
a separate ‘straight’ morality and a separate ‘gay or lesbian’ morality. The UN
report, however, sees things differently.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Gender equality seems to eclipse person equality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Catholic morality teaches that all human
persons have equal dignity and worth. Gender equality, however, attempts to
convince people, mostly children, that there are no significant differences
between men and women.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The church never
said one gender was better than the other. She does say that men and women are
different and that difference COMPLEMENTS the human species. That is why
marriage is restricted to a man and woman because the complementariness is
signified with the two becoming one flesh. The UN report, however, wants the
Catholic church to instruct our children that gender means nothing, especially
since one can change or redefine your sex at will. You can also smell the odor
and aroma of bias against church doctrine restricting ordination to males
alone. Ironically, the UN does not go after the Eastern Orthodox Church or
Islam, both of which have an exclusively male clergy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
The document scorns the practice of rescuing abandoned
babies as adopted children may never know their biological parents. In an
obscene inference, the report seems to prefer to offer unwanted or unplanned
pregnant mothers the option of abortion to save their unborn child the possible
inconvenience of not knowing their blood relatives. How diabolical.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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Finally, the document condemns any all forms of corporal
punishment, be it parents or teachers. Physical discipline is forbidden and
considered a form of child abuse. While common sense and reason should discern
the distinction and difference between legitimate corporal punishment and
authentic physical abuse, it is the parent who decides what kind of legitimate
discipline, not the state and not the United Nations. We’ve already seen a few
places in the US where hospitals discriminated against Jewish parents who
sought to have their infant sons circumcised according to the Hebrew religion.
Political Correctness sees religion as superstition and as having no rights
whatsoever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Church and State are both
natural institutions which depend and rely on the first institution, the Family
(which is built on Marriage), which is the cornerstone of the other two.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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The UN wants canon law amended to give women, even girls, to
abortion, as a reproductive health right. The right to life of the unborn
totally escapes the minds of those who wrote this idiotic document. Does the UN
condemn the state enforced abortions of female babies in Communist China? What
about the denial of school education to girls in countries run by radical
Islamic fundamentalists? No, the UN prefers to attack the Catholic Church.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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Adolescents should be given contraceptives rather than be
taught the value of abstinence and chastity. That is the thinking of the UN
Committee on the Rights of Children (#57).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sexual promiscuity is perceived as a right and avoidance of STD’s and
HIV/AIDS requires ‘protected sex’ instead of ‘no sex’ before marriage. Take the
same logic and distribute cigarettes, alcohol and drugs to teenagers to prevent
them from getting them from notorious and seedy sources. Let them experiment.
Let’s go back to the hippie era. One must ask if the writers of this document
have children of their own and if so, how did they raise them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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It would be laughable were it not so pathetic when the
document requires that accusations and allegations be treated the same as
convictions and confessed crimes. Our American jurisprudence prides itself on
the primary principle that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. That
applies to every man or woman who has ever been charged with a crime. We use
the term ‘accused’ and ‘alleged’ on purpose. If someone is proven guilty, then
justice demands just punishment. Justice also demands that everyone be treated
equally under the law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the state
wants to dissolve the statute of limitations on sexual abuse of children, it
should apply to all cases, be the accused a member of the clergy or a teacher,
coach, scoutmaster, parent, neighbor, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bishops were not the only ones guilty of cover-ups. Principals, administrators,
and others in all lines of business and enterprise have had their share of
criminal silence.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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Sad reality is that the initial intention is good, i.e.,
child welfare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Protecting youth is not
an option but an obligation society and culture shares with the family as the
youth are our future. Prosecuting all perpetrators is a necessary component,
but persecuting a religion is just another injustice. Pope Benedict XVI was
accused of being lax on the issue yet just recently it was disclosed that he
defrocked (technically, laicized) nearly 400 priests convicted or confessed to
have abused minors. As the majority of abuse took place during the late 60’s,
70’s and early 80’s, you see the parallel with the so-called sexual revolution
when <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Humanae
Vitae</i></b> was being trashed by dissenters and when the sex and drugs of the
counter-culture reached an all time high. It is no excuse for this heinous and
reprehensible behavior but it does give it context. Bad people (clergy and
laity alike) used bad theology to justify their bad behavior.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What the UN could and ought to do is work for the end of the
abuse and persecution of Christians in the Middle East. Many of these
communities lived in those places three hundred years of more before Mohammed
ever established Islam. The Gospels of Jesus Christ were read and proclaimed
long before the Koran, yet instead of peaceful coexistence, we see bombings,
murders, and terrorism against men, women and children whose only crime is
their faith and religion. There’s a job this Committee could spend their time
and effort on.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-18967581588771434132014-01-24T22:10:00.002-05:002014-01-24T22:10:54.592-05:00EXTREMIST Governor of NY and his paranoia of those who oppose his positions. Last time I looked, this was a FREE nation with freedom of speech and religious liberty.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2014/01/17/andrew-cuomo-pro-life-people-have-no-place-in-the-state-of-new-york/" target="_blank"><img alt=" Governor Cuomo" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNZX1M8Ja4jU3xTtlyH-o9UqWrok1vPP5KbG1ms0wlBsVUCua4VVqP7JyfLMasijMArzFbWTsMjHQonXeHVQYfLjhWSr9jvihMaLHBxzpaComYCXnrM2ucMfrgfcPPyZsnQxxEjA/s1600/andrewcuomo2b.jpg" /></a></div>
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<i><a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2014/01/17/andrew-cuomo-pro-life-people-have-no-place-in-the-state-of-new-york/" target="_blank">click here</a></i></div>
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Governor Andrew Cuomo (NY) recently told 'extreme conservatives' to "get out" of New York state. Was he talking about neo-Nazis, fascists, or Jihadist terrorists? No, he clarifies that his concept of extreme conservatism is focused on "right-to-life", "pro-assualt weapon" and "anti-gay." He says these people have no right to live in the Empire state. First of all, where does the US Constitution state that your beliefs, opinions and ideologies make you ineligible for residence? Do we not have a Bill of Rights that GUARANTEES and DEFENDS the freedom of speech, the freedom of assembly, religious liberty (freedom of religion) and freedom to bear arms? Where does the Constitution or the Declaration of Independence say we must compromise our views just to live here? Secondly, it is not without irony that this report is made on the civil observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. One has to consider, would Governor Cuomo listed MLK and civil rights movement as extreme conservatism or extreme liberalism? Defending the right to life is a civil rights issue as the unborn is a human being. Ending slavery and segregation; recognizing the right to vote and equal rights to people regardless of color, these, too, could be labeled 'extreme' since their adherents peacefully refused to compromise. Did not the British consider the colonists to be extremists when we demanded our independence?</div>
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Another question that arises is about those who defend traditional marriage as being between one man and one woman. Holding that belief does not make you 'anti-gay', it makes you 'pro-traditional family.' The family is built on marriage, hence married couples need and deserve some recognition and support even when not extended to those who are single. Marriage is rooted in the Judaeo-Christian tradition and natural moral law as a permanent and faithful commitment of one man and one woman to live as husband and wife. Two men or two women, three ladies and one man, and any other combination may be a voluntary association but is not marriage. Is that extreme? Does defending the right of a human being from being unjustly killed in the womb extreme? Is putting an end to racial discrimination and racial segregation extreme? If yes, then these 'extremists' must be tolerated nevertheless because they are CONSTITUTIONAL and they are MORALLY RIGHT.</div>
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Finally, rather than expelling and deporting your political opponents, the governor would better serve the people of New York state if he worked for the COMMON GOOD of all citizens. His 'extreme' behavior in that he supports abortion conflicts with his Catholic faith. He NEEDS to sit down and have a serious talk with his pastor or with his bishop and amend his radical positions. Bad enough when Catholic politicians proclaim their 'pro-choice' stand, worse is when they boldly repudiate and excoriate those who are 'pro-life.' Governor Cuomo cannot wash his hands as did Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judaea . One is either pro-life or pro-abortion just as you must choose to be either a racist or to be anti-racist; to be anti-Semitic or not to be. Prejudice and injustice have no middle ground. </div>
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This is not a political debate between republicans, democrats, independents, libertarians or tea party folk. It is a MORAL issue and a battle between RIGHT AND WRONG. Just as Dr. King had to peacefully oppose unjust laws that promoted racism, so, too, people of good faith and loyal Americans need to work to undo the injustice of Roe v. Wade. Human beings have rights regardless of the color of their skin and regardless of their geographical location (inside or outside the womb). </div>
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If anyone needs to leave the state it is those who espouse these extremist views on who they deem to be extremist. The Nazis and Soviets did the same trick and labeled their opponents as being enemies of the state, traitors, promoters of treason, etc., merely for speaking out against injustice and speaking for those being victimized by the government. They got rid of their 'problem' by getting rid of those who disagreed with their extreme positions. Let's get rid of the nonsense and rhetoric and get serious about demanding that our politicians defend, protect and work for ALL citizens, especially human rights, like the most foundational and fundamental, the RIGHT TO LIFE. </div>
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Fr. John Trigilio, Jr.</div>
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President, <a href="http://www.catholic-clergy.org/" target="_blank">CCC</a></div>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-58659953415161120242014-01-17T11:27:00.000-05:002014-01-17T11:27:22.334-05:00Mater Sacerdotis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Fifteen years ago, my bishop (Nicholas Dattilo) told me shortly after his mother passed away that the death of the mother of a priest is something very unique. While we had both experienced the deaths of our respective fathers, I only now realized how true his insight was. I loved my dad profoundly and mourned his death (just six months after my younger brother was killed by an underage drunk driver). I was named after my father and proudly use the JR. suffix to honor his memory. He was Sicilian and mom was Polish, but I had a strong affinity for the Italian half, partly because my surname was Italian and because my Italian relatives were so colorful and memorable.</div>
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I loved my mom as intensely as I loved my dad but growing up, she was the stern Polish disciplinarian and dad was the affable Italian head of the family who adored his four boys. I inherited my dad's sense of humor but from mother I got my resolve and perseverance to never give in and never give up. What some might call being stubborn, I would see as being fully committed and resolute to see things through to the very end.</div>
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When my dad died on February 11, 1998, it was after a four year battle with leukemia. My brother Michael died from Muscular Dystrophy in December, 1992, at the age of 26. Dad had taken early retirement so he could stay home and care for Mike as mom was working full time as head nurse of the Emergency Room and Trauma Center at the local Catholic Hospital. Michael was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy when he was 10 and had some very painful surgeries on his legs. Despite these, he still was confined to a wheelchair the rest of his short life. I remember mom and dad taking turns to be with Michael at the children's wing of the hospital. I was in high school seminary at the time and Fr. Leo Duscheck, SVD, would often give me a ride to the hospital after class so I could visit my brother. You could see the blood seeping through his plaster casts. </div>
