Friday, July 27, 2007
Side Altars
Following the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, most Churches were remodelled to 'conform' to the 'new spirit' of the liturgy. As concelebration was permitted, Side Altars were no longer necessary. Hence, many were destroyed. But did side altars really have to be destroyed? NO. If we take a look at Churches where side altars were preserved, we can see that these altars have now become shrines for popular devotions. In St. Joseph's Church, electric votive candles set the a condusive for devotional prayer at the side altar dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima. On the perservation of side altars, Fr. Rector Teo had this to say, "It's a sad thing. By the stroke of the pen, people's offerings were destroyed entirely". N.B. Side altars were usually offered by a particular person, family or group of friends; they would pay for the construction of the altar.
Below are before and after photos of a side altar in St. Joseph's Church dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes. The first picture was taken last year, while the second was taken today after I spent a morning of polishing; the picture above was also taken today.
New side altars? Why not? The Ceremonies of the Modern Roman Rite, no. 84, suggests the dedication of side altars for Mass without the people, for example, by visiting clergy.
The Ceremonial of Bishops, no. 921, explains that newly erected side altars- where Mass is to be celebrated- ought not to have an image of the saint which it is commerated to above it. This is to "avoid the impression that Mass is offered to the saint." A proviso is given to existing side altars, that they "need not be modified".
A Reminder
As side altars are dedicated altars, they should be treated with reverence and respect. When not in use, they ought to be covered with a cloth or dust cover. Non-liturgical items may never be placed on side altars.
Labels: Altar, Candles, Our Lady of Fatima, Photos, Second Vatican Council
Thursday, July 26, 2007
The New Face of the Priesthood
It wasn't until after the reforms of the Second Vatican Council that the laity was allowed to have a more active role in ministry.
Though the Council continued to reserve the term "ministry" for clergy and reiterated the traditional teaching that ordained priests "are so configured to Christ the Priest that they can act in the person of Christ the head... in the authority by which Christ Himself builds up, sanctifies, and rules his body" (Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, 2), it also exhorted the priest to form communities made up of both men and women employed to for the good of the Church and of mankind. This chipped away the priestly chaste system and placed the priest as a brother among brothers called to "friendly and fraternal dealings with other men" (Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, 17).
The age old authoritarian model gave way to a newer, more participatory model. Lumen Gentium emphasises on the whole people of God and stressed on the equality of all Catholics regardless of vocation, dignity and commitment. This led to the framework for the new understanding of the Priesthood. Because of one common baptism, the Church reconized the common priesthood of the faithful.
As it was mentioned earlier, even though the term "ministry" was reserved to clergy, the Church saw that it was important to grant the laity an active part in the mission of the Church. Pope Paul VI's reforms revived the ancient ministries of lector and acolyte as a permanent ministry of the laity.
The New Order of Mass or Novus Ordo also left a deep effect on the image of ministry. The priest was given a new position, the vernacular was introduced, new 'ministers' cramped the sanctuary, etc... The Catholic's view of his/her priest would no longer be the same...
Previously the priest with his back to the people acted as a visible mediator between an awesome God and a prostrate people. Now facing the people from behind a "table", he invites them to prayer.
The authority of the priest has been diminished and replaced with the image of a leader encouraging the people to dialogue with God. The use of the vernacular emphasized this; the priest was no longer set apart to dialogue with God. And with other 'ministers' crowding the sanctuary, the priest no longer has a unique and exclusive minsitry.
Let us take a moment to recall the number of ministries there are in our parishes. Today, we have couples ministries, advocacy ministries, liturgical ministries, ministries to the sick and dying, etc... In his book, 'The Future of Ministry', Rev. Fr. John Coleman, S.J., writes, "Both ordained and inordained share ministry. The laity, far from being a residual catergory, now provide the generic term for, ministy, for which the ordained are a mere subspecies". I believe that the days when ordination meant the achievement of instant status are over: People no longer respect the collar without scrutinizing the wearer first. Everyone, ordained or not will be judged on his/her capabilities, performance, and experience.
