ad multos annos

Most Rev. Joseph P. McFadden

10th Bishop of Harrisburg

Yesterday, I attended the installation Mass of my new Bishop. It was a magnificent Mass, reverent, elegant and very Catholic. The sanctuary was completely full of bishops and eparchs from the Latin and Eastern Catholic churches. HUNDREDS of priests from the Diocese of Harrisburg and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia filled half the pews with another large showing of Deacons and consecrated religious. The other half of the cathedral held the family, friends and lay faithful. The sublime sacred liturgy was followed by a formal and exquisite supper at the Radisson Hotel. I saw several friends from the Archdiocese as well as newly consecrated Bishop David O'Connell, Coadjutor of Trenton, NJ, and seminary schoolmate Bishop William Skurla, Eparch of Passaic, NJ.

My mom watched the Mass on EWTN but had to spend part of the day at the doctor's office. She still needs your prayers for her heart and for her diabetes as both are serious conditions for her in addition to her chronic back pain.

Here is the Bishop's homily from his installation:

Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever! It is with these words that I
greet you as the new Bishop of the Diocese of Harrisburg and ask that you
pray for me that all that I do may be pleasing to the Lord and always be
directed as a work of praise to the Lord Jesus Christ.


I am deeply grateful to our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI for his
confidence in appointing me as the tenth Bishop of Harrisburg. I have
assured him of my gratitude and promised him my loyalty, my prayers and
my support as he continues his work of leading the Church as the Vicar of
Christ.


I say a special word of thanks today to Archbishop Sambi, the Papal
Nuncio to the United States, who is the representative of the Holy Father
and who honors us with his presence here this afternoon. Archbishop, I
thank you for the support you have given to me and continue to give to all
the Bishops of the United States and I am especially grateful that you have
taken the time to be with me and the Church in Harrisburg this afternoon. I
assure you that the people of Harrisburg will keep you in our prayers as you
continue the important work of representing the Holy Father in the United
States.


I thank in a special way today Cardinal Rigali, the Metropolitan
Archbishop of Philadelphia who ordained me a Bishop, is presiding at this
installation ceremony and who I have been privileged to work with for the
past 6 years as his Auxiliary Bishop. Your Eminence you have been a
wonderful mentor and friend and have modeled what it means to be a good
shepherd for one’s flock. I am eternally grateful for all of your support
through the years and I look forward to working closely with you as my
Metropolitan Archbishop.


I am truly humbled by the presence of Cardinals Foley and Keeler, the
other Archbishops and Bishops who have come to join in this celebration and
all of the priests, deacons, consecrated men and women religious, family
and friends and wonderful people of the Diocese of Harrisburg who are with
us for this important moment in the life of the Church in Harrisburg.
I am privileged to celebrate this first Eucharist in this beautiful Cathedral
of St. Patrick and to share with you some thoughts on the word of God that
has been proclaimed in this liturgy. As you know the Eucharist is the center
point of our Catholic faith. Our late Holy Father Pope John Paul II in the last
letter that he wrote to the Church before he died entitled “Ecclesia de
Eucharistia” reminded us that we are the Church of the Eucharist. It is in the
Eucharist that we find our identity and our destiny. Our identity is the
privilege of being sons and daughters of God. It is in the Eucharist that Jesus
feeds us with His body and Blood so that He may live in us and we may live
in Him and truly be God’s people.


Our Holy Father pointed out that in the Eucharist all of space and time
are brought together. In the Eucharist we are transported back to that
moment in time when Jesus offered Himself on the cross for our sins and the
sins of the whole world. When we assist at the Eucharist we have the great
privilege of attaching ourselves to this unique sacrifice in such a way that we
now become part of the only acceptable sacrifice to God our Father and thus
are opened to communion and participation in the very life of God. In the
Eucharist Jesus continues to give us a share in His divine life so that we have
an eternal destiny and an eternal future. In feeding us with His body and
blood we are given the grace necessary to live the Christian life as God
intends.


I point this out this afternoon because I believe one of the challenges
that I must confront as a Bishop in the Church today is the diminished
appreciation of Catholics for the importance of the Sunday Eucharist in their
lives. St. John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests, often remarked to
his people in Ars that if we truly understood the Eucharist and the great gift
that God was offering us we would not only seek it once a week but would
long for it constantly.


It is in the Eucharist that we see the fulfillment of the promise Jesus
made to His disciples when He ascended to the Father and assured them
that He would be with them and with His Church until the end of time. It is
important for all of us to understand that we do not have a God who is far
distant from us but one who is very close to us and who desires to live in us.
In doing so He calls us to help Him to build His kingdom. This is really the
task and work of the Church in Harrisburg. God calls us to be His people
here in this place at this time and this moment in history.


He asks us to not be afraid to live our lives based on the gospel values
that Jesus teaches us. So often in the Scripture Jesus says to the disciples
and to you and me today “Do not be afraid”. This is the message that I bring
as your new shepherd. Let us not be afraid to share our faith in the Lord
Jesus with all of the people of the 15 counties of the Diocese of Harrisburg.
Like St. Paul in his admonition to St. Timothy in our second reading for
today’s liturgy I ask that all of us stir into flame the gift God bestowed upon
us in our baptism. It is the gift of the Holy Spirit that dwells in the hearts of
all believers allowing us to truly be God’s people. Paul points out that this
spirit is not a cowardly spirit but rather one that makes us strong, loving and
wise.


He also encourages us to be willing to bear our fair share of the
hardships that come with living out the gospel. This is often a difficult
message for us to hear and to understand because being a disciple of Jesus
does entail a willingness to take up our cross and follow Him. This does not
mean that we run around looking for hardships or crosses to bear. If we
truly live the gospel we will find more than enough to keep us occupied.
We are living in a culture that often rejects the fact that there is a God
who created us and who has established in His creation certain truths that
do not depend upon the will or the whim of the created. If we live by these
truths we will find opposition but we cannot deny these truths. One of these
is the right to life. We are a people who proclaim that God is the author of all
life human and divine. We must be a people that respect human life from the
moment of conception until natural death. We must not be timid about this
truth and we must do all in our power to help our brothers and sisters in the
world to grow in their appreciation of this truth.