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Michael had to transfer from parochial to public school only because the Catholic schools were not equipped for wheelchairs. This was before the ADA made it mandatory. He attended three years of college at Edinboro in a dorm designed exclusively for disabled students. He would never graduate as his disease only weakened him more and more but those were his happiest days having a modicum of independence.</div>
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Mom and dad sacrificed a LOT for me and my three brothers to attend Catholic grade school. They went without so we could have what we needed. Three of us went to college and two graduated. While we had student loans, mom and dad paid for all the other costs and incidentals. They lived modestly and sometimes frugally just to make ends meet but there was always plenty of food and lots of love and faith in our house. When I entered minor seminary after 8th grade, I would often bring over seminarian friends from out of town. Mom and Dad made homemade pasta and meatballs and said their door was always open.</div>
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During minor seminary I met Father Levis who became a friend of the family. He would often come over to anoint my brother Michael and bring him Holy Communion.</div>
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I was ordained only four years when my first family funeral was my brother Michael. I still cannot remember how I got through it let alone how I preached at it as well. Five years later, my brother Joe was killed by a drunk driver. Six months after that, my dad died from leukemia. In less than ten years of ordination, I buried half my immediate family.</div>
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When pops died, I became patriarch of the clan but mother was still very much in charge. She worked until they forced her to retire and then she became a lay volunteer and unofficial sacristan for the discalced Carmelite nuns in Erie. That gave her purpose.</div>
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Since mom and dad were unable to take vacations while they cared for Michael and then dad got leukemia, I decided once she was widowed to take mom on as many trips and excursions as possible while her health allowed. Our first trip together was to Italy in 1998 to celebrate my tenth anniversary. Dad had died in Feb. and we were leaving that summer. She felt awkward but I assured her that my father ands her husband would have wanted her to go after so many years of being caregiver for Michael then for dad. So she went and we joined a pilgrimage of 40 people to Rome.</div>
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A few years later, we went to Sicily and after that a trip to Eastern Europe that ended in Poland. We visited the shrine of Padre Pio and got to Rome for the Millennium. Cardinal Arinze arranged for my mom to get an audience with Pope John Paul the Great after the general audience (see picture above). She was sick when Pope Benedict XVI visited the USA in 2008. As it was also my 10th anniversary that same year, I asked the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, if he could give my mom a blessing as she was unable to see the Pope during his visit. The Nuncio gave her a private tour of the Vatican Embassy in Washington, DC, and gave us Italian cookies and coffee before giving my mom a rosary blessed by Pope Benedict XVI.</div>
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One Thanksgiving I was ready to take her to Italy and she said she wanted to go to Ireland instead. I said why Ireland? Dad was Italian and you are Polish. I have a cousin in Ireland. Well, I made plans and because she wanted to stay in a castle, we got rooms at Ballynahinch Castle in Connemara, Galway, Ireland. It was only 90 miles from Shannon airport but I discovered only after landing that 90 miles in Ireland are not like 90 miles in America. An hour and half drive became a four hour journey PLUS I had to learn quick how to drive on the left side of the road and steer a car with the wheel on the passenger side all the while my mother is sitting in the front seat yelling and screaming that I am not staying on the road (which were made for one Fiat, not for two medium sized cars)</div>
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Nevertheless, she enjoyed the castle and loved Ireland. Most of all, my mother loved joining me and Father Levis whenever we went to EWTN to tape our Web of Faith television series. Deacon Bill Steltemeier loved her many different hats she wore each day to the chapel. She got to meet and become friends with Mother Angelica and the Poor Clare nuns. When Reverend Mother built the Temple in Hanceville, my mother was included in the invitation sent to me and Father Bob. All three of us attended the dedication and consecration of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament. We were there the night before and saw the cloister area before it was sealed. We ate at the formal supper and met all the EWNT celebrities like Fr. Groeschel, Fr. Rutler, Fr. Shaughnessy, Bishop Foley, Bob & Penney Lord, Fr. Charles Conner, et al.) We all cried during the Mass the next day as that was the first time many of us had seen a Communion Rail USED during Mass. The shrine was gorgeous, the music was superb and the Mass was as reverent as being in Heaven itself.</div>
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Several years before it was finished, Mother Angelica often took me, mom and Fr. Bob to see the progress of the 'chapel on the farm' as she called it. We saw the dirt road, the gravel road and then the paved road. We stood on plywood and peeked out the Rose window soon after it was installed. </div>
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My mom loved Mother Angelica. When my brother Joe died on July 5, 1997, Reverend Mother telephoned my mom and gave her words of comfort. She never forgot that. So, as long as she was able to travel, I took her to as many places as I could and brought her along to almost everything I was invited. We even got invited to a few Family gatherings for EWTN.</div>
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One summer I drove mom to Canada to see Andrea Bocelli and just this past November, a week before Thanksgiving, I got her to see the three Irish Priest tenors sing in Harrisburg.</div>
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2011 is when mom began to slow down and her health started to deteriorate. She had spinal stenosis which required major surgery on her back in Feb. of 2012 followed by four months of rehab in a nursing home. I was driving back and forth between Harrisburg, Erie and Pittsburgh (where she had the surgery at UPMC) when I got into an automobile crash that landed me in ICU. After that I decided I had to do something and moving mom closer to me was the answer. She lived alone for several months after the nursing home rehab but her diabetes and heart condition worsened and she ended up on the floor for two days, unable to get up. That got her hospitalized just before Christmas. She was diagnosed with aortic stenosis and three blocked arteries and a bad valve. The cardiologist said she could not survive open heart operation. Another four months in nursing home rehab. Thanks be to God I had some help from my cousins, especially Jackie Mehler and her husband Tom who took mom to the doctors, shopping and an occasional meal.</div>
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I moved her in June to assisted living in Harrisburg, just ten miles from my rectory. She hated it at first and told people I kidnapped her. After three months she got used to the place which we made as comfortable as possible. Then she had a TIA (mini-stroke) in July and an internal Gastrointestinal bleed a month later. Both hospital visits were ten or more days each. The last one required she go to sub acute nursing care rehab before going back to assisted living. The goal always had been to beef her up physically so she could get a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (as she was no candidate for traditional open heart surgery). Problem was that she would get better and then a monkey wrench was thrown at her. Shingles hit her hard at the nursing home then she had numerous urinary infections. Fluid was building up in her legs, ankles, and in her lungs.</div>
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When she died on Saturday, December 28, both me and my only surviving brother, Mark, were there with a few good friends of mine and hers. I visited her almost if not actually every day at the nursing home or assisted living facility. I did what I could. While not easy, I had the enormous help of several parishioners who visited her on a weekly basis. My classmate and co-author friend, Fr. Brighenti, helped with his presence, priestly fraternity and kindness.</div>
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We had a Funeral Mass for mom in my parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel, Marysville, on January 2nd and a Mass of Christian Burial on Monday, January 6th, in Erie where she was buried next to my dad and my two brothers and sister.</div>
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As painful as it was to bury dad, yes, burying mom was more difficult. I was exhausted as caregiver but I was also devastated as the eldest son. Bishop Dattilo was right. When a priest's mother dies, the bond between mother and son is torn just as it was on Calvary on Good Friday when Jesus had to see His sorrowful mother at the foot of the Cross as He was about to die for our sins. Jesus, the High Priest, had a human mother whom he loved dearly. Losing your second parent is indeed hard enough but that special bond that connects a mother and her child makes her loss even more intense. </div>
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I was so wiped out from the many weeks and months of mom's illness and frequent hospitalizations and complications, etc., that the tears I expected at her funeral were not there. The day after they came in abundance.</div>
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I know she is at peace, that her suffering is over and that she is reunited (or will be) with my dad, my sister and my two brothers as well as her own mom & dad and her siblings who went before her. That gives comfort but the pain of loss, which even Our Divine Lord Himself experienced at the tomb of His dear friend Lazarus, remains and for good reason. For if we do not miss the ones we love, how can we long to see them again? If there is pain is separation, is there not more joy in reunion? I know my mom sorely missed my dad with whom she had been married for 39 years before he died. She missed my brothers Michael and Joe. I hope and pray they are all together now with the Lord and with His Blessed Mother. Meanwhile, I mourn the loss of my mother who gave me life, gave me love and gave me faith. My vocation to the priesthood would never have come to fruition were it not sewn by the love, faith and example of my mom and dad as they raised us at home.</div>
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Love you, Mom. Pray for me. Your son, John.</div>
<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-49904366032982810252014-01-13T02:14:00.000-05:002014-01-14T13:01:02.296-05:00It is not what a man wears but how he acts and treats others that tells who he really is<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">de gustibus non disputandum est</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">True clericalism is an anomoly and abberation in that it engenders disdain and disrespect for others, especially those who are not clerics (ordained). Hence, real clericalism is when a deacon, priest or bishop has an attitude of superiority over his flock in that he believes he is 'better' than they are, whether spiritually, intellectually or otherwise. Clericalism patronizes and denigrates the unordained (laity). It seeks to be treated with privilege rather than seeking to be of service.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Clericalism is an ATTITUDE but is not a costume, clothing, preference or option. It has nothing to do with LANGUAGE (Latin or vernacular) and nothing to do with ATTIRE. Clericalism is how one behaves and treats others, not how one dresses.