Could the explosion of ministies be due to the simple fact that there aren't enough priests to do the job? I do not think so. Remember that some 40 odd years ago, the Bishops at the Second Vatican Council were feeling somewhat smug; they could boast of the Church's institutional vigor, the expanding parochal school systems, the increasing number of converts, overcrowded seminaries, et cetera...
The New Jersey Catholic News, Summer, reveals a grim picture for the Church today: Mass attendance has plummeted 66% in France, 54% in Holland, 50% in Italy and 40% in the USA, infant baptisms are down 50%, adult conversions 75%, while divorce rates among Catholics, along with birth control, have reached shocking proportions and Seminaries are being emptied; seminary enrolment in France declined by 83% from 1963 to 1973, inter alia (e.g. In third world mission countries, more than 50% of parishes do not have a resident priest).
So, is the increasing rate of ministries co-related to the priesthood? Frankly, I do not know. Whatever it is, it appears that the Church can no longer sustain the traditional model of the priesthood. There are forces trying to break the Church away from the clerical chaste mentality, and moving to favour of the laity taking up roles once reserved for the ordained and celibate, (male) Catholic priest.
In the September 2004 edition of the Catholic Digest, Peter Feuerherd revealed that a studies of American priests indicate that the newly ordained cling to tradition, while their elders- most of nwhom cut their ecclesial teeth in the aftermath of Vatican II- seek out innovation. This gap is visible in the presence or absence of the cassock. Associate Pastor Fr. Patrick Riegger who represents the younger generation of priests says that "there is a need for clerical symbolism". I have a proclivity to agree with Fr. Riegger (and other priests who share the same belief) on this point. In the post-concilar Church, the ministeral priesthood tends to be dissolved together with the common priesthood of the faithful. This can be harmful to both the laity and the clergy. Clergy may get caught up in things secular while the laity may desire to practice certain fucntions reserved strictly to the Ministerial Priesthood (I've seen it!).
One may say that the Cassok ain't a big deal but according to Dean Hoge, a professor of sociology at the Catholic University of America, says that "it (wearing the cassock) reflects deeper issues about how different generations of priests view their vocation".
Two different visions of the priesthood now clearly stand out. Clergy ordained during and in the immediate aftermath of the Council tend to interprete their role as Servant-leader; bringing forth lay people to do much of the parish work. While newly ordained priests are more likely to focus on their unique Sacramental role as Alter Christus.
In an age of indifference, Catholics (especially Clergy) have to be be distinct or different. Though the former model may fit well into our culture, it lacks clear distinctions like the foregoing of financial comforts, married life, sacrifices. N.B. Dean Hoge claims that those who embrace the cultic model are more likely to leave the priesthood.
So we've seen how the face priesthood has changed in the Church. We've also seen how the newer generation of priests rather revert to the 'old-face'. Even prominent author, Michael Rose, has taken up the cause of younger priests who embrace the theology of Pope John Paul II (and possibly Benedict XVI), saying that they are the hope of a Church beset by a breakdown in morality and loose approach to doctrine. What would the face of the priesthood be a decade or two down the road? What would you like to see?
Let us pray that all priests and future priests may always and everywhere think, act, and speak with the Church- the glorious spouse of Jesus Christ. That they may embrace their vocation and what come may for the sake of the salvation of souls. As Canon s1725 puts it, "Salus animarum suprema est lex" The salvation of souls is the highest law.
Amen.
Labels: Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, Lumen Gentium, Ministries, Priesthood, Second Vatican Council, Statistics
Headmaster Dolores Umbridge
While watching Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix yesterday afternoon at the new Grand Cathay Cinema *alone*, one pharse from Dolores Umbridge struck me. It goes as follows... "Progress for the sake of progess should be frowned upon. We should preserve what ought to be preserved and perfect what can be perfected". It appears that these words from Hogwarts's adjunct headmaster applies fairly well to the Church today.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
At least with H.H. Benedict XVI's reign, the Church is begaining to feel more Romish. Only time will tell what the Good Lord has in store for us. Let us continue to pray for an end to abuses in the Sacred Liturgy and for unity in the Church!
Labels: Holy Father, Litugical Abuse, Liturgy, Movies, Rants/Musings/Thoughts, Traditionalism
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Penang Trip
My trip to Pulau Pinang (Penang Island), West Malaysia, has been confirmed. I was at the coach agency in Golden Mile Complex this evening to book the seats. I plan to visit some of the historical churches there. The Church of The Assumption, dates back to 1786!