We also live in a time when society would like to redefine the concept of
family and of the institution of marriage that finds its origin in God and was
established by God. It is God who willed that we be created male and female
and that the two should become one flesh. In doing so He established a set
purpose for our sexual faculties which are ordered to the intimate sharing of
our very being with the other opening to a participation in the creative
power of God in bringing about new life. To proclaim this truth today
requires courage and strength. In doing so we face the potential for rejection
just as the Lord Jesus encountered rejection in proclaiming the truth.
We must also be willing to follow the Lord in making reparation to God
for our own sins and the sins of others. We can do this through our prayers
and our good works. It is also important for us to recapture our appreciation
for the wonderful sacrament of reconciliation. This sacrament that has fallen
into disuse by so many of our people is a tragedy that needs to be corrected.
In the sacrament of reconciliation our God desires to draw us away from the
evil that is so detrimental to us and to restore us to the goodness that He
has placed within each of us. In this sacrament we must realize that the Lord
says to us what he said to the woman caught in adultery and was about to
be put to death. After writing in the sand it was only she and the Lord. The
Lord asked “is there no one here to condemn you”. She answered, “Only you
Lord”. Jesus said “I do not condemn you but go and sin no more”. What
wonderful words to hear. I do not condemn you but go and sin no more.
Why would we not want to hear these words for ourselves in the sacrament
of reconciliation? It is also important to understand that during our earthly
life Jesus is always our merciful savior generously offering his forgiveness
unconditionally for those who will acknowledge their sins. At the end of our
life when we pass through the doorway of death Jesus must become the just
judge when He must be true to Himself and meet out justice. It behooves us
to claim His mercy now especially by frequent use of the sacrament of
reconciliation.


While we are speaking about sins and the mercy of God I do want to
address for a moment the terrible sin of clergy sexual abuse that has
occurred in the Church in recent years. To those who are victims especially
here in Harrisburg I express my deepest sympathy for what you have
endured. In the name of the Church I apologize for this terrible injustice that
was committed against you. The way that it was dealt with in the Church
was wrong and we are sorry. I assure you, the victims, that you have my
deepest love and concern and I will do all in my power to see that no such
tragedy occurs again in the Church. I do have an image that I want to
convey to you and it is the image of the Sorrowful Mother Mary holding her
battered and beaten Son after the terrible crucifixion that he underwent at
the hands of ruthless people. Though He was innocent He was defiled. Please
know I desire to hold you as Mary held her innocent son. I pray that in time
you will experience the Resurrection in your own life and that your wounds
will be healed.


In this liturgy we are using the Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Image
and Mother of the Church. It is especially appropriate that during this Marian
Year in the Diocese that we should contemplate and look to Mary as the
model for our life and as the loving Mother that will journey with us as she
journeyed with her Son, Jesus throughout His life. As we heard in the Gospel
for this Mass it was Jesus who gave Mary to us as our mother. She is the
one who brought Jesus to the world and she is the one who continues to
direct us to her Son. She is a great intercessor for us and throughout the
course of my life I have been the beneficiary of her intercession and her help
more times than I can possibly count.


We also know that Mary is honored under the title of Our Lady of Hope.
She teaches us that we must always be a people of hope and always trust
that our loving God will sustain and accomplish His work in us if we will only
remain faithful to Him and to His promises. It is my prayer that we the
people of the Church in Harrisburg will always be a people full of hope. We
live in a world today where there are many individuals who have lost hope.
We know this because we see in the media stories of suicides, violence, drug
and alcohol abuse and so many other stories that can drain us of our zest for
life. There are many in our own area that suffer as a result of the economic
downturn and can despair that things will ever turn around or get better. I
want you to know that we are not abandoned or alone. The Lord is with us.
He will accomplish great things in us if we allow Him to work in and through
us. Let us be a sign of hope for all the people who live within the confines of
the Diocese of Harrisburg. May they see in us a bright light shining in the
darkness that will lead them as Mary did to the God who never fails us.
Finally my good people in the Diocese of Harrisburg, I ask you to pray for
me that I may be a good shepherd after the heart of Jesus. Pray that
together we may be good builders of the Kingdom of God here in Harrisburg.
Pray that we will have the courage to invite others to embrace our faith in
Jesus. Pray that I may be able to encourage those who have grown lax in
their faith to rediscover the great gift that God has given to us in His Son
Jesus and the great treasure that He has left us in the Eucharist. It is my
prayer that all of us will look to Mary as the model for our life and that Jesus
will always be at the center of all that we say and do.

God Grant Him Many Years

Bishop David O'Connell, CM, JCD, DD

Friday, His Excellency, Bishop David O'Connell was consecrated Coadjutor Bishop of Trenton, NJ.  Unfortunately, prior parish commitments prevented me from attending the ordination, but I watched the televised rebroadcast on EWTN that same evening. I have been blessed to have personally known a few priests of my generation who have been elevated to the episcopacy, both the Latin and Byzantine Churches. Like my former bishop, the Most Rev. Kevin Rhoades (now bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend), Dave O'Connell, was someone I always knew would be become a successor of the apostles. As a priest and seminary professor, he was (and still remains) totally and completely orthodox in his doctrine and a man of devout prayer. Never a fudd-duddy, Bishop O'Connell has a healthy, robust and infectious sense of humor while at the same time possessing a profound loyalty, reverence and sacerdotal piety. His love for Holy Mother Church and for the Blessed Virgin Mary made him one of my favorite profs. I was honored that he preached my first Mass at my diaconal parish, St. Gregory the Great, Lebanon, PA, on May 22, 1988, the feast and solemnity of Pentecost.

O'Connell's appointment by the Holy Father and his recommendation by Archbishop Pietro Sambi are not just evidence of their confidence in his abilities, they are also a sign to us priests and to all the faithful that the Pope and his Nuncio take seriously the selection of diocesan shepherd. While he has had an extended career in Catholic education (seminary and university alike), he has also served in diocesan tribunals and in parish ministry as well. A staunch defender of EX CORDE ECCLESIAE, Bishop O'Connell also restored a distinct Catholic identity to CUA during his presidency. One can see that this was no political appointment. This was truly a pastoral decision. A canon lawyer, an educator, an administrator and certainly a TEACHER, Dave O'Connell is, was, and always will be a GOOD and HOLY PRIEST. That is the caliber of episcopacy that will enable the USA and the world to not just survive the scandals of the proximate past, but will also empower the church to become stronger and more vibrant in the years to come. No one could ever accuse this man of being a 'bureaucrat' and never a 'sycophant'.  Whatever his assignments, he served with honor and integrity. I hope and pray that one day Bishop O'Connell will also be Cardinal O'Connell because the universal church could use his talents and gifts at future conclave. The priests and people of Trenton are truly blessed and I wish him God's choicest blessing.

AD MULTOS ANNOS

TU ES SACERDOS MAGNUS

Prayer Request

Sorry for the brief hiatus from the blogoshere. I was in Erie all last week to visit my mom and to preach the Days of Prayer Novena for the discalced Carmelite nuns (also in Erie). My mom was admitted to the hospital yesterday to have an EKG. She had an MRI and CAT scan last month which came back negative for stroke (Deo gratias). However, she has been having dizzy spells and has fallen several times. Her doctors suspect that is is her meds for blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes and glaucoma. All this week she has been fatigued, so the ECG was done to see if she has a heart murmur.

Needless to say, I appreciate any and all prayers for my mother. She buried three of her five children and then her loving husband of 39 years. Then four of her six siblings died in just a sequence of several months.

Being the head nurse of the Trauma Center / Emergency Room for more than 40 years did large damage to her spine, so she is also on cortisone shots to help alleviate some of the chronic pain she experiences in addition to her other ailments. While home last week, she fell at the Novena and hit her head.  I am stationed more than 300 miles away in another diocese.