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here is a poignant example. While my father was still alive (before 1998) he was often in the hospital being treated for leukemia. On one occasion that I was there after driving 300 miles from my rectory, Bishop Donald Trautman popped in to say hello and give my dad his blessing. Although I was not a priest of the Erie Diocese (I was ordained and am incarnated in the Harrisburg Diocese) my parents lived in Erie where they were born and raised. Bishop Trautman visited my dad because he was the parent of a priest. Without being asked, His Excellency was good enough and kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule and visit my dad. He went so far as to offer to stay with him for 20-30 minutes if I needed to take my mom to the cafeteria and get something to eat (she was a diabetic and needed to eat at regular intervals). Despite any difference of opinion on other matters, I always appreciated, respected and admired Bishop Trautman for that act of charity and kindness. He was ACTING and BEING very pastoral as a bishop. Sadly, that does not occur everywhere. A priest I know was hospitalized and admitted to ICU for three days and his own bishop never called him even once. After being discharged, he went back to his rectory and not one call or visit from his bishop. THAT is clericalism. When a bishop is too busy to make a brief phone call to one of his own priests when he is in the hospital for a serious condition; when a bishop sends his 'representative' to a priest's funeral rather than going himself; that is clericalism. Yes, bishops are very busy but they are not bank managers or bureaucrats. They are pastors and must act like a FATHER rather than a corporate executive. I would never call my dad by his first name. I had too much respect for him but I also loved him enormously. He was always there when I needed him. He never sent one of my brothers as his envoy. He himself called me or visited me. Likewise, a real pastoral bishop CALLS his own priests and deacons. He visits them when possible if they are seriously injured or ill. He goes to their funerals because they are his FAMILY. It is not clericalism to call the Bishop Your Excellency, Your Grace, or Bishop since he is the hierarchical superior to his priests and deacons. It is clericalism, however, when he treats his clergy as mere employees or when he treats the lay faithful of his diocese as customers or clients rather than as his spiritual children. Bishop Trautman visited my dad and on several occasions telephone my mother when she was in the hospital or nursing home before her untimely death. He did not have to do that as I am a priest from another diocese. He did so because he has class and he knows a bishop must be a good father and pastor even to those not of his fold. When clergy act like they work at a company instead of Holy Mother Church; when they behave as if their priesthood, diaconate or episcopate is just a career and not a vocation; then that is the ugly head of clericalism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I entered the seminary after graduating from Catholic grade school. I attended high school seminary, college seminary and major seminary (total of 12 years) from 1976-1988. During those days, the buzz word was 'clericalism' but it had a latent meaning and hidden agenda. It went from the ridiculous to the sublime. If you wore black socks to match your black trousers, you could be accused of being clerical. If you wore a rabbat or full collar rather than the 6" tab insert, you could be considered clerical. If your Liturgy of the Hours had a black leather cover, you were clerical, however, if you had a colored or a knitted breviary cover, you were OK. Wearing a cassock was over the top and tantamount to waving an American flag in downtown Tehran during the 444 day hostage crisis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Real perpetrators of clericalism are obsessed with externals such as attire, vestments, language, art, music, etc. in that certain types are considered dangerous if not disruptive. Roman style vestments are an option as are Gothic, yet for the clerical person, it is not his personal taste, preference or opinion, it is his unjust imposition on another. In other words, it is not clerical to wear a cassock or use an amice or chalice veil and pall, rather, it is clericalism to treat and speak about those who licitly choose those options as if they were snobs.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Clericalism is MISTREATMENT of fellow clergy and of the laity. It is when a deacon, priest or bishop insults the intelligence of someone who disagrees with their prudential judgment. It is when a pastor embarrasses or humiliates an elderly woman for praying her rosary during Mass. It is when a layperson is DENIED their licit option to receive Holy Communion on the tongue or to confess their sins anonymously behind a screen. It is when certain members of the clergy act as if any and all requests for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite are potential schismatics or <i>sede vacantists</i>. It is refusing to expose a parish congregation to Gregorian chant and traditional hymns as part of a diverse repertoire. True clericalism is the assumption and attitude that the common lay Catholic is not sophisticated enough to read and comprehend the Catechism of the Catholic Church or any magisterial document, from Vatican II to papal encyclicals. Real clericalism insults the laity by treating them as ignorant intellectual slackers when they refuse to embrace a heterodox or heretical idea espoused in a homily.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Some seminaries in the old days and some dioceses for that matter, had unofficial witch hunts to identify, isolate and eliminate those deemed rigid, conservative or traditional. The term used, however, was that these fellows were proponents and adherents of clericalism. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">DEFINE TERMS. Clericalism is not about attire, it is about attitude. Whether the ordained man wears a tab shirt, rabbat or cassock is NO proof or evidence of his ecclesiology. It is a matter of taste and personal preference. Many a layperson have been mistreated, insulted and demeaned by clergy wearing all sorts of attire. THAT is what Pope Francis has been denouncing and repudiating, the attitude and mistreatment of the faithful by members of the clergy (deacons, priests AND bishops) who abuse their authority and position. It is not an issue of liberal vs. conservative, progressive vs. traditional, Ordinary Form vs. Extraordinary Form (previous known as Novus Ordo vs. Traditional Latin Mass)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Clericalism is a cancer to the clergy and when clergy seek to 'clericalize' laity and 'laicize' the clergy, they are committing clericalism. The common priesthood of the baptized and the ministerial priesthood of the ordained are different but they need each other. Clergy are there to serve the spiritual needs of the laity and not serve themselves. What Father, Deacon or Bishop WEARS is irrelevant. It is HOW he treats his people, his peers and his subordinates. Don't get me wrong, I wear my collar whenever on duty and whenever traveling as a witness to who and what I am. I like seeing religious men and women in their habits. People need to see priests in public doing ordinary things (shopping, dining, etc.) to see that we are normal human beings. Wearing the collar also keeps me on my best behavior lest I am tempted to say or do something imprudent were I in civilian clothes. Wearing the collar is not meant to elicit any privileges or favors (those days are long gone, anyway). Just like our military men and women are proud to be in the service of defending our nation, clergy should likewise be proud to be in service to the Lord and His Church. My point is that the STYLE of clerical attire is purely preferential and a matter of taste, nothing else. No agenda need be read into it. Unfortunately, some accuse anyone who wears the collar all day of clericalism OR they accuse those who wear more formal or traditional clerical attire of clericalism. Wearing a biretta or fedora is an option just as much as wearing a baseball cap. Some folks are OBSESSED however with externals and peripheral incidentals. Better to focus on the person's ACTIONS.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Once and for all, let's end this ridiculous paranoia about anything prior to Vatican II as well as the paranoia about anything after Vatican II. Rad-trads are having a field day concocting all kinds of conspiracy theories about Pope Francis' papacy while geriatric liturgical hippies from the 60's lament anything and everything Pope Emeritus Benedict said and did. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Wearing french cuff shirts is a matter of taste as is your preference in music, art, literature, etc. What matters is not whether Father wears a short sleeved tab shirt or is wearing a cassock, what counts is how he treats his flock. Is he present? Is he approachable? Is he orthodox? Does he celebrate valid, licit and REVERENT Masses? Does he have a priestly heart to his people and to his colleagues?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Imagine if we acted as if it mattered which sports team you supported? Does being a Cleveland Indian fan make me a bad pastor to those who are Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles or Philadelphia Phillies fans? Of course not. Likewise, would making me an aficionado of Italian opera or Baroque Music interfere with my sacred ministry to those who like Rock, Country Western, Hip-Hop, or Celtic? Absolutely not. Then WHY in heaven's name are some members of the clergy beating the drums of war and whipping up a witch hunt frenzy to discredit any of their ordained colleagues who have a difference of taste or who choose a different valid option?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Our American culture has been addicted to the mentality and ideology of SYMBOLISM OVER SUBSTANCE. Poor people can love classical music as much as the rich and the wealthy can prefer Jazz while the indigent listen to rap. YET, for some in the church, liking Gregorian Chant or Polyphony is borderline reactionary traditionalism leaning toward schismatic <i>sede vacantism</i>. On the other hand, contemporary liturgical music may not be everyone's cup of tea but it is in no way indicative of iconoclastic mentality.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It is not the amount of Monsignors which instigates clericalism, it is the sycophant who is nothing more than a mere 'yes' man who seeks a diocesan position or the bureaucrat who filters who has access to the bishop and what he hears. It is the career clericalist who is voraciously hungry for power and prestige, regardless of his title or lack thereof. Most of all, it is ecclesiastic (high or low) who espouse a corporate model paradigm on how to run a diocese or parish instead of the pastoral model of seeing the church as a family of faith and not a business to be run.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Just my thoughts on the matter </span></div>
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Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-34482597037355661562013-12-14T01:22:00.000-05:002013-12-14T01:25:11.277-05:00Defending the Holy Father Pope Francis<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/sVzRXJqPBrs?list=SP98FC02E5AA17A7C8" width="560"></iframe>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-83601198140555258542013-12-14T01:21:00.000-05:002013-12-14T01:26:11.065-05:00Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/UoNqT2yuJRk?list=SP98FC02E5AA17A7C8" width="560"></iframe>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-6369262542745245012013-12-14T01:20:00.000-05:002013-12-14T01:25:39.919-05:00Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord: ADVENT<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ubk5WDOYgIw?list=SP98FC02E5AA17A7C8" width="560"></iframe>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-50309498670731305362013-11-30T00:15:00.003-05:002013-11-30T00:24:56.672-05:00Only Fools RUSH in Where Angels Fear to Tread: Limbaugh Excoriates Pope Francis Unfairly<div style="font-size: 18px;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/131130" target="_blank">Matt Abbott</a></span></b> asked me to comment on <b><a href="http://www.wnd.com/2013/11/rush-limbaugh-scorches-pope-francis/print" target="_blank">Rush Limbaugh's</a></b> recent lambasting of Pope Francis recent apostolic exhortation, <b><i><a href="http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/francesco/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20131124_evangelii-gaudium_en.pdf" target="_blank">Evangelii Gaudium</a></i></b></span></div>
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I often listen to Rush Limbaugh on the radio and find him to be an intelligent man and an erudite conservative journalist. He uses common sense and logic to expose the fallacious arguments of liberal progressives. UNFORTUNATELY he himself has fallen into a trap by which he erroneously extrapolates a false premise from the recent papal document from Pope Francis. <b><i>Evangelium </i></b><b style="font-style: italic;">Gaudii </b>is an Apostolic Exhortation issued on November 24, 2013. It is not a Papal Encyclical (like <i>Humanae Vitae</i>) nor is it an Apostolic Letter (like <i>Ordinatio Sacerdotalis</i>) While not an ex cathedra infallible document, it nevertheless contains ordinary papal magisterial teaching which demands submission of mind and will by faithful Catholics.</div>
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Rush is uncharacteristically inaccurate in his quotations. Pope Francis did NOT criticize <i>unfettered <b>capitalism</b></i>, he used the phrase <i>unfettered <b>consumerism</b></i>. The late and great Father Richard Joh Neuhaus defined consumerism as: "precisely, the consuming of life by the things consumed. It is living in a manner that is measured by having rather than being. As Pope John Paul II makes clear, consumerism is hardly the sin of the rich. The poor, driven by discontent and envy, may be as consumed by what they do not have as the rich are consumed by what they do have. The question is not, certainly not most importantly, a question about economics. It is first and foremost a cultural and moral problem requiring a cultural and moral remedy."</div>
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Capitalism is an economic and political ideology whereas consumerism is a personal and individual ideology. The former is focused on a free market whereas the latter is obsessed with the acquisition of goods in and of themselves. Blessed JP2 made the distinction that communism and consumerism are far extremes and both threaten human freedom. One denies the right to access of necessary goods, the other deifies materialism and promotes avarice, greed and envy. A free market system, on the other hand, treats human beings equally, not giving undo advantage to card carrying members of the communist party while penalizing those who express some political dissent.</div>