Andrew of Unam Sanctam was telling me that the Church of St. Francis Xavier (1957) is closest to where I'll be putting up.
It's still some time away, will keep one and all updated.
Labels: Churches, Penang, Personal, Travels
Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist
I was approached by an aging priest this evening after Holy Mass to be an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist. He said that he gets awfully tired/drained after distributing Holy Communion to the congregation; and even the ciborium was too heavy.
Well... I suppose that I could offer some assistance.
I think that it would be easier for priests to distribute Holy Communion with the faithful kneeling along the rails (regradless of communion on hand or tongue). That way he does not need to re-adjust his back and arm to meet the different heights of communicants. It wouldn't be mundane as well because the priest gets to stretch and walk when he reaches the end of the rail to return to the start.
Labels: Communicants, Communion, Eucharist, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist, Personal, Thoughts
Consider Your Call
(By: Pope John Paul II)
Brothers, consider your call (1 Corinthians 1:26)
The Church must show its proper and authentic face in the daily striving for fidelity to God and to men. When it accomplishes such a mission with profound consistency, it becomes the favorable terrain for the birth of courageous choices of unreserved commitment for the Gospel and for the people of God.
By means of the special vocations the Lord assures the Church’s continuity and strength and, at the same time, he opens it to the old and the new needs of the world, so that the Church can be a sign of the living God and contribute to the building of the city of man as the civilization of love.
Every vocation is born, is nourished and develops in the Church and is linked to the Church in its origin, growth, purpose and mission. For this reason diocesan and parish communities are called to strengthen their commitment to vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life, especially with the proclamation of the Word, the celebration of the sacraments and the witness of charity. They should also keep in mind some of the necessary conditions for an authentic pastoral care of vocations.
Labels: Holy Father, Priesthood, Religious, Vocation
Sunday, July 22, 2007
That's the Spirit!
Way to go Fr. Michael Teo!
Fr. Teo made a comment after a screeing of the video, 'Euchristic Miracles' in the rectory's meeting room this afternoon. "When I was training as a priest, we did everything in Latin. Now there's the vernacular; we cannot acheive the same with the vernacular. The latin (Eucharistic Hymns) can really make you cry!" said a the teary rector.
Spirituality appeals to the imagination that is why the modern rites are so lack the feeling that the latin hymns of old conjure up; giving one the concept of a timeless sacred space that connects one with other believers through the ages.
"Holiness is what we are seeking to attain and our thoughts drawn into at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It is not a party or any worldly celebration, so why should our music sound worldly? We don't want to get distracted by music that has worldly connotations, so we should avoid instruments and musical selections that would have those connotations," PBXI
We must bring the sacred to the secular,
not put the secular into the sacred.
Labels: Liturgy, Music, Quote, Quotes, Spirituality, Video
Friday, July 20, 2007
Dutch Priest Speaks at a FCC Workshop
This post may get me into hot soup but I think we need to address the problem of the watering down of doctrine in the midst of heightened ecumenism and religious liberty.
Retired dutch priest waters down the Catholic faith in a workshop with members of the Free Community Church (FCC). The FCC is an inclusive protestant church founded by a former Methodist bishop and is the first 'gay church' in Singapore.
"Everybody can go to heaven; baptised or not baptised", "People suffer under the teaching of the Church", "I hope, even if it is against the teaching of the pope, I hope that in my lifetime I will see women priests".
Too much Alpha? Perhaps. Catholics cannot put our faith on the table and tell people, "Hey, this is what we belief. See if you can gel with it." Neither do we water down the teachings of the Church to allow others to feel more comfortable; this is the Faith that our the saints and martyrs were persecuted and even died for.
Where has our 2000 years of Christian tradition gone?
In the next few posts- when my schedule permits- we'll look at salvation and the teaching of the Church, the teaching authority of the Church, and women priests.
Mother of the Church, interceed for us!