I visited Father Bob Levis (who also lives in Erie).  He is in a nursing home. Needs a walker to get around since his nasty fall at Christmas time which gave him a cuncushion.  Since then, he fell a few more times. Fr. Bob turned 89 this summer and is still very much alive but has been grounded for health reasons. Hence, you won't see him on EWTN as much or at conferecences, workshops or conventions but know he is still very much among the living but in need of your prayers. He has never been so confined and constrained from getting around. He has been independent 88 years and now he needs assisted living.

Thank you and God bless you and Mary keep you

Father John Trigilio

Priests must not use vocation as social stepping stone, cautions Benedict XVI :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Priests must not use vocation as social stepping stone, cautions Benedict XVI :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Vatican City, Jun 21, 2010 / 12:59 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- During Pope Benedict's homily for the ordination of 14 priests on Sunday for the Diocese of Rome, he emphasized that the vocation of the priesthood, must not be viewed as a way to achieve social status in life, but rather as a way to “rediscover the ever-new face” of Christ.


In his homily for the ordination, which took place Sunday morning in St. Peter's Basilica, the Holy Father cautioned that the priesthood “must never represent a way to achieve security in life or to attain social position”

“Anyone who aspires to the priesthood in order to increase his personal prestige and power has radically misunderstood the significance of this ministry,” explained the Pope.

He noted that if a priest's main goal is to “achieve success,” he will say “what people want to hear” and “adapt to changing fashions and opinions.”

“In this way, he will deprive himself of the vital relationship with truth, reducing himself to condemning tomorrow what he praises today,” Benedict XVI warned.

"A priest who sees his ministry in these terms,” he continued, “does not truly love God and neighbor, he loves only himself and, paradoxically, ends up by losing himself.” The vocation of the priesthood “is founded on the courage to say yes to another will, with the daily-growing awareness that” by “conforming ourselves to the will of God ... we increasingly enter into the truth of our being and our ministry.”

Pope Benedict also encouraged the priests to “rediscover the ever-new face” of Christ through prayer.

“Only one who has an intimate relationship with the Lord can be seized by Him, can bring Him to others, can become His envoy. This involves a kind of 'remaining with Him' which must always accompany, and be the core of, priestly ministry, also and above all during moments of difficulty when it seems that 'the things to be done' must take priority.

“Wherever we are, whatever we do, we must always 'remain with Him'."

The Pontiff drew his homily to a close by asking God to give the priests the grace “to be able to live this ministry coherently and generously, everyday."

Copyright © CNA (http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/)

Cardinal Bertone says mission of priest is to 'bring Heaven down to Earth' :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Cardinal Bertone says mission of priest is to 'bring Heaven down to Earth' :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Vatican City, Jul 7, 2010 / 08:32 pm (CNA).- Celebrating the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood at a recent Mass in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, said the mission of the priest is “to bring heaven down to earth, to bring about the communion of all men and women with God.”


During his homily at the July 6 Mass in Rome, the cardinal explained that the mission of the priest “consists in giving hope to people, in proclaiming that God is good, in alleviating the sorrows of the afflicted, in bringing the meaning of heaven to those who overwhelmed by the tribulations of this earth.”

“As a priest and bishop many times I have experienced the beauty and strength of the Gospel of Jesus, which is truly capable of changing the lives of people,” Cardinal Bertone noted. “In order to understand the live of a priest, one doesn’t necessarily need to ask what a priest does, but rather who a priest is.”

A priest, explained the prelate, “is someone in love with Jesus Christ, his friend.”

“I have also increasingly experienced in these 50 years that the priesthood is an intimate relationship of friendship with Jesus,” he added. “This divine presence has accompanied me and protected me always.”

The cardinal then pointed to Pope Benedict XVI as a “luminous example” of the priesthood and someone who calls on priests to deepen their friendship with Jesus and exhorts them that “ecclesial communion is the basis for an incisive evangelical testimony.”

“When I think of the Church,” he continued, “I think if the faces and names of so many people I have met, appreciated and have strengthened me to serve with my priesthood: beloved priests and so many exemplary priests, faithful religious, generous and strong laypeople, families united together who bear witness to love, young people and the elderly, the humble and the powerful of the earth, men and women in Italy and in the entire continent, happy to have chose Christ and his Gospel.”

Concluding his homily, Cardinal Bertone said, “When I was ordained a priest 50 years ago, as every Salesian of Don Bosco, I was ready to begin the mission amidst young people. This indeed happened, but in a context full of ecclesial spirit: the Pontifical Salesian University, where I passionately devoted my energies.”

“Later came other responsibilities which made me love the particular churches to which I was sent, and with them, the universal Church even more.”

Copyright © CNA (http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/)

Departing Catholic University president turned school around but sowed divisions, some say

Departing Catholic University president turned school around but sowed divisions, some say

The Washington Post (like their northern cousin, the NYT) likes to make ad hominem and non sequitur arguments. Since many schools no longer teach Aristotlean Logic, it is no wonder that more readers don't rebuke the paper for making these fallacies.

Bishop Elect David O'Connell, CM, is a friend of mine and my former canon law professor. He was the best thing Catholic University ever had. As President of the college, he restored Catholicism to its rightful place of honor. He is 100% orthodox and expected the same from his department of theology. He required the mandatum and had professors take the oath of fidelity. The fact that he was not popular to EVERYONE is a good sign since only a sychophant tells everybody what they want to hear. Dave O'Connell told people what they NEEDED to hear. Under his adminstration, a huge increase of vocations to the priesthood and religious life came about after graduation. During his tenure, Eucharistic Holy Hours were held on campus and students actually attended them, willingly and often. He made a few enemies and some opponents but they were the ones who espouse heterodoxy, dissent and contrary moral behavior. The Diocese of Trenton is BLESSED to have him as their coadjutor. And there is also the pastoral, priestly side of Bishop-Elect O'Connell, as well. He was, is, and always will be first and foremost a PRIEST. Administrator, Scholar, Teacher, Co-worker, Leader, Friend ... but most of all, an ordained priest and soon to be Bishop. He will shepherd the Diocese like he did CUA. With TRUTH and CHARITY. ad multos annos. ecce sacerdos magnus.

New Yorks Times and All the News That's UNFIT to Print

The infamous New York Times launched a scud missile at Pope Benedict XVI. In an article replete with ad hominem and non sequitur fallacious arguments, the bible of the secular press engaged in nothing less than a total character assassination of one man. The heinous evil of sexually abusing children repulses every decent human being regardless of their religious, political or economic affiliation or situation. Nevertheless, the righteous indignation at a gross injustice and grave evil cannot succumb to the temptation to find a scapegoat. There are no simple answers to this complex problem. Child abuse is truly a diabolical evil but it has no boundaries. It is not a by-product of a celibate male priesthood since most cases of this horrid practice occur in the home by married laymen. Any instance is intolerable but the facts still remain that the overwhelming majority of child abuse is done by a parent, sibling or other relative. According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System, of approximately 772,000 child abuse and neglect victims in 2008, of the largest percentage of perpetrators, nearly 80% were parents of the victim, including birth parents, adoptive parents, and stepparents. Of the parents who were perpetrators, more than 90% were biological parents, about 4% were stepparents, and about 1% were adoptive parents. Other relatives accounted for an additional 6.5%, and an unmarried partner of a parent accounted for 4.4% of perpetrators.