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What Pope Francis, Pope Benedict, Pope John Paul and Pope Leo and others have consistently been saying and teaching, however, is that the individual PERSON is a moral agent and he or she must answer to God for what they did or did not do to help their neighbor in need. The Gospel of Matthew ends by separating the sheep from goats based on what each individual DID or DID NOT do to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, shelter the homeless, care for the sick, etc. It is not a judgment of government policies or agencies but a personal judgment on each one of us. That being said, besides personal acts of Christian charity, it is logical and reasonable, prudent and necessary to pool resources and even for the state to help in cases where the most needy and most urgent cases are helped. Yet, no Pope ever promoted nor called for a welfare state that perpetually cares for the poor. The ultimate goal is to enable the poor to rise above poverty and reach a level of dignity commensurate with their human dignity. Access to necessary goods is a natural right. That does not mean, however, that the Natural Moral Law requires the poor to become enslaved to the state by permanently keeping them dependent. Rush calls Pope Francis a Socialist at best and a Communist at worst. Does this sound like a commie comment? "Welfare projects, which meet certain urgent needs, should be considered merely temporary responses." (#202)</div>
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Contrary to what many modern public school textbooks currently tell our children, capitalism was actually created during the high Middle Ages and as Michael Novak wrote in 2003, Catholicism is what created it. While feudalism sustained Christendom from the fall of the Roman Empire (476 AD) through the so-called Dark Ages, during the 12th to 14th centuries the middle class arose thanks to capitalism which eventually replaced feudalism. Mediaeval guilds and religious orders, such as the Cistercians, became contemporary entrepreneurs of their time. "They mastered rational cost accounting, plowed all profits back into new ventures, and moved capital around from one venue to another, cutting losses where necessary, and pursuing new opportunities when feasible. They dominated iron production in central France and wool production (for export) in England. They were cheerful and energetic. Being few in number, the Cistercians needed labor-saving devices. They were a great spur to technological development. Their monasteries 'were the most economically effective units that had ever existed in Europe, and perhaps in the world, before that time.'" (Novak)</div>
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Thomas Woods "How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization" (2005) has an entire chapter (8) entitled "the Church and Economics" where he, too, proposes that money was not an artificial product of government (crown or parliament) but a result of a voluntary process between merchants. Barter became more and more impractical when dealing with perishable items and dealing with transporting goods over long distances. Religious orders like the Cistercians devised accounting systems by which goods could be bought and sold between fellow monks and this was duplicated by lay merchants who participated in the process. While the secular states were governed by aristocracies and monarchies and while the Church herself is hierarchical, it is still Catholic doctrine that all men and women are created in the image of God and by baptism are considered children of God. That spiritual equality was translated into an economic equality which transcended the political. The emerging middle class came from the peasant class and they did so because their faith taught them they were equal in the eyes of God and therefore had equal opportunities to improve their material situation. Those who could not, like the destitute poor, the lame, widowed and orphaned, relied on the Christian charity of the nobility and the emerging middle class. It was the Church who literally created the colleges and universities, hospitals and orphanages and who ran the poor houses, soup kitchens, etc. The secular state (government) did not create these institutions, religious orders and dioceses did. Christian charity motivated those who had more to help those who has less.</div>
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When you read <i>Evangelium Gaudii</i> in its entirety, it continues the papal magisterium found in <i>Rerum Novarum, Quadragesimo Anno, Mater et Magistra, Gaudium et Spes, Centesimus Annus </i>and of course, the Catechism of Catholic Church. The very reason any nation has banking and finance laws is that human beings are not perfect. Original Sin affects everyone and some people, be they CEO's, CFO's, bankers, brokers, et al., sometimes make bad choices that produce bad effects and which cause great harm to many innocent people. I know of no conservative or liberal, republican, democrat, or libertarian who would advocate the repeal of laws barring insider trading. We needs laws to maintain some parameters on banks and stock brokers to protect people from abuse and exploitation. Republicans and democrats dispute the length, breadth and depth of such legal regulations but even a free market has some borders which cannot be ignored. Limited government is still very different from no government. Some, even if minimal, legislation is needed since not everyone acts prudently or fairly nor for pristine motives. That being said, it was totally unfair and inaccurate of Mr. Limbaugh to attack Pope Francis for addressing a letter as head of the Roman Catholic Church to his more than one billion members. The pontiff was merely reiterating consistent church teaching that supports a free market but which also reminds the moral obligation to act responsibly, honestly, and prudently. No one can command generosity but it is something which should be encouraged and promoted. Welfare dependency does not help the individual nor the nation. Some welfare is necessary for those who cannot be helped by private or non-profit charitable organizations. The goal always, though, is to help move those into economic independence and become self-sufficient. <i>Laborem Exercens</i> teaches us the sanctity of human work. The Catechism tells us that the Catholic Church always believes justice and solidarity are essential and necessary to human freedom. Justice is distributive, commutative and social. </div>
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Unfettered consumerism is not synonymous with capitalism. A free market system respects human freedom and autonomy. Consumerism is an abuse and an extreme. Communism wrongly treated human labor as a means of production for the state. Consumerism wrongly treats the product of human labor and of the free market as the final source of happiness and fulfillment. Things are helpful but in and of themselves do not produce enduring and lasting and true happiness. Material things make life easier and more comfortable and more convenient. Technology helps cure sickness and disease and help makes life less a burden. All Pope Francis was warning, however, is that the possession and acquisition of goods is not salvific nor do they bring lasting joy. Pleasure is temporary whereas joy can be eternal. The Pontiff was not forcing any nation or government to abandon capitalism nor was he advocating socialism let alone communism. He was, however, reminding Catholics all over the globe that we must buy and sell prudently and using our conscience. In that light, I see no reason for Mr. Limbaugh to take offense or issue with Pope Francis. I highly urge Rush to read Fr. Robert Sirico's <a href="http://www.defendingthefreemarket.com/" target="_blank">"Defending the Free Market"</a> and John Horvath's <a href="http://www.returntoorder.org/" target="_blank">"Return to Order"</a>. Horvath does a splendid job explaining the notion of <b style="font-style: italic;">frenetic intemperance </b>which is a cousin of <b style="font-style: italic;">unfettered consumerism </b>and Sirico precisely shows that freedom requires a free market while greed is no friend of capitalism, rather it flourishes under socialism.</div>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-20379901807659939072013-10-14T00:06:00.000-05:002013-10-14T08:11:34.698-05:00response to America article: CLERICALISM ???<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><i><a href="http://americamagazine.org/issue/lead-us-not-clericalism" target="_blank">"Lead Us Not into Clericalism" by Fr. Daniel Horan, OFM</a></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Father
Horan, OFM, is correct that clericalism is a vice, which ought to be repudiated
by every pope, bishop, priest, deacon and consecrated religious. Problem is
that it is unfair, unjust and inaccurate to portray clericalism as merely an
indulgence of conservatives or traditionalists. I have been ordained
twenty-five years and spent twelve years in seminary beforehand. Even went to
high school seminary (hence, I am called a 'lifer'). As a pastor of two
parishes for more than eleven years and a parochial vicar for fourteen years in
several assignments as a diocesan priest (secular clergy) and as president of a
national association of 500+ priests and deacons (Confraternity of Catholic
Clergy), my experience has been that all too often it is the so-called liberal
and progressive priests who behave and act in such a way as to personify clericalism.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Clericalism
is a mindset, an attitude, a perspective. It patronizes and denigrates those
who disagree and uses ad hominem attacks to belittle. When a priest speaks
disrespectfully to an elderly woman and embarrasses her publicly at Mass merely
because she exercises her legitimate option (as defined by Rome) to kneel or
genuflect at Communion time rather than just stand, that is clericalism. When
the faithful are denied their legitimate option to receive Holy Communion on
the tongue or confession behind a screen, that is clericalism. When women are
ridiculed and scoffed at by priests for wearing chapel veils, which is their
option, that is clericalism. When some of the faithful ask the pastor if the
Extraordinary Form could be celebrated in their parish and the priest goes
ballistic and insults them and calls them fanatical, schismatic rad-trads, that
is clericalism. When priests who wear roman vestments and lace albs instead of
burlap potato sacks and moo-moo albs are laughed at and slandered by gossip
among their brother diocesan clergy, that is clericalism.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Clericalism
is also nepotism. Not the kind where relatives are promoted but where
ideologues and those who are philosophically and theologically 'brothers' take
care of one another. When sycophants are rewarded with papal knighthood and are
made monsignors for being blindly loyal to their Ordinary, that is clericalism.
It is a cheap shot to attack a priest for his personal taste in vestments. What
really counts is whether or nor Father preaches and teaches orthodox Catholic
doctrine; does he celebrate a reverent Mass; is he living a chaste, honest, and
virtuous life on the altar and off? Wearing lace is NON-SEQUITUR. BEHAVING
properly is what matters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">During my
seminary career, I saw the effects of BAD THEOLOGY combined with BAD LITURGY.
Both supported one another like two deadly poisons. The two then produced an
even more diabolical by product, BAD MORALITY. Whether a priest likes the Latin
Mass or the Vernacular, Ordinary or Extraordinary, lace or plain albs, roman or
contemporary chasubles, et al., the crucial question is not does he wear a
cassock or does he allow others to call him by his first name (with no title)?
DE GUSTIBUS NON DISPUTANDUM EST, St. Thomas Aquinas said so well long ago. Real
clericalism is not about attire or language, birettas or baseball caps. It is
about sound doctrine, reverent worship and holy, virtuous living. I have seen
priests on both sides of the fence (conservative/liberal or
traditional/progressive) treat laity with disdain and contempt. It is not
an issue rooted in liturgical garb.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I have
seen or heard of priests and deacons ignored, ostracized, marginalized, passed
over for promotion, humiliated and publicly vilified merely because they were
considered 'too conservative' or 'too traditional' Sometimes they call us
"JP2 groupies" or "Benny worshippers" just because we do
not disobey papal authority or because we do not fit the mold of Charlie
Curran, Hans Kung or Richard McBrien. The faithful want clergy to treat them as
adults, not as ignorant children. Yet, often I get emails about pastors who
deny infallible doctrines in their homilies but when asked by a parishioner act
as if the layperson were in kindergarden. It is clericalism to disguise
heterodoxy and irreverence as valid options while simultaneously insulting and
disparaging a layperson's fondness for devotions or forcing parishioners to get
GPS in order to find the Tabernacle since they removed them from sanctuaries
and now hide them out of view lest any spontaneous latria might occur.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">What a
priest wears and how he is called is his personal preference, taste and
opinion. Options are just that, not meant to be mandatory nor prohibited. Yet,
wear purple or worse, black, vestments at a funeral, and some of the CLERGY
(not the laity) label you rad-trad, Lefebvre-ite, arch-conservative, et al.
What the people want are holy priests, virtuous and moral priests,
obedient and loyal priests. They also want priests who respect them and who do
not insult their intelligence. If a parishioner is Charismatic, in Cursillo or
a member of Opus Dei, my job as parish priest and pastor is to provide them
with valid sacraments, reverent worship, orthodox teaching with compassion and
mercy. Making fun of someone's Marian devotion is not catechesis, it is modern
clericalism. Chancery workers, ecclesiastical bureaucrats and other middle
management types who happen to also be ordained ministers, just treat your
brother clergy and the lay faithful with RESPECT. Keep an eye and ear on those
clergy who might be breaking their vows and possibly causing further scandal
instead of persecuting and demonizing your colleagues who have a legitimate
difference of opinion and who demonstrate a different style or taste. Remember,
Pope Benedict XVI said it best when he said Catholicism is the religion of
BOTH/AND not EITHER/OR. There is room for both Ordinary Form and
Extraordinary Form, Latin and Vernacular, <i>ad orientem</i> & <i>versus
populum</i>, Roman vestments and modern ones, lace albs and plain albs, etc.
Don't be hung up on externals, the People of God are NOT. No one is
bothered by my biretta but if I am not behaving or acting as a priest should
and ought to do, then the folks have every right to complain and seek a remedy.