The next groups of culprits were neighbors, teachers, coaches, scoutmasters and at the end of the line, clergy (of all denominations, Jewish, Protestant as well as Catholic). But the media does not report the crime IN CONTEXT. The public is led to believe this is a ‘Catholic’ phenomenon. This is supposedly a result of not having married clergy and no ordination of women, according to some. Yet, the facts prove that child abuse is done by both men and women, married and single, laity and clergy. Evil does not discriminate among its membership.

What is most outrageous is the tone and attitude of this article. Conjecture and supposition permeate it like cockroaches in a cheap tenement. It is a fact that a small minority of Catholic clerics engaged in reprehensible and vile behavior of robbing children of their innocence through sexual abuse. It is also a sad fact that some bishops made the conscious decision to transfer these deviants to other parochial assignments rather than isolate them from further potential victims. Why? If the NYT would have shown documentation proving that Rome had given orders to respond in this way, then they would have had a credible case. On the contrary, the Vatican issued the Code of Canon Law in 1917 and then a revised code in 1983 which gave a mechanism to identify, adjudicate and penalize offenders. The universal law of the Church applied to all nations, all dioceses, all bishops and all priests. Clerics who misbehaved were never given a green light to clandestine transfers in the dark of night. No bishop was told to hide pedophiles or cover-up misdeeds. Due process is part of Canon Law as it is part of civil law. No matter how despicable and putrid the crime committed, the accused is presumed innocent until PROVEN guilty.

Imagine what the New York Times would say if a policeman or FBI agent for that matter, arrested citizens purely on credible accusations and then sent them to prison without any trial whatsoever. Anyone, liberal or conservative, democrat, republican, libertarian or independent, would rightfully scream ‘foul.’ Innocent until proven guilty is the hallmark of American jurisprudence and the weight of argument falls on the prosecution not the defense. Once guilt has been ascertained (either by admission or by juridical trial) then proper penal measures can be enacted. Since canon law is based on ancient Roman Law, there is no necessity of reaching ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’. Therefore, canonical trials which also do not require juries, can more expeditiously adjudicate than our civil court system.

The fact that some bishops did not utilize the due process or the diocesan tribunal is not the fault of any Pope. The law was there. The process was available. The sanctions could have been imposed. Why were they not and why was the choice made to apparently sweep matters under the rug? Many of us would like to know but it is illogical to infer that de facto it was the fault of the Roman Pontiff. He issued the Code of Canon Law which contains a juridical process and gives penal sanctions for offenses. If some refuse to employ those means, how does that incriminate the lawmaker himself? Unlike LBJ who could send troops to implement federal law banning racial segregation, the Pope cannot send Swiss Guards to reign in miscreant clerics or inept hierarchs.

The child sex abuse scandal is systemic. It is not isolated in a vacuum. According to the John Jay College of Criminal Justice Report, most of the cases occurred during the mid-1960’s to mid-1980’s with sporadic instances before and after. Most culprits (68%) were ordained between the years 1950 and 1979. Pope John Paul II was chosen head of the church in 1978. Cardinal Ratzinger did not work for the Vatican in the CDF until November of 1981. The breadth and scope of the scandal, however, did not come to light until 1992 when many victims came forward with their tragic accounts. The abuses occurred before then and so did the response by local bishops. As an American, I feel some shame that my country had enslaved a whole race of people for over a century but at the same time, there is no culpability nor can there be any blame for those of us who were born well after the Civil War and the emancipation of African Americans. How then can Pope Benedict be blamed for actions or lack thereof when he was not Pope or even when he was not head of the CDF?

It cannot be forgotten that during this timeframe when most abuse cases took place, the predominant professional opinion among psychiatrists and psychologists was that sexual deviancy was curable and could be treated successfully. Bishops were led to believe that sex abusers could be healed. After sending some to treatment centers, and being given a bill of good health, these guys were often reinstated. They were told by many in the medical field that it was just like treating the alcoholic priest. What they all overlooked was that even alcoholism is never cured. One is always an alcoholic, just that a person is either sober or not depending on their treatment and strength of will. The struggle for sobriety never ends. Alcoholism is also more a physiological disease than a moral weakness. Whatever the causes of sexual deviancy, the culpability is much more pronounced and the evil much more pernicious.

The point is, however, that at the time much of the abuse took place, when a credible accusation came forward, many bishops acted in good faith and did what the general public did, trust in modern medicine. It is only within recent times that we have had Megan’s Law enacted to alert the public about child abusers living in our neighborhoods. Convicted, sentenced and released after serving their time, most people today realize this is not a treatable condition. That was not the common wisdom, though, fifty years ago.

During the period between the Second Vatican Council and the death of Pope Paul VI, the sexual revolution hit America and the world. The birth control pill was invented and casual, recreational, and unmarried sex permeated the culture. Homosexuality was take off the DSM as a disorder and deemed a lifestyle choice. Abortion became legal across the USA and dissent from Humanae Vitae ran rampant in Catholic colleges, universities and seminaries around the nation. In this fertile ground of moral ambiguity and the decline of marriage and family as the backbone of society, we find the preponderance of cases of sex abuse of children by clergy. Since priests are first laymen in the world, what infects the secular world will have an effect on candidates for the priesthood. The lack of moral conviction and the disdain for institutional discipline affected many people, even those who eventually entered service to the Church. There is NO EXCUSE for the misbehavior of anyone, let alone the satanic crime of abusing children. But we have to understand the environment and conditions which allowed this filth to nurture and grow. Bacteria likes a dirty location because it will thrive. So, too, for the spiritual infection we call sin.

There was a moral and spiritual malaise prevalent among many Catholics during the mid-sixties to mid-eighties. We had crackpot whackos celebrating Clown Masses and diluting doctrine to the point of irrelevancy. The banal and pedestrian worship of the time threatened not just reverence but orthodoxy itself, due to lex orandi, lex credendi. JP2 came along and did his best to open the eyes of the Catholic world to TRUTH. The truth that morality and faith and liturgy are intertwined and interconnected. The truth that human life is sacred. That human sexuality is sacred when contained within the boundaries of the sanctity of marriage. That the worship of God is not the worship of the ego, mankind, the culture or Mother Earth, but the adoration of the One, Triune God. That being good and doing good are not just goals but prerequisites to eternal happiness.

Pope John Paul II and now Pope Benedict XVI are gifts from God to the Catholic Church and to the world. The attack on both their reputations is no surprise since Scripture itself warns us about the Devil being like a roaring lion seeking to devour. We are also assured that the gates of hell shall not prevail against Holy Mother Church OR the Vicar of Christ who was established by the founder to govern that institution in His Name.