Meanwhile, please do not impute motives or agendas onto Pope Francis. His style
and preference may not be identical to his immediate predecessor but both B16
and F1 are true shepherds and brothers in more ways than one. <b>Basta cosi</b>.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><i>N.B. I have been reminded by some of my deacon brothers that another form of clericalism is the insistence by some clergy, namely priests and bishops, that permanent deacons are somehow not clergy. Holy Orders confers one as a cleric (Canon 266). There is no such thing as a 'lay' deacon. That is an oxymoron. All deacons, priests and bishops are clergy. Some deacons are transitional, some permanent. Permanent deacons may be married but only prior to being ordained. That being said, it makes sense to have clergy wear clerical attire of some sort when doing ecclesiastical work or when engaged in the apostolate. Some deacons are accused of being clerical, however, simply because they want to witness to their vocation as ordained ministers. When working in their secular occupations or when off duty with their family and friends, it makes sense that these men dress appropriately but all the more so when they are doing the work of Church. The rare case of some permanent deacon mowing his lawn wearing a Roman Collar has been used ad nauseam to poo-pooh permanent deacons from wearing any sort of clerical attire for any reason. The abuse does not negate the proper use, however. When a prisoner or a hospital patient ask to see the chaplain, if they see a man in shirt and tie, they do not recognize an ordained cleric. Seeing a deacon in some form of collar, be it black or gray, assures them this man is a CATHOLIC CLERIC. And if the person requests confession or anointing, guess what? The deacon then calls for the priest. My priesthood is not threatened nor encroached by the diaconate. I have two wonderful permanent deacons in my parish and our Confraternity has many deacons as members, not to mention two Board Members. Clericalism tries to clericalize the laity and laicize the clergy. It is a caricature and a distortion of what should and ought to be.</i></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-17257279048974711262013-09-23T17:51:00.000-05:002013-09-24T00:28:46.921-05:00rebuttal to National Catholic ReporterNo wonder Fr. Zuhlsdorf calls it the National Catholic FISHWRAP<br />
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I consider myself in good company insofar as the <a href="http://ncronline.org/blogs/distinctly-catholic/wpfmts-spinning-pope" target="_blank">NCR DISTORTED</a> my comments just as it did Pope Francis.<br />
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First of all, it is not spin to clarify. The Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas Aquinas often said: <i>Concede parum, nega frequenter, distingue semper</i> (never affirm, seldom deny and always distinguish).<br />
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Secondly, I did not say we should use name calling as a tool of evangelization but Jesus Himself said whoever divorces and remarries commits adultery (Mt. 5:32) "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander." (Mt. 15:19) He did not mince words, nor did He use politically correct nomenclature. Adultery, fornication, sodomy, etc., are also sins St. Paul repudiates yet he also evangelized and spread the Gospel. Hence, using the proper terminology is more than being accurate, it is essential since sins like abortion are mortal and they kill the life of grace. Is the physician not committing malpractice if she calls a malignant tumor benign so as not to upset the patient? At the same time, I was not advocating using the terms 'fornicator' or 'adulterer' or 'abortionist' when reaching out to those are guilty of these immoral acts of evil. We call them as Pope Francis suggests our 'brothers and sisters' since none of us is without sin. However, the sin they commit is killing their soul. They need to know there is a spiritual cancer threatening their eternal life. Candy-coating the sin is prevaricating and is deceitful. Showing mercy and compassion to a sinner is Christian. Did Our Lord not tell the woman caught in adultery, 'go and sin no more?' He did not call her an adulteress but He certainly condemned adultery on more than one occasion.<br />
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I did not propose a Calvinist theology of grace. What I meant by cheapening grace is that you risk INGRATITUDE. I never said that grace was remote or limited. Grace and mercy are infinite and abundant. That is the message of Divine Mercy. What I am saying is that we cheapen grace when we trivialize it and take it for granted. While abundant, it is a GIFT it is not something we merit, deserve or can demand (that would be Pelagianism). I also wanted to make the point that grace comes to us primarily via the sacraments which are not just mere customs and rituals, but they are vehicles of Divine Mercy. Sacred encounters where heaven and earth unite and where the divine punctuates the human. Grace is God's gift to us and it is His sharing His holiness with us. We risk cheapening it, however, when we act like grace is something you get in a vending machine, ATM or drive-in window. Accessible, yes, but nevertheless still very precious and in need of appreciation. So, take my words in CONTEXT as you ought to the words of Pope Francis. Text out of context is a pretext. Sound bites may be what modern media feast on but in terms of revealed truths and the natural moral law, better we be accurate and sufficient in our content as well as our explanation.Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-47768276829328010062013-09-20T22:10:00.000-05:002013-09-20T22:10:18.268-05:00NY Times: WRONG AGAIN<br />
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<nyt_headline type=" " version="1.0"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/20/world/europe/pope-bluntly-faults-churchs-focus-on-gays-and-abortion.html?hp&_r=0" target="_blank">Pope Says Church Is ‘Obsessed’ With Gays, Abortion and Birth <span style="color: blue;">Contro</span><span style="color: blue;">l</span></a></nyt_headline></h2>
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Pope Francis is not downplaying pro-life and pro-family activism in the Church. His words in the secular media were, again, taken out of context. Father Levis, my mentor and co-host of the original Web of Faith on EWTN, often said "a text taken out of context is a pretext." This is precisely what the New York Times and others in the press have done. </div>
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In the actual interview, the CONTEXT of the Pope's words are: </div>
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<i>We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. This is not possible. I have not spoken much about these things, and I was reprimanded for that. But when we speak about these issues, we have to talk about them in a context. The teaching of the church, for that matter, is clear and I am a son of the church, but it is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time.</i></div>
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This is true and Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul the Great and even Pope Pius XII would have agreed. The whole deposit of faith is not limited to particular moral issues. Faith and morals encompass human sexuality and issues of human life, marriage and the family, but they also include the dogma of the Trinity, the Incarnation, the Real Presence, Papal Infallibility, the Immaculate Conception, et al. The Catechism covers all four pillars of faith: CREED (doctrine), SACRAMENTS (worship), COMMANDMENTS (morality), OUR FATHER (prayer)</div>
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Pope Francis did not discount the efforts of the pro-life, pro-family and pro-marriage movements and organizations. What he was saying was that the universal church has a three-fold mission or mandate: to TEACH the truth (Magisterium); to SANCTIFY the People of God (Sacred Liturgy); to SHEPHERD the sheep in love (Hierarchy). All three come from the one and same Jesus Christ Who founded Holy Mother Church. As Christ was Priest, Prophet and King, so His bride continues His work of sanctifying, teaching and governing. I did not read anywhere in the entire interview where the Pontiff was denying or diminishing the Church's three-fold munera. He was placing everything in CONTEXT, however.</div>
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Saving Souls is the supreme law of the Church. The last canon in the 1983 Code of Canon Law says so. Getting folks to heaven. One essential element is TEACHING and defending the revealed truths of doctrine. That is not enough, however. The rational intellect seeks the true and the free will seeks the good. Original Sin, however, has wounded human nature and that extends to the soul itself. Concupiscence is the darkening of the intellect, weakening of the will and disordering of the lower passions. Only divine grace can remedy that to enlighten the intellect and strengthen the will. Sacrament are necessary for salvation in addition to revealed truth. The formula is not complete, however, without the other component. Sheep need a shepherd. The People of God need leaders. Not overlords and masters, but pastoral leaders who govern with charity and love, compassion and mercy. </div>
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Salvation involves the intellect, the will and both body and soul. It is personal and it is communal. Baptism makes us a child of God and a member of the Church. The Church is necessary for salvation for she has been entrusted with the fullness of grace (all seven sacraments) and the fullness of truth (Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition). Pope Francis did not negate these realities in any way, shape or form.</div>
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When Jesus met the woman caught in adultery, He did not condemn her but He did save her, not just her physical life but He saved her immortal soul when He said "go, and sin no more." This is what Pope Francis is doing. Not throwing stones but showing mercy. Mercy is NOT cooperating with evil, formally or materially. Mercy is not being tolerant nor permissive of immorality. Mercy is being patient and forgiving with sinners who are in need of repentance and forgiveness. Like the father of the Prodigal son, the Holy Father is merely saying the Church, as a good mother, waits for her wayward children to come home. The father does not pursue the son and drag him home kicking and screaming. He does welcome him back after the son expresses his regret and asks forgiveness.</div>
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Pro-life supporters keep defending the innocent lives of the unborn. This must be done. All the Pope was asking is that we lovingly, mercifully and compassionately encourage those who have had abortions to REPENT and be RECONCILED with God. We can and must CONDEMN the sin without condemning the sinner. People are not evil but they can do evil deeds. Those deeds must be judged and evaluated against the natural moral law and the divine law of God as found in revealed truth. The persons who commit evil need prayer. They need love. Their evil actions are not who they are. They are children of God who have gone astray. They are prodigal children who need to come to their senses.</div>
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Pope Benedict XVI said so often and so aptly, Catholicism is not a religion of EITHER/OR, she is the religion of BOTH/AND. We can love the sinner and hate the sin. We can be pro-life, pro-marriage, pro-family and still show mercy and compassion to those who disagree and who even work against us. Defending the defenseless is not an option, it is a moral imperative. HOW it is done is just as important as DOING it.</div>
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If the late President Ronald Reagan were alive today and was about to address the Republican National Convention, would he spend time saying what is already known and presumed? Would he speak at length about the need for smaller government or lower taxes? Would he not spend more time on energizing the base and inviting more to the party without diluting or watering down core principles? Sometimes the obvious has to just be obvious and does not need the spotlight 24/7. The Catholic Church is 100% pro-life, pro-family and pro-traditional marriage. Her doctrines on faith and morals will not and cannot change. The entire package, the truth, the grace, and the HOPE that the Church provides is what Pope Francis is accentuating. He is not throwing the Church under the bus. He is not denying nor diluting the faith and he is not asking the faithful to stop working for justice, especially for the end of abortion and euthanasia. He is just reminding us of the WHOLE BIG PICTURE of Salvation. Preach the truth, make grace available and lead the people by good example. Unlike some who are trying to make Pope Francis a seamless garment pontiff, he already said not all church teachings are equivalent. There is a HIERARCHY of truth. The right to life is the most fundamental and foundational issue of our time. It is not the only issue for religious liberty is close behind. CONTEXT is crucial. Our faith is a tapestry of teachings, devotions, spiritualities, traditions, rituals, rites, etc. It is not an alphabet soup, however, where everything is chaotically mixed up. Saving souls is the bottom line and the more we save the more we please God. Sharing the truth is one step but there are more that are needed. We just need to follow the lead of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. She was unabashedly and unequivocally PRO-LIFE and PRO-FAMILY. She defended Humanae Vitae and she taught NFP. She saved babies from abortion but she also helped pregnant women, people suffering AIDS and all other kinds of diseases. She helped the poor wherever they were and she helped the those who were spiritually poor as well as those who were materially poor. All done in love, charity and mercy. What threat is that to the faith? Pope Francis did not give a carte blanche to commit fornication, adultery, homosexuality, abortion, euthanasia, et al. He is reaching out to the fornicators and adulterers as did Our Divine Lord and urge them to abandon their sins and follow the path of virtue. He reminds clergy (bishops especially) that ordination is not a career nor a job, it is a vocation and a mission. Teaching and defending the truth is one of our mandates but we are also ordained to offer sacrifice, to console, to counsel, to advise, to solace, to bless, to sanctify, to absolve and to lead. If these are done with mercy and compassion, they can be done without compromising the truth and without cheapening grace.</div>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-20184843062770054272013-09-13T12:47:00.003-05:002013-09-13T12:47:41.207-05:00CORPORAL WORK OF MERCY or Mission Impossible?My poor mother was diagnosed with shingles last night at the skilled nursing home where she is getting sub acute rehab for several weeks before going back to her apartment in assisted living. The Doctor who works at the nursing home told her last night after she cried hearing the news she has shingles, that she could take a week off from rehab to rest. She just spent 15 whole days in the hospital (five of which were due to insurance red tape) after having internal bleeding requiring a transfusion of two units of blood.<br />
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Today, the nurse said she could NOT rest and that she HAD to go to rehab despite the doctor's orders. That is because her insurance would not cover a brief break in rehab. The poor woman is EXHAUSTED. She can barely stand on her own. She needs therapy but she also needs rest to recuperate from the shingles. She has aortic stenosis and has a bad heart valve as well as having three blocked arteries. She is not eligible for open heart to have the necessary double by-pass surgery. Hence, she needs to beef up with therapy so as to get a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure in the near future.<br />
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MEDICARE refused to pay for her current skilled nursing rehab as she exhausted 100 days this past Spring in Erie (Feb-May). Medicare does not reset until 60 days passes without any skilled nursing or hospital stays. Medicare ended on May 20. I got a phone call while on pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina on May 19 telling me my mom would be discharged on May 20. I said I would not be back in the US until May 28. The nursing home kept her for a few extra weeks but charged my mom FULL COST (over $300/day)<br />
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After returning to the US, I had to find an Assisted Living facility as my mom was too weak to live alone but Medicare said she had to leave the skilled nursing facility.<br />
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June 12 I found and brought her to assisted living in Harrisburg. Just ten miles from my rectory.<br />
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Then, on July 22, mom suffers a mini-stroke (TIA) that lands her in hospital for ten days. A month later, she has internal bleeding and needs 2 pints of blood.<br />
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Medicare said that 60 days did not occur between her nursing care in Erie and her hospitalization for mini-stroke in Harrisburg. I count 62 days from when Medicare STOPPED PAYMENT and when the meter started running on my mom's checkbook to the day she had her TIA. Medicare counts the extra days after she was dropped by them as non eligible counting days. Therefore, they refuse to pay.<br />
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My mom is being PUNISHED for getting sick in less time than the government allows. Why penalize the sick and elderly? Why not penalize those who ABUSE the system and use food-stamps to buy cigarettes, booze, lobster and crab legs? If Medicare STOPS on May 20, then I count May 21-June 12 as much as I count June 13-July 21 in ascertaining 60 days before resetting. The government is saying NO. They refused to cover her for those days but they will not allow us to count them either. DOUBLE-JEOPARDY. This is a gross miscarriage of justice. A law abiding taxpayer is suffering legitimate ailments and she must pay out of pocket merely because a bureaucrat has a bizarre calendar.<br />
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Now, my mom who has nearly collapsed from exhaustion and almost is over the edge, is told she cannot rest even though the nursing home physician said she could lest her supplemental insurance refuse to pay the portion of the sub acute rehab. She is being charged $2,000 a month as it is PLUS she is paying $3,000 a month to keep her room at the assisted living center. She only gets $2,000 a month in social security and pension. Hence, my brother and I make up the difference as she has NO MORE ASSETS. Medicaid says she makes $20 more a month than is allowed to be covered by Medicaid. Medicare has draconian regulations that no one can understand. Meanwhile, my 79 year old mother is treated as if she were living in some socialist government where the state counts more than the citizen.<br />
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Caring for the poor is a corporal work of mercy but doctors, nurses, aides, and caretakers are restricted by regulations and bureaucracy that defy reason. Helping people get better and stay healthy would help the common good. The elderly and the infirm still have much to contribute to society in terms of their wisdom, experience and presence. They are one of our treasures just as are our youth and children. If we discard them or allow them to be ignored, abused and exploited, guess what? We are next. I am 51. Does not look as if things are getting better. Science and technology advance but medicine is less an art and more a business today. Health insurance companies are buying and owning hospitals. CONFLICT OF INTEREST !!! Number crunchers and bean counters, bureaucrats and managers reign supreme while doctors and nurses are controlled by arcane regulations.<br />
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I realize health care has a cost. It cannot be totally free. But <b><i>ACCESS</i></b> to medical treatment is a fundamental RIGHT of every human being. Access is denied when it is too expensive or when only the rich and only the poor are served while the middle-class SUFFER. Justice demands we do something to FIX things rather than allow the current crisis to worsen. Socializing medicine is not the answer. More bureaucracy and more regulations from state and federal authorities is not good medicine. INSURANCE COMPANIES have too much control. They determine what the doctor can do, what procedures and what equipment. That is not medicine, it is business. People are not a commodity. What we fail to resolve now will haunt us later and become a sheer nightmare.<br />
<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-84073065854876559892013-08-22T21:55:00.001-05:002013-08-22T21:55:08.604-05:00PRAYERS FOR MY MOTHER<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sorry for the lengthy hiatus from the blogosphere. My mother was in a skilled nursing center in Erie for five months getting rehab after a hospitalization shortly before her 79th birthday. While I was in southern Italy on pilgrimage, I was informed that Medicare had reached its magic 100th day and would no longer subsidize her care. When I got back to the States I had to secure a room for her in assisted living which you pay on your own as she was allegedly no longer eligible for skilled nursing. Driving 300+ miles (one way) from Harrisburg to Erie nearly got me killed last March 16th when I had a collision with a truck on I-80 that landed me in ICU. Hence, I found an assisted living center in Harrisburg, just ten miles from my rectory.<br />
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Unfortunately, my mom did not want to leave Erie where spent her entire life. She never lived anywhere else. She also buried three of her five children and then my dad just before their 40th anniversary. My sister died at the age of three days as an infant; my brother Michael died at the age of 26 from Muscular Dystrophy; my brother Joe was killed at the age of 33 by an underage drunk driver. My dad died six months after the accident after battling himself leukemia for four years.<br />
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Now there is only my youngest brother left alive who is in Erie and me who lives in Harrisburg. My mom had six siblings and only two are left. One lives in Florida and the other no longer drives.<br />
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Despite her misgivings, I got her moved in and I visit almost if not every day. My two deacons and their wives and several parishioners and friends visit her often as well.<br />
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She had major back surgery in Feb. 2012 to treat her spinal stenosis and then she was diagnosed with aortic stenosis a year later. She has three blocked arteries and needs a new heart valve.<br />
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Last month she suffered a mini-stroke that landed her in the hospital for ten days and this past Monday she was admitted to the Emergency Room for anemia and required a transfusion of two pints of blood.<br />
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My mom has endured MANY crosses and I ask your prayers that Our Lady of Sorrows strengthen her with God's grace and give her some consolation. Due to her ill health, she was unable to attend my 25th anniversary Mass in Harrisburg, so I had another Mass of Thanksgiving a month later in the chapel at the Catholic nursing home she was residing in at the time.<br />
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Once she gets better, we are hoping for a heart procedure to replace her defective valve and give her some improved blood flow from the heart so as to improve her quality of life.<br />
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She has done so much for so many, whether it was the nearly half a century work she performed as a registered nurse (most of which were as head nurse of the ER and Trauma Center) or her unofficial work as sacristan and Girl-Friday for the cloistered discalced Carmelite Nuns in Erie. She took care of a disabled son and husband plagued by cancer. <br />
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I love her dearly and wish I could do more to help. Just being by her hospital bed gives her some comfort although the pain is often intense from all her ailments and health complications. ANY and ALL prayers are much appreciated.<br />
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<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-31961710120023739212013-05-09T23:13:00.001-05:002013-05-09T23:22:07.225-05:00Silver Jubilee Mass (25th anniversary of ordination to priesthood) for Fr. John Trigilio, Jr., at Cathedral of Saint Patrick, Harrisburg<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-57580727907836747442013-04-23T12:01:00.002-05:002013-04-23T12:01:26.399-05:00The former Pope's master of ceremonies opens to the recognition of gay couples<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>Archbishop Piero Marini</i></div>
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Former papal master of ceremonies (Archbishop Piero Marini, NOT to be confuses with current MC Monsignor Guido Marini) made a bold statement in the press. <i>"It is necessary to recognize the union of persons of the same sex, because there are many couples that suffer because their civil rights aren’t recognized. What can’t be recognized is that this union is equivalent to marriage." </i></div>
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I respectfully but vigorously DISAGREE with his excellency. It is true that ALL human beings, regardless of their sexual orientation/inclination have by virtue of their HUMAN PERSONHOOD basic human rights. These rights come from their human nature and are not given or bestowed by any state or government. The right to life, the most basic and foundational of all, begins at the moment of conception. From that right comes our other human rights, such as the right to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, freedom to address wrongs, and the right to access of basic human necessities (food, clothing, shelter, employment, education, medical treatment).</div>
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All individual PERSONS have rights but not all ideologies, agendas, platforms, philosophies, policies, etc. have equal rights or equal veracity. Some are based on reality and truth, others are based on false, erroneous assumptions, wrong conclusions and distorted perspectives. A racist has human rights but racism has no rights whatsoever. No individual and no society is obliged to recognize let alone condone or tolerate ideologies which contradict truth, threaten the common good or violate the Natural Moral Law. Hence, an abortionist has human rights but abortion itself and the idea that abortion is a viable option enjoys no protection and has no right to be treated as equal with the position of the right to life of the unborn.</div>
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There are no black rights and white rights; men's rights and women's rights; gay rights and straight rights. There are just HUMAN RIGHTS. Marriage is a natural institution which existed BEFORE the church and before the state. It is the foundation and cornerstone of the FAMILY which is in turn the keystone of both church and state. Society and civilization depend on the family and de facto depend on marriage.</div>
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Recognizing civil unions is wrong not just for moral reasons but for metaphysical ones as well. If the secular legal authorities can recognize and treat as equal both traditional marriage and gay civil unions, then that same authority can and must by logic and reason recognize polygamous and incestuous unions as well. If the natural estate of marriage can be redefined and reinvented in one aspect (to move from the restriction of only opposite gender unions to include same gender unions), it opens the door and even mandates that the other restrictions be eliminated as well. So, from one man + one woman = marriage moves to include two men or two women, then there is nothing stopping multiple spouses so that it becomes one man + many wives or one woman and many husbands. It also means that the state cannot outlaw a brother from marrying his sister, a parent marrying their child, and so forth.</div>
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Then what about couples who live together who are not married? Why should they be penalized for not having a civil license? Why not have a license for concubinage and cohabitation? Don't couples who live and sleep together have rights? YES, as persons, they have rights but cohabitation and concubinage has no rights. Likewise, persons with a homosexual orientation or inclination has the same human rights as all human beings, but they do not have a right to reinvent marriage anymore than a polygamist does. </div>
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Rights are not the same as privileges, however. Married couples have certain privileges, as do parents, since society benefits and depends on marriage and the family. Individuals retain their inalienable rights but these two estates, marriage and family, must be protected and supported with some reasonable privileges and benefits to encourage individual persons to consider both.</div>
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No human being should ever be treated disrespectfully nor with hostility, ever. Unjust discrimination is a sin and is a crime because it is evil. At the same time, not all human activity or ideas are of equal value. Not all promote the common good and some, in fact, threaten it. If two unmarried heterosexual or two homosexuals persons live together, there is little the law can do and no one should threaten their lives or safety. They should be treated with respect but living in sin does not. Sex outside of marriage is fornication. It is immoral and sinful. Neither should society reward sinful behavior by granting privileges but treat them like all individuals. Two individuals living together are as much human as a married man living with his wife but the former is not a protected estate while the latter is. Human rights cannot be denied but not all human relationships or living arrangements have equal protection. We must separate PERSON from IDEOLOGY. That is not being mean, nasty, bigoted or prejudiced. It is being natural and traditional. What if a group of persons living in the same neighborhood just declared to everyone else: 'we are a separate state' or 'we are a separate nation.' Would the US government, the commonwealth (or state) or the world have to recognize it? Just saying something is does not make it so. Calling a relationship marriage does not make it a marriage. </div>