The shameful and ugly crimes committed by a very small percentage of clergy (4%) is still unacceptable but at the same time cannot be ascribed as culpable to either JP2 or B16. Neither committed these dastardly deeds and neither covered them up. Both responded as they became aware of what was happening. Subsidiarity was a buzz word of the post-Conciliar church but it is a valid concept. Each bishop has to answer for his own diocese and what he did or did not do just as a pastor I am responsible for my parishes. We have a hierarchy and a chain of command but the Church is not the military and it is not a corporation. She is the Mystical Body of Christ and must work organically. We cannot blame the Pope for every violation and crime committed by individual members. Micromanagement was never promoted in the Gospels, Acts or Epistles of the New Testament.

Without incontrovertible documentation, it is slander and calumny to ascribe blame to Pope Benedict and worse yet, to infer a hidden agenda. As Cardinal Prefect of the CDF it was his job to reprimand promoters of heresy. His job was not to be the Attorney General of the universal church and be Church-Cop to the world. He was given the mandate from Christ to teach, sanctify and govern the Church but also to employ the assistance of the ordained to serve in the local area. We do not need more laws and regulations, rather we need those in authority to use the tools already available to them. We also need to be consistent and be as vigilant to eradicate and prevent child abuse from ALL areas, family, church, school, etc. The protection of the innocent is everyone’s business. Lining up firing squads and witch hunts are not viable solutions. Prosecuting the culprits in the proper manner is what a civilized people do. Recriminations and conjecture are not tools of justice.

Noted priest: John Paul II was fooled by Maciel

Noted priest: John Paul II was fooled by Maciel

My response to an inquiry from Matt Abbott

Noted priest: John Paul II was fooled by Maciel
By Matt C. Abbott

The stench of the late Father Marcial Maciel's rotting corpse still permeates the air and continues to make headlines, so to speak.

What struck (and disturbed) me was a recent quote by Maciel's son — whom Maciel reportedly abused — Raul Gonzalez, who said: "My dad [Maciel] told my mom that when John Paul II dies, he was going to be in trouble."

To those who revere John Paul II, that quote should be troubling.

What do we make of the late pope's "role" in the Maciel/Legion of Christ/Regnum Christi scandal? I asked Father John Trigilio Jr., author and president of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, to comment on the media's portrayal of this matter.

Said Father Trigilio in an e-mail (slightly edited):

"The mainstream media's addiction to anti-Catholicism is no less voracious than a junkie on heroin. Pope John Paul II is not alive and cannot defend himself, so some in the secular press feel even more emboldened to trash his reputation by making preposterous allegations. Only a coward hits a man when he is down, but even worse is someone who kicks a dead man. What bravery or honor is there in trashing someone who is unable to defend himself?

"Innuendo, implications, and theories make good pulp fiction but would never stand in a court of law. Hard, cold, objective evidence. That's what a judge and jury want, but audiences watching TV or getting entertained by the news are seeking something other than the truth. Hence, the media recreate history and reality. They re-define what actually happened. Conjecture and supposition are not proofs of guilt. Yet, is not a man innocent until proven guilty? That apparently does not apply when you are a Catholic cleric.

"If the secular press did this to people in the business, political, sports or entertainment world, they would be sued for defamation of character, slander and libel. When it's a bizarre story about a priest, bishop, or best yet, the pope, there seems to be more zeal to believe the most incredulous of accusations.

"Marcial Maciel was the most clandestine person the world has ever seen. He was a master of deception and deceit. Like a double-agent spy, he fooled everyone, especially his own colleagues. His secret life of betrayal was not unique, however. A famous TV reporter had two wives and two families, one on each coast, and neither one knew about the other until he died. It can be done. Government, corporate and military folks have spied on the U.S. for decades and escaped detection. How? They're good liars. That a priest could cover-up his misdeeds and have children and 'wives' in different towns, states and countries is not beyond the realm of credibility when you're dealing with a crafty person. If it can be done in the secular world, it can often be done in the religious — even though it's morally forbidden and reprehensible.

"Maciel fooled even the pope. It's been done before. Papal infallibility applies only to solemn definitions on faith and morals; it is not a guarantee of superb prudential judgment. Holy, saintly popes have been duped and deceived by bad people. The world has been fooled time and time again, whether it was an alleged flying saucer or a balloon initially reported to have a child aboard. Hence, I'm not scandalized that Maciel fooled someone as intelligent and sophisticated as John Paul II.

"The SIS and the CIA were fooled into believing that Saddam Hussein had 'weapons of mass destruction,' and they in turn convinced the U.N. and the world of this. Smart people can be deceived. It's not a moral weakness and it's not a culpable matter. Being duped does not imply or infer any formal cooperation. Being fooled does not make you an accessory or collaborator.

"Then why do allegations on national networks come up now attempting to vilify John Paul II? He was unaware of Maciel's hidden and secret life, just as many were unaware of the now notorious sleeper spies and moles in the FBI, CIA, British Intelligence and so on. We live in a post-Da Vinci Code era where fact and fiction get blurred to make entertaining material. It has crept into and infested the secular media as well, especially when it concerns religion and most of all when it deals with the Catholic Church.

"Note the staunch defense of detractors to Pope Pius XII, even when evidence is amassed day by day and year by year that he did not turn his back on European Jews during World War II. Rather, he did all and everything in his power to save and spare as many as he could. His response in the 1940s may have been different to what a pope in the 21st century would do, but we also live in an age where information floods every vehicle, from radio, TV, print and the Internet.

"Half a century ago, there was such a thing as news blackouts and state propaganda (ala Josef Goebbels). Golda Meir, prime minister of Israel and the chief rabbi of Rome all praised Papa Pacelli at the end of the war for his efforts to save and help Jews from Nazi evil. He did not and could not save them all, but he did a lot more than Franklin D. Roosevelt or Winston Churchill, who had armies at their disposal. It is fashionable today to insult the memory of Pius XII as if given he did little or nothing to help Jews during the war. Evidence proves the contrary, but the Da Vinci Code culture thrives on conspiracy.

"A gullible person will believe John Paul II knew about Maciel's double or triple life and just took a blind eye and deaf ear to it. Rational people, however, will see things as they are: An evil man (Maciel) fooled good and even holy people. Again, it's been done before and will be done again. Only a fool would fall for the ludicrous trap that being deceived makes you share in the culpability of the one perpetrating the deception.

"I would never attack the families Maciel deceived, either. They were innocently fooled. So was Pope John Paul II and so were many of us who were duped by a master impersonator."

© Matt C. Abbott

Some Vatican Humor Before the Summer Break

found this on YouTube

Papal audience on the 'Summa Theologiae' of Saint Thomas Aquinas

Bishop Joseph McFadden Appointed Ordinary of Harrisburg

MOST REV. JOSEPH P. McFADDEN

10th Bishop of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

ECCE SACERDOS MAGNUS

ad multos annos

Ecclesiastical rumor has it that Bishop Joseph McFadden of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will be named the 10th bishop of Harrisburg by Pope Benedict XVI on June 22. His Excellency replaces Bishop Kevin Rhoades who was transferred to the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend January 13, 2010.

Born in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, the Most Rev. Joseph McFadden attended Saint Joseph's University and was a high school teacher and basketball coach before entering St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, from where he obtained his M. Div. He was ordained to the priesthood by His Eminence John Cardinal Krol on May 16, 1981, and served as private secretary to Cardinal Krol for eleven years. He served as president of Cardinal O'Hara High School in Springfield from 1993 to 2001, whence he became pastor of St. Joseph Church in Downingtown.

On June 28, 2004, McFadden was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia and Titular Bishop of Horreomargum by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on the following July 28, 2004 from Justin Cardinal Rigali, with Bishops Robert Maginnis and Michael Burbidge serving as co-consecrators, in the Cathedral-Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul.

WELCOME TO THE CAPITAL OF THE COMMONWEALTH, YOUR EXCELLENCY

Word from mother Philadelphia is that the new bishop will follow in the tradition of his predecessor who was well loved among the faithful throughout the diocese. While he will be sadly missed in the Metropolitan See, he will be warmly welcome to his new home in the Capital Region (a.k.a. Central Pennsylvania) 

Bishop Rhoades' predecessor, Bishop Nicholas C. Dattilo (who succeeded William Cardinal Keeler), spoke of his first ad limina visit to the Eternal City. Pope John Paul the Great met with the Bishops of Pennsylvania and New Jersey and each Ordinary spent a few minutes with the Pontiff. When Bishop Dattilo got his turn, JP2 asked Bishop Dattilo to show the Holy Father on a map of the Commonwealth where the Diocese of Harrisburg was located. Pointing to the central region, the Bishop mentioned that Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania.  "Capital?" "Harrisburg?" "Not Philadelphia?" replied the Pope. [Harrisburg has 250,000 Catholics, about 12% of the population while the Archdiocsese of Philadelphia has 1.5 million, about 40%]  Bishop Dattilo quickly responded "well, Your Holiness, they think and act like they're the capital at times, but the governor and legislature are still in Harrisburg." Then the familiar smile appeared on the Pontiff's face.

the more things change, the more they stay the same (well, at least sometimes)

Thanks Fr Z

The Associated Press: iPad coming to church altars with daily missal app

The Associated Press: iPad coming to church altars with daily missal app



ROME — An Italian priest has developed an iPad application that will let priests celebrate Mass with an iPad on the altar instead of the regular Roman missal.



The Rev. Paolo Padrini, a consultant with the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Social Communications, said Friday that the free application will be launched in July in English, French, Spanish, Italian and Latin.

Two years ago, Padrini developed the iBreviary, an application that brought the book of daily prayers used by priests onto iPhones. He said the iPad application is similar but also contains the complete missal — containing all that is said and sung during Mass throughout the liturgical year.

Pope Benedict XVI has sought to reach out to young people through new media.


Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

ZENIT - The Priest's Preparation and Thanksgiving for Mass

ZENIT - The Priest's Preparation and Thanksgiving for Mass

The Priest's Preparation and Thanksgiving for Mass


Vatican Aide Encourages Prayer Before and After Liturgy
By Father Paul Gunter, OSB

ROME, JUNE 18, 2010 (Zenit.org).- The priest depends on his union with God for the fruitfulness of his life and ministry and the people of God rely on the priest to pray for them.

Jesus Christ entrusted to his closest followers a premise for any good they would do. "I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing."[1] The same Jesus, in the context of many miracles that he worked, established times to be by himself so as to spend time in prayer to his heavenly Father. For Jesus, the formal prayer of the Liturgy was supported by an inner life whose privacy bore the intimacy that nurtures personal prayer. Ecclesial and community dimensions are strengthened by that personal relationship with God which believers hope to deepen.

The search for God, which gives meaning to the lives of those who love him, serves as a daily reminder that it is, to and from Almighty God that all blessings flow. Sacred Scripture describes vividly the nourishment Jesus drew from his hidden life of prayer. "He would withdraw to deserted places and pray."[2] Similarly, there is the sense of the times of day when Jesus was particularly receptive to the stillness of prayer wherein he sought the Father's will. Such times encourage specific concentration and uninterrupted closeness. "Then Jesus got up early in the morning when it was still very dark and went out to a deserted place, and there he spent time in prayer."[3] "And after he sent the crowds away, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone."[4]

The priest, conscious of his sharing in the work of Christ, strives by following Christ's example, to lead God's holy people through Christ and in the Holy Spirit to God the Father. He knows, all too well, since his own shortcomings damage the credibility of his witness, that he needs no less urgently to ask God to instill in him virtues proper to his state. Part of the homily provided in the rite of the ordination of a priest instructs the one who is to be ordained accordingly: "In the same way, you will continue the sanctifying work of Christ. Through your ministry, the spiritual sacrifice of the faithful is made perfect, because, united to the sacrifice of Christ it is offered through your hands in the name of the Church in an unbloody way on the altar, in the celebration of the sacred mysteries. Recognize what you are doing and imitate [him] whom you handle so that celebrating the mystery of the death and resurrection of the Lord, you may mortify all vices within yourself and prepare to walk in newness of life."[5]

It can be seen, then, that the motive for a particular preparation by the priest before Mass and a thanksgiving afterwards are of benefit to the whole Church because a priest who sanctifies the Christian people needs himself to have been filled with the Spirit of holiness. It always helps a priest if he has taken a moment to consider the texts he will pray during the Mass on that day whether or not the Mass has an assembly. Opportune reflections on the texts before him can stir his deeper desire for God. Textual preparation will constitute a coherent and liturgical preparation for Mass not least because it is based on Sacred Scripture. A priest who fosters personal silence in the time before and after Holy Mass will, by his disposition, encourage meditation.

The priest in a pastoral setting may struggle to establish the desired silence that the sacristy should exemplify especially at the times when he needs to greet and meet the faithful. For him, in particular, the texts of the preparation before Mass and of the thanksgiving afterwards offer wholesome thoughts to uplift the mind and heart of the priest and, in whole or in part, can be prayed at any time. They also recognize human constraints on time and afford spiritual assistance rather than the imposition of any obligation on the priest who is trying to celebrate Mass as reverently as he can. It is to be noted that the gentler rubric that supports the Praeparatio ad Missam and the Gratiarum Actio post Missam in the missal of 1962 appreciates the practical demands made on a priest.[6] No act of love is by definition perfunctory. Both before and after offering the supreme sacrifice of the love of Christ, it is to be desired that a priest will be moved to do what is possible to give time, even briefly, to enable spiritual preparation before Mass and an act of thanksgiving after the celebration has ended. He will feel strengthened for having done so.