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"But they just want to be happy." or "they're good people." Both can be very true statements, but individual happiness and personal goodness do not define reality. We must conform to reality, reality does not conform to us (solipsism). It is like a man declaring he is now a woman. Biologically you are either male or female, but some in society want to allow people to redefine themselves, even their gender. I cannot change my human nature so that now I am an animal or a plant. We call some people vegetables but that is an oxymoron. Human beings are a physical body and an immaterial soul (which is a rational intellect united with a free will). We cannot remake ourselves into angels and angels cannot become men. Marriage cannot be reinvented or redefined, either. Society has a vested interest, not just the Church and religion, but the state and civil government as well, in protecting and promoting traditional marriage. Obviously, there will be people who freely choose to live together without being married. Some freely choose to have children outside of marriage as well. That is their choice but we must reward, defend, protect and promote traditional marriage and traditional family, not just as another option but as the norm and ideal. It will not be 100% but the common good warrants that we honor and cherish it as a goal to aspire and not just a simple choice. Children deserve to born and raised in a loving family where mom and dad are husband and wife so that BOTH genders positively influence and educate and form them. Exceptions should be just that, exceptions and not mere alternatives. </div>
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I think we can and must have a civil, polite, respectful and rational debate and discussion. Not a diatribe and nothing with anger, hostility or animosity. Those who disagree with us are not monsters nor are we. I just fear that compromise is not always the best solution. If we keep to the one basic truth that all human being have basic human rights, we can differentiate rights from privileges. Unfortunately, the pro-abortion supporters content they have reproductive rights. No, there are human rights, period, and the right to life is not subservient to any other right, privilege or alternate lifestyle. Likewise, marriage is a natural institution which is not open for redesign or being cloned.</div>
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-81704141942042238882013-04-18T22:45:00.000-05:002013-04-18T22:45:08.122-05:00Acts of Papal Kindness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Reports abound about Pope Francis performing small acts of kindness, whether to a Swiss Guard, a hotel clerk or a newspaper salesman. Saint Therese of the Little Flower said that "small acts of kindness, done well and done often, mean more to God than anything else." BOTH Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis are men who show kindness because they RESPECT others. When Father Brighenti and I presented a special hard-bound copy of John Paul II for Dummies to B16, he treated us with KINDNESS. That is the sign of a true gentleman and a real Christian. He opened the book and actually read a page before spending another five whole minutes conversing with us. He looked you in the eye and spoke to you with respect even though he was light years ahead of us intellectually and spiritually. Two simple diocesan priests having a conversation with the Supreme Roman Pontiff. He even remembered our first book (Catholicism for Dummies) which we sent him when he was still Cardinal Ratzinger. Pope Francis is likewise showing DELIBERATE (not random) acts of kindness. He treats people as PERSONS (as did B16 and JP2 before him). All too often, clergy, especially those who are prelates, ACT as if they are better than others and patronize and denigrate others, particularly their ecclesiastical subordinates. Rudeness is always a sign of insecurity. Graciousness, when genuine, comes from a loving heart. </div>
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All too often people misjudge others by how they dress, whether it is the clothing of a poor man or the traditional vestments of a priest. What matters is what is in the heart. I have seen and heard about too many who say they love the poor or say they love the Church and then treat people as though they were expendable and incidental. I personally met Pope B16 and he is a true gentleman, scholar and a very holy man, yet many attacked him for wearing old fashioned attire. His kindness to others transcended style as it always does in all holy people. True clericalism is when an ordained minister thinks he is better than others and expects preferential treatment. It has nothing to do with ones attire or personal taste. What I find most repugnant about real clericalism is when some clerics act as if they are above the laws of God and His Holy Church. I have seen many good, holy, talented, honest and hard-working priests get overlooked or persecuted for their loyalty to the Magisterium while other bureaucrats, politicians and sycophants get promoted and end up abusing their power. Papal honors, like knighthood and monsignors, are supposed to be given to priests who have gone over and above the normal duties and served selflessly. Often, that is the case, but sadly, there are other instances where old-style cronyism merely rewards buddies, placates the ambitious and promotes the incompetent so as to only have 'yes men' in the court.</div>
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One can show loving respect without the recipient allowing it to go to his head. I would never dare call my dad by his first name. Yet, I loved and respected him more than any other man I have ever had the privilege and honor to know. He always sat at the head of our table, whether in the kitchen or the dining room. He also was fair, just, patient, forgiving, merciful, honest and a very devout and staunch Catholic. THAT is what I want to be and what I think all clergy should emulate as spiritual fathers. We clergy are not better than the laity. I know of far more many laypersons who are much closer to sainthood than anyone else I know. The laity want to be treated with respect and so does the clergy. Kindness can be expressed by merely listening even if one disagrees. Kindness is showing civility and good manners at all times to all persons. Kindness is treating others with respect especially when you have authority over them. I found out very soon as a new pastor (11 years ago) that parishioners respect you respecting them. In other words, when making executive decisions, if done abruptly, with no explanation, they can be misinterpreted as clericalism. When people are treated as intelligent adults and given a rationale, they may not always agree but a majority will always appreciate and respect the authoritative decisions when implemented in such a way. What works in a parish, works in a diocese. Trouble begins when laity and clergy alike are treated like ignorant imbeciles who are not sophisticated enough to understand the wisdom of the shepherd. The church is hierarchical by divine choice and institution. Exercising authority with kindness and respect is the hallmark of a GREAT leader. Strength is not found in being rude or obnoxious. Real strength is being firm with compassion and being consistent with reason.</div>
<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-8708230065873172082013-04-13T12:53:00.002-05:002013-04-13T12:53:33.116-05:00Discrimination of Homosexuals or Difference of Opinion<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">April 13, 2013</span><br />
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Discriminating against homosexual persons</div>
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<map name="article_menu"></map><br />By <a href="http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott" style="color: #003c84;"><b>Matt C. Abbott</b></a><br /><br />In light of the recent story (<a href="http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/elderly-christian-florist-faces-thousands-in-fines-for-refusing-to-provide" style="color: #700070;">click here</a>) about a Christian florist who faces significant fines for refusing to provide flowers for a same-sex wedding, I asked Father John Trigilio Jr., author, theologian and president of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, to comment on the moral difference between unjust and just discrimination against homosexual persons.<br /><br />The <i>Catechism of the Catholic Church</i> teaches (no. 2358):<br /><ul>The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.</ul>
Father Trigilio's response is as follows (slightly edited):<br /><ul><i>Never deny, seldom affirm, always distinguish</i>. This mediaeval axiom was well known and employed by the Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas Aquinas. We need to use that same sound reasoning today. The natural moral law, as well as civil law (human positive law), makes a distinction in qualifying unjust discrimination from discrimination in general. Discriminate is defined in the dictionary as a verb from the Latin word <i>discriminare</i>, to differentiate; to make a distinction; to discern differences.<br /><br /><img border="0" height="184" src="http://www.renewamerica.com/images/columns/13/130413abbott.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 2px 14px 10px 0px;" width="120" />Unjust discrimination is the denial of fair treatment in a situation where a decision should be based on personal merit or need, or is a denial of a human right. Hence, as a consumer, I can go to any merchant of my choice and either pay the price they request, or I'm free to not buy from them. I discriminate between stores and merchants. It is neither unfair nor unjust to avoid certain stores since it is my right to shop where I want. I may like the prices or the location or the customer service of one store over another. That is making a discriminating choice. It is neither immoral nor unjust, and it is not illegal.<br /><br />When I'm in a store and choose to go to one sales clerk over another, it may be based on the number of people in the clerk's line, the clerk's efficiency or even just his or her smile or professional look. If someone avoids a clerk or store owner purely based on his or her race – <i>that</i>would be unjust discrimination. It is immoral and sinful. If, however, I refuse to patronize a store or business that supports abortion by contributing to Planned Parenthood, that is considered moral discrimination. I choose not to do business with someone who openly subsidizes or supports something evil or immoral.<br /><br />Marriage is a natural institution. It predates the church and the state. Neither one can redefine it. It is therefore not unjust discrimination to boycott or refuse commercial business in a situation that openly defies my moral and religious principles. Marriage is between one man and one woman. The florist, caterer, wedding coordinator and photographer have no moral obligation to participate in a ceremony or occasion that openly and publicly contradicts their religious and moral values.<br /><br />If a customer purchases flowers, it is irrelevant if he or she has a homosexual or heterosexual orientation. Providing flowers for a gay wedding, however, is a public statement. Likewise, a merchant would be in his or her right to refuse to be a part of a polygamous or incestuous marriage even if either were allowed by civil law. Morally speaking, the state cannot change the essence or substance of marriage and allow same-sex weddings any more than it can allow multiple spouses or a brother and sister or parent and child to marry. If any government would allow such, merchants would have the moral right to refuse service and thus avoid violating their conscience. Unjust discrimination is when a merchant refuses to do business with a customer because of his or her race, gender or religion.<br /><br />The context is as important as the subjects involved. There are neither homosexual nor heterosexual human beings. There are human beings. Human beings are persons and persons have human and civil rights. Some human beings have a homosexual orientation or inclination [due to the effects of original sin], while most human beings have a heterosexual orientation. Any and all sexual activity outside of marriage is immoral and sinful. Hence, fornication is the sin of unmarried people of any orientation having sex with each other. It used to be that hotel and motel owners could and were expected to refuse to rent a single room to an unmarried couple. They could not refuse a couple because they were African-American or Latino, but if the couple were not husband and wife, they were allowed to demand separate accommodations. That was ethical and permissible discrimination.<br /><br />The church has no authority to redefine matrimony or holy orders – or any sacrament, for that matter. It does discriminate by divine law that only one man and one woman may marry, and only baptized males can be ordained. In neither case is it unjust discrimination. Laity do not lose their religious liberty or freedom in the market place, either. Anyone opposed to same-sex marriages is not being unjust or immoral, for they are merely following their religious and moral conscience. Is not a dress code in a restaurant and other public places a form of discrimination? Yes, but it is fair and just.<br /><br />If the state does as it has in the past with legalizing abortion, there will be those who wish to do what the law allows. Any and all citizens are free to refuse to do what is legal if it simultaneously violates the natural moral law and/or the divine positive law of God. That elderly florist may be obliged to sell a bouquet of flowers to any customer, gay or straight, but she is not obliged to give public approval and support to gay weddings if it violates her moral and religious values/principles.<br /><br />What needs to be avoided are the hateful, nasty, and pejorative epithets on either side of the issue. Denial can be done with respect and discretion, and must be done with charity. Obviously, some businesses have no option. Medical treatment, food, clothing and shelter are basic human needs, and every human being, regardless of sexual orientation, must be given access to what is needed.<br /><br />We are not discussing pharmacies, hospitals and restaurants, but a purely discretional expense: flowers. Non-essential businesses have a right to abstain from certain transactions that would violate the moral and religious tenets of the owner. This can be done properly, politely and prudently.</ul>