The preparation of a priest for Mass will have been underpinned by the cycle of Liturgy of the Hours which enriches the life of any priest. The age-old wisdom of the Ritus Servandus in Celebratione Missae, still to be found in the early part of the Missal of 1962, presumes the intrinsic importance of the Divine Office for the inner life of the priest. It stated that Matins and Lauds had to have been completed beforehand. Nonetheless, it should be noted that the context of that instruction from centuries before had not envisaged evening Mass.[7]

Since Mass is now celebrated at any time of the liturgical day the need for such an instruction no longer applies but the General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours carefully explains the connection between the celebration of the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours: "Christ taught us: "You must pray at all times and not lose heart" (Lk 18:1). The Church has been faithful in obeying this instruction; it never ceases to offer prayer and makes this exhortation its own: "Through him (Jesus) let us offer to God an unceasing sacrifice of praise" (Heb 15:15). The Church fulfils this precept not only by celebrating the Eucharist but in other ways also, especially through the Liturgy of the Hours. By ancient Christian tradition what distinguishes the Liturgy of the Hours from other liturgical services is that it consecrates to God the whole cycle of the day and the night."[8]

Any comparison of the specific texts offered for the Praeparatio will note that the same prayers are included in both forms of the Roman rite though they have been reduced to four since the Missale Romanum of 1970. In the Missal of 1970 these prayers consist in a prayer 'Ad Mensam' of St Ambrose, the prayer 'Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, ecce accedo' by St Thomas Aquinas, a prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary 'O Mater Pietatis et misericordiae' and the Formula of Intention, 'Ego volo celebrare Missam'.[9] Reflecting a first reform of indulgences after the Second Vatican Council which was published in the 'Enchridion of Indulgences' of 1968, they do not mention the indulgences that had been granted to the recitation of these prayers by Pius XI but whose details had been published in the missal of 1962.

Ample texts adorn the missal of 1962. The antiphon, Ne reminiscaris, asks God to be merciful despite our own sins and those of all who went before us. This is followed by psalms 83, 84, 85, 115, and 129. Kyrie Eleison, Christe Eleison, Kyrie Eleison and the Pater noster, whose last two lines form the beginning of a series of versicles, are followed by a number of short collects. In some devotional manuals these seven collects have been attributed to St Ambrose and assigned to the different days of the week. However, as arranged in the missal, it is envisaged they be said in succession under one conclusion. All but the seventh collect concentrate on the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. The seventh is followed by the longer doxology that concludes a series of collects. The first collect prays that the Holy Spirit shine forth in our hearts so that we may celebrate the mysteries worthily. The second asks that we may love God perfectly and worthily praise him. The third begs to serve God in chastity and purity of heart. The fourth implores the Paraclete to illumine our minds. The fifth beseeches the strength of the Holy Spirit to drive away the forces of the enemy. The sixth asks for wisdom and consolation. The seventh calls upon God to purify us and make of us a place where he can dwell.

The lengthy Oratio Sacerdotis ante Missam is divided in the missal into seven segments, one for each day of the week, and forms a prayerful meditation about an imitation of the virtues of Christ the High Priest. Its import is no less comforting than exigent. The relevance of its varied themes is timely with a literary style that is insistent and intimate. On Sunday, the priest asks the Holy Spirit to teach him to treat the mysteries with reverence, honour, devotion and lowly fear. On Monday, he focuses on his need for perfect chastity. On Tuesday, the priest acknowledges inherent unworthiness to celebrate Mass and, while proclaiming his belief that God can supply him with all that he lacks, he asks for a perceptible awareness of the presence of God as he celebrates and, no less, to be surrounded by angels. On Wednesday, his list of the social needs of the people, for whom Christ shed his blood, comes to the fore. On Thursday, while begging the mercy of God, the priest is reminded of how providence overcomes human frailty. "You are merciful to all, O Lord, and you hate nothing that you have made."[10] On Friday, he prays especially for the dead. On Saturday, the priest reflects on the great gift of the Blessed Sacrament and asks that it will lead him to see God face to face.

The 'Ad Mensam' of St. Ambrose prays that the Body and Blood of Christ may forgive the priest his sins and protect him from his enemies. The 'Prayer of St Thomas Aquinas' asks that the healing power of the Blessed Sacrament may prepare the priest to see God eternally. In the 'Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary', the priest prays not only for himself but for all his brother-priests who are celebrating Mass on that given day throughout the world. There follow prayers to St Joseph, to all the angels and saints and then a prayer to the saint in whose honour the Mass shall be celebrated.

The 'Formula of Intention' reminds a priest of the mind of the Church concerning the celebration of Mass and of his rightful place within it. The priest is not working alone. What he does has been handed down by Christ to his Church, upheld by the teaching Magisterium of the Church and supported by tradition. The priest makes present the Body and Blood of Christ. He follows the rite of the Holy Roman Church. His purpose is to give praise to God and to the Church in heaven while praying for the Church on earth, for all who in particular have commended themselves to his prayers as well as for the wellbeing of the Holy Roman Church. Then, praying for all the faithful, the priest asks that the Lord grant to him as well as to all the faithful, joy with peace, amendment of life, a space for true penitence, the grace and comfort of the Holy Spirit and perseverance in good works.

The corpus of texts that form the thanksgiving after Mass or the Gratiarum Actio post Missam, demonstrate love, humility and faith as they delight in the sublime gift of the Blessed Eucharist. The Missale Romanum of 2002 contains 'The Universal Prayer', attributed to Pope Clement XI, and the 'Hail Mary'. Otherwise, in common with the missal of 1962, it contains the 'Prayer of St Thomas Aquinas', 'The aspirations to the Most Holy Redeemer' or Anima Christi, 'The self-offering' or Suscipe, 'The Prayer before Our Lord Jesus Christ Crucified' or En Ego, and a 'Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary'. Such texts in the missal of 1962 were granted indulgences by Popes Pius X, XI and XII while some texts in the Missale Romanum of 2002 have also been included in the current Enchridion of Indulgences.