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Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-70327474147100658722013-04-03T22:12:00.000-05:002013-04-03T22:12:04.019-05:00Back Off the Benny Bashing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Nothing more cowardly and unmanly than to make fun of an elderly man. Only someone who is insecure in their own masculinity has the audacity to launch verbal attacks on a true gentleman and scholar. It is pathetic when a person is reduced to making petty insults and puerile epithets just to mask their own theological inadequacies. Any moron can resort to ad hominem attacks but an intellectual person seeks and respects the truth. Sadly, a cardinal, a prince of the church, recently made schoolyard-bully insults via twitter the very day Pope Francis was elected:</div>
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<i><span style="color: red;">"So long, Papal ermine and fancy lace! Welcome, simple cassock, and hopefully, ordinary black shoes!"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: red;">"Moving from HIGH Church to LOW and humble Church! What a blessing that we are encountering Jesus without trappings!"</span></i></div>
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You do not have to be an astrophysicist to figure out who was being implied in His Eminence's remarks. Trashing a former pope while he is still alive (albeit abdicated) is not just bad manners, it is like dissing your elderly grandfather after he goes to the retirement home. Disrespectful and DISTASTEFUL. Shameful, not to mention embarrassing that the non-Catholic world has to see a Cardinal show such disdain for a Vicar of Christ and Successor of Saint Peter.</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">DE GUSTIBUS NON DISPUTANDUM EST</span></b>. Pope Francis has a different style than his predecessor. So did Pope Benedict XVI to a smaller degree. It is UNJUST and dare I say, it is SLANDEROUS to accuse, allege or imply that B16 was in any a proud pontiff. It took great humility to resign from the most powerful office on earth. Pope Benedict abdicated for the sake of the common good of Holy Mother Church. She needed a shepherd who was healthier and more vibrant. BOTH popes, however, are HUMBLE. Humility can be expressed in different ways.</div>
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Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Francis of Assisi are perfect examples. One was a brilliant theologian and intellectual giant while the other was a pioneering spiritual reformer. While there may be some friendly competition between the Dominicans and the Franciscans, neither Aquinas nor Francis were in any way, shape or form bitter rivals or enemies.</div>
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The secular press, however, and some in the Catholic media (and one notorious and infamous Cardinal) make it sound as if only Pope Francis showed humility. They imply and infer that Pope Benedict was a proud aristocratic who veiled himself with trappings of imperialism.</div>
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Pope Benedict merely showed the Church and the world that CATHOLIC means UNIVERSAL. Just as we have both an Eastern and Western (Latin) Church in Catholicism, we also have in the Roman Rite the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms. We have traditional and contemporary taste in ART, MUSIC and LITURGICAL ATTIRE. If Pope Benedict wore a lace alb it was merely a matter of personal TASTE, not a political statement. If someone is looking for hidden agendas and latent messages, I would not look at the old fashioned vestments, rather, peek into the moral activity of those who cast the first and largest stones. Before the sex scandals broke in the press, many a seminarian was persecuted for wearing a little lace in his alb or surplice while a classmate who frequented gay bars or who preached dissident theology in his homilies got sterling evaluations. </div>
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It is not the liturgical lace that church bureaucrats need worry about. Instead, they should be concerned about the women's lingerie some deviant clergy were wearing as has been reported in newspaper articles a few months ago. We do not need the Dark Ages of the Witch Hunt for conservative and traditional seminarians and priests as we had in the '60's, '70's and early '80's. Almost like Elizabethan England when finding a rosary got you drawn and quartered, many of us remember the intimidation, ridicule and often offensive persecution for practicing private devotions and personal piety.</div>
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Some people like formality not because they consider themselves better than others, rather, they want to HONOR someone or some event by making an extra effort to dress up. Casual has become the icon of our modern age. When I was growing up, everyone, be they poor, rich or middle-class, had 'church clothes' that you wore every Sunday. Jeans were for manual labor, not for office or school, nor dining in restaurants and NEVER in church. Wearing the proper wedding garment had nothing to do with the cost of it. Attention to small details is not always a sign of obsessive compulsive behavior. It can also be a sign of RESPECT. When good china and real silverware are brought out, along with the linen napkins and tablecloth, it is the OCCASION and/or the GUEST who is being honored. Paper plates and plasticware are inexpensive and convenient but they do not bespeak anything SPECIAL. Some people or some events are special. Some places are special (like Church).</div>
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Pope Benedict XVI had CLASS. He is a true gentleman and a man of polite manners. He would never make the disparaging remarks like the ones made by an American cardinal calumniously attacking him just for his choice (and it is an option) of liturgical attire. If more attention had been spent on cracking down on BAD THEOLOGY (dissent) and BAD MORALITY (sexual misconduct) as well as BAD LITURGY (rubrical abuses), many scandals could have been avoided and prevented.</div>
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I am sick of those who keep trashing and bashing B16 as if he were some snobby Czar or glib monarch who dines on caviar while the poor masses eat stale bread. What Pope Benedict did was to show us that SACRED WORSHIP (Divine Liturgy) is about God and it comes from God. Man did not invent divine worship. God created and ordained HOW and WHERE He was to be adored and worshipped as we see Moses being told by God to tell Pharaoh, 'let my people go so that they may worship me in the wilderness.'</div>
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It was JUDAS who reprimanded the woman that anointed the feet of Jesus with expensive aromatic nard. Christ did not stop nor did He chastise her. He instead thanked and blessed her. Cain made a sloppy second, convenient sacrifice whereas his brother Abel offered the best sheep of the flock. Whose offering was accepted and whose was rejected?</div>
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Blessed Teresa of Calcutta INSISTED that silver or gold vessels be used at Mass in all her chapels where the Missionaries of Charity worshipped God around the world. She said the worship of God deserved only the best and the poor should not be deprived of offering the best to God merely because they themselves cannot afford it.</div>
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I find it is clerical men who are more like girly-men and nancy-boys (i.e., those insecure in their own masculinity) and who launch vicious attacks on their peers and colleagues for wearing more elaborate, formal and more traditional vestments. Real men do not bully the perceived 'nerds' or 'geeks' who dress less casually than the jocks. Real men are secure in manly VIRTUES and have no need for histrionics and melodrama. HUMILITY is not what you wear, but how you ACT and how you TREAT others. One can be CHEAP and have nothing to do with saving money. Being CHEAP is not about spending less, rather, it is about being too lazy or too conceited to do what might be inconvenient but what is expected by convention to show RESPECT and APPRECIATION to someone else. Cheap Catholicism is like cheap grace; neither is efficacious. REVERENCE is not a matter of price-tag but it is a matter of deliberate effort to show respect.</div>
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Pope Francis is entitled to his personal taste, opinion and prudential judgments. We are not in any position to render any comment as he is the supreme shepherd of the universal church. That being said, those of us who APPRECIATE and LIKE the former style of Pope Benedict are FREE to continue his example just as those who wish to imitate and emulate Pope Francis, Pope John Paul II, Pope Paul VI or even Pope Pius XII. In matters of faith (doctrine) and morals, we must all be on the same page with the Vicar of Christ. In matters of taste (DE GUSTIBUS) there is no argument or debate (NON DISPUTANDUM EST). When will some people finally figure that out?</div>
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<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-25177561186270384762013-03-27T15:44:00.001-05:002013-03-27T15:44:16.342-05:00Equality of Human Nature is NOT Absolute Equality<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Marriage is not an issue of equality. The Church and State (civil government) have the right and the obligation to protect and support both marriage and the family. Both depend on each other and both serve the common good of the Church and the State. Society is best served by marriage and family.<br />
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Equality is not absolute. While we are all equal in the eyes of God regardless of our age, gender, intelligence, economic status, etc., we are not all the same in terms of the gifts, talents, blessings, experiences, etc., that we have been given. Saint Augustine taught that EVERYONE (all men & women) are given SUFFICIENT GRACE to be saved, but it only becomes EFFICACIOUS to those who ACCEPT and COOPERATE with it. Human nature (body & soul; rational intellect & free will) is the same for everyone. All human beings enjoy the right to life and the right to access to necessary goods. We are endowed by our Creator inalienable rights, like the Right to Religious Liberty (Freedom of Religion) and the Right to Free Speech, Freedom of Assembly, Freedom to Defend oneself, one's family & possessions, and one's country.<br />
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If marriage is redefined and reinterpreted to allow same-sex unions to become recognized as marriages, it is not a matter of civil or human rights. Marriage is a special bond between one man and one woman. As a sacrament, it requires that both bride and groom intend to enter a FAITHFUL, PERMANENT and God-Willing FRUITFUL union. Since we live in a pluralistic society where no one religion has governmental priority, many claim that civil marriages should in no way be influence by Judaeo-Christian values and beliefs. Unfortunately, this is not true. Pagan Greece and Rome, Egypt and all ancient and modern cultures and civilizations realized the importance and the necessity of preserving marriage. While polygamy had been tolerated long, long ago, it soon was abandoned and condemned as being detrimental to the family. One man and one woman covenanted for life.<br />
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If same-sex marriages are universally allowed across America and across the world, then the family will be at higher risk of disintegration. If two men or two women are allowed to marry each other, there is no legal or logical rationale to prevent multiple spouses (polygamous marriages) or even incestuous unions from occurring. For if the natural law no longer applies that marriage is between one man and one woman, then it must be open to several men and/or several women and of any age as well. Why restrict marriage between adults if the requirement of opposite gender no longer applies? What about consanguinity? What is there to stop or prevent someone from marrying a sibling, first cousin or even parent-child relationship? If the natural law is not respected in one area and dimension, it can redefine and recreate a new reality not confined by tradition or reason.<br />
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To deny polygamous or incestuous marriages violates no rights and neither does the restriction of same-sex marriages. Morally and spiritually speaking, the Catechism makes the distinction that same sex orientation/inclination is disordered but only sex activity outside of marriage is sinful and immoral. Sadly, many heterosexual couples co-habitate and live in sinful concubinage. There are others who are civilly married but not validly in the sacrament of Matrimony due to prior bond or some other significant impediment. That these relationships exist does not justify them. Discrimination is when people are mistreated and denied basic human rights. Not everyone is meant to be married but everyone has a right to live, a right to self-preservation, a right to access to food, clothing, shelter, employment and education. Marriage is natural estate upon which the family is built. Like the Church and the State, the Family is built on individuals and on the holy estate of marriage.<br />
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Tax exemptions, insurance benefits, etc., are prudential judgments which can be discussed and debated as to whether or not they apply to traditional marriages and families only or if they can be extended or amended for same-sex relationships. The institution itself, however, of MARRIAGE, is not a man-made entity. Even the Church and the State cannot redefine or recreate it.<br />
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Why is there even such a thing as a marriage LICENSE? Like a driver's license, it is not automatically given to anyone and everyone. One must request it and one must present documentation showing their eligibility. That means the Church and the State have the authority to govern and administer this vital estate for the common good of society at large and for the common good. Likewise, there are licenses for physicians, ministers, et al. Some authority must oversee and evaluate the candidates and judge their suitability and then authorize them. The same applies for marriage. Meanwhile, there is no reason and no room for nasty epithets, insults, or hateful remarks on either side of the public debate. Vilifying those who uphold and defend traditional marriage as if they were bigots is not justified. Privileges are not the same as rights. Every human being enjoys human rights by virtue of their human nature, from the unborn in the womb to the sick and dying. Privileges, like marriage, however, are under the care and protection of Church and State for the sake of the common good.<br />
Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36562133.post-22063365125396533422013-03-24T17:55:00.000-05:002013-03-24T17:55:13.578-05:00Francis & Benedict / Francis & Dominic: great combos<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Black Birettahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08758160681203816829noreply@blogger.com1