In the missal of 1962, an antiphon precedes the Benedicite[11] and psalm 150. Observing the same structure as the Preparation for Mass, the Kyrie Eleison and versicles pave the way for a number of collects. The first prays that as the three youths were brought out of the flames unscathed, so may God's servants avoid the harm of vice. The second asks that the good works God has begun in his servants be brought to their fulfilment. The third, on a theme similar to the first, is a prayer about St Laurence, deacon and martyr, who proved victorious in his suffering. The devotions which the priest may recite pro opportunitate enjoy comparable expressions of gratitude and entreaties for protection in the journey to heaven. In succession to a 'Prayer of St Thomas' is another prayer or alia Oratio. The metrical hymn Adoro Te is followed by the much-loved Anima Christi. The Suscipe and the En Ego precede another prayer or alia oratio asking that the Passion of Christ be the priest's strength, defence and eternal glory. Before prayers to St Joseph and to the saint in whose honour Mass was celebrated, the 'Prayer of the Blessed Virgin Mary' offers Jesus received in the Blessed Eucharist to Our Lady so that she can offer him anew in a supreme act of latreia, or of perfect worship, to the Blessed Trinity.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal states: "It is [...]of the greatest importance that the celebration of the Mass -- that is, the Lord's Supper -- be so arranged that the sacred ministers and the faithful taking part in it, according to the proper state of each, may derive from it more abundantly those fruits for the sake of which Christ the Lord instituted the Eucharistic Sacrifice of his Body and Blood and entrusted it to the Church, his beloved Bride, as the memorial of his Passion and Resurrection."[12] The preparation of the priest for Mass and his act of thanksgiving afterwards complement each other. They feed reverence in the hearts and minds of the faithful who are helped to participate in the liturgy with greater intensity by a priest who has benefited from the opportunity to recollect himself. What encourages preparation beforehand promotes thanksgiving after Mass. Both continually lead the Church to and from the Eucharistic Sacrifice that celebrates and makes present the fruits of the Paschal Mystery until Christ comes again at the end of time.

* * *

Notes

[1] John 15:5

[2] Luke 5:16

[3] Mark 1:35

[4] Matthew 14:23

[5] Pontificale Romanum., «De Ordinatione Episcopi, Presbyterorum et Diaconorum» cap 2 n151, 87, in Civitate Vaticana 1990. "Munere item sanctificandi in Christo fungéris. Ministério enim tuo sacrifícium spirituále fidélium perficiétur, Christi sacrifício coniúnctum, quod una cum iis per manus tuas super altáre incruénter in celebratióne mysteriórum offerétur. Agnósce ergo quod agis, imitáre quod tracta, quátenus mortis et resurrectiónis Dómini mystérium célebrans, membra tua a vítiis ómnibus mortificáre et in novitáte vitæ ambuláre stúdeas."

[6] Praeparatio ad Missam printed in black is followed by pro opportunitate sacerdotis facienda printed in red thus acknowledging the texts as a resource for the priest depending on his circumstances.

[7] "Sacerdos celebraturus Missam [......] saltem Matutino cum Laudibus absoluto"

[8] Institutio Generalis De Liturgia Horarum, cap 1, n10, 29, Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2000.

[9] Missale Romanum, Editio typica tertia, in Civitate Vaticana 2002, 1289-1291.

[10] Wisdom 11:24-25.27 forms the introit for Ash Wednesday in both the ordinary and extraordinary forms of the Roman rite.

[11] Daniel 3:56-58

[12] Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani, in Civitate Vaticana 2002, n17

* * *

Benedictine Father Paul Gunter is a professor of the Pontifical Institute of Liturgy in Rome and a Consultor to the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff.

EWTN.com - Thomas Aquinas: Inter-Relation of Philosophy, Theology

EWTN.com - Thomas Aquinas: Inter-Relation of Philosophy, Theology

ZENIT - Eucharist Is Not Understood, Laments Pope

ZENIT - Eucharist Is Not Understood, Laments Pope

ZENIT - Papal Address at Rome's Diocesan Conference

ZENIT - Papal Address at Rome's Diocesan Conference

Harper's Ferry

Fr Ken & I on a day trip recently

Byzantine Bishop Falls Asleep in the Lord

Metropolitan Archbishop

Basil Myron Schott, O.F.M.

Archeparchy of Pittsburgh for the Ruthenians
 
Eternal Rest Grant Unto Him, O Lord, and Let Perpetual Light Shine Upon Him. May He Rest in Peace.
 
In blessed repose, grant, O Lord, eternal rest to your departed servant, the high priest Metropolitan Basil, and remember him forever. Eternal Memory!


I remember His Beatitude Eminence when he came to the seminary for the ordination to subdiaconate for my friend, now Bishop, William Skurla (Eparchy of Passaic). He was present for consecration as Bishop (Eparchy of Van Nuys) and again when Bishop Skurla was transferred to Passaic. Metropolitan Archbishop Schott was always a most dignified gentleman and a humble soul. He never abandoned his Franciscan foundation even after being elevated Eparch and finally as Metropolitan for the Ruthenians. It was the Divine Liturgy and Byzantine priests who help preserve many vocations in the Latin Rite when we were in seminary as the East became a resevoir of orthodoxy and reverent worship despite the nonsense many of us were taught in the classroom. Praised be Jesus Christ for BOTH lungs of His Mystical Body!

Catholic Clergy Thank Pope for Year for Priests

Catholic Clergy Thank Pope for Year for Priests

The zenith of the Year for Priests, for me, was the joint gathering of the Australian and American Confraternities of Catholic Clergy. Over 100 English-speaking priests and deacons from around the world gathered in Rome (January 4th - 8th, 2010) along with several from Ireland, Scotland and Britain. We stayed at the Domus Sanctae Marthae (residence for the Cardinal Electors during a Papal Conclave) and had Masses at the major Basilicas in both the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms. 

http://blackbiretta.blogspot.com/2010/01/year-for-priests-international-clergy.html

http://blackbiretta.blogspot.com/2010/01/clergy-conference-flashback.html


6/10/2010 - 9:32 PM PST
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA ADVISORY

Catholic PRWire

HARRISBURG, PA (10 June 2010) - As the Year for Priests comes to a close, the members of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy wish to extend our deepest thanks and gratitude to Pope Benedict XVI. His decision to dedicate these past twelve months to those of us in Holy Orders has been an enormous blessing for clergy and laity alike, both in the local and in the universal church. Despite the aftermath of public scandals and private disappointments, priests around the world have been affirmed and encouraged by the love and affection the faithful still show for their beloved clergy.

The priests and deacons of the CCC enthusiastically renew our consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Queen of the Clergy and renew our pledge total fidelity to the Magisterium and filial obedience to the Roman Pontiff, our beloved Supreme Pastor and Universal Shepherd. We furthermore, pledge our total commitment to ongoing spiritual, theological, pastoral and human formation in fraternal support of one another so we may better serve the people under our care. We invite all priests and deacons to join and participate in national and diocesan associations of the clergy specifically created to help and encourage its members to seek personal holiness and improve their ministry to others.

We ask all our ordained brothers around the world to join us in giving thanks for the person and the Petrine Ministry of Our Holy Father. He has endured many trials and obstacles yet has never tired in his zeal for souls or in his intense love of the Church.

We promise to support our bishops in their service to the local church by assisting them in their apostolic call to teach, sanctify and shepherd the People of God.

We ask our colleagues to join us in thanking Almighty God for the awesome gift of Holy Orders and for the invaluable and precious treasure of the people whose souls we are commissioned to protect, nourish, enlighten and uplift on this pilgrimage of life. We ask that Catholics everywhere, as faithful sons and daughters of God, will continue to pray for vocations to the priesthood and diaconate and that the clergy they are sent will always act and be their very best since they deserve nothing less.

http://www.catholic-clergy.org

PA, 17053 US
Rev Fr John Trigilio - President, -717-957-2662