Labels: Rants/Musings/Thoughts, Video
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Et Tibi Pater
I'm glad to see the willingness of many young priests here in the Archdiocese of Singapore to pick up Latin. Even among young Catholics who have neither knowledge of the traditions of the Church nor the Tridentine Mass, there appears to be an inclination toward the universal language of the Church. I believe that those looking for the sacred dimension in a worship/rite that has become 'secular' have found it in Latin; to enter the Celebration is to enter a sacred mystery. Latin is able to give the Mass a holistic sense of mystery. It does not matter that one does not understand Latin: The forms, words and actions we use are only symbols that help us raise our heats, minds, and soul to God. Prayer is a matter of the heart, not head. Even when we pray using words, etc... the real business should be taking place in the heart; at a much deeper level. Genuine Catholic worship is "a deep absorption, so deep that any distractions cease for five to ten minutes," Fr. Thomas Bubay SM. Genuine prayer also lifts us out of ourselves and to the incomprehensible and indescribable God.
Latin leaves priests at a loss [Emphasis completely mine]
John Hooper in Rome
Monday July 16, 2007
The Guardian
In nomine Patris, et, er, ... thingummy.
Pope Benedict may want more of his flock to have the chance to hear mass in Latin. But there is a snag. Not many of his priests know enough of the language to hold a service in it. Even in Italy.
Yesterday the newspaper La Stampa reported on priests' reactions to the Pope's decision this month to extend the use of the old Latin-only rite. Their views ranged from embarrassment to downright anger.
"I wouldn't know how to say mass from memory in Latin," said a 60-year-old priest from Le Marche region. "No priest should be obliged to go back to school to brush up his Latin. If some dioceses want to hold courses, well, fine."
Father Maurizio Fileni, 57, from near Ancona, went further. "I am absolutely incapable of saying mass in Latin," he told the paper. "And I would actually be ashamed to do so".
During Pope John Paul II's 26-year papacy, the top hierarchy of the Catholic church became far more conservative than before. But many of its rank-and-file priests remain firmly wedded to the ideals of the reforming Second Vatican Council.
Pope Benedict's decree allows Roman Catholics to obtain a dispensation from their priest for mass to be said in the Latin-only form, which was sidelined in 1970. Followers of the late archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who broke with the church over its liturgical reform, have made a 90-minute video showing priests how to celebrate mass in the old way.
But Father Fileni, for one, is unlikely to be acquiring it. "I am certainly not going back to being a student," he said. "The faithful can't any longer understand us in Italian, let alone Latin."
"The motu proprio hasn’t all of a sudden thrust Latin upon us. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council assumed that Latin would continue to be an integral part of our way of worship. The Council’s “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,” Sacrosanctum Concilium, states that "the use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites." I would imagine these priests who plead ignorance of Latin probably pride themselves on being “Vatican II priests.” If that’s the case, they’ve got some work to do" Rev. Fr. Christopher G. Phillips.
The Language of Tradition [Emphasis completely mine]
By RAYMOND ARROYO
July 13, 2007; Page W11
While drafting the decree that would return the old Latin mass to Catholic altars around the world, Pope Benedict XVI rightly predicted that reaction to his directive would range from "joyful acceptance to harsh opposition." But what he did not anticipate was the reaction of pundits and not a few clerics who have tried to dismiss the decree as a curiosity -- a nonevent that is likely to have little effect beyond a few "ultraconservative" throwbacks. David Gibson, the author of "The Coming Catholic Church," says that the announcement is "much ado about nothing," and French Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard says that he doesn't "see a tsunami coming." But there is much more at play here than satiating the liturgical appetites of a few traditionalists.
The legislation (made public on Saturday) allows a pastor, on his own authority, to celebrate the Tridentine Mass, codified in the 16th century. Following the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), the venerable Mass -- in which cries of "sanctus, sanctus" rose like incense around the altar -- fell out of practice. It was actively suppressed in some quarters -- though never outlawed by the church. Pope John Paul II encouraged celebrations of the old rite in a declaration he issued in 1988, although the permission of the local bishop was required for a priest to offer it. This new legislation removes the middleman and puts the Latin Mass on a par with the widely celebrated vernacular Mass. In the words of the pope, these Masses constitute "two usages of the one Roman rite."
It is an open secret that many in the Roman Curia (including top Vatican officials) were opposed to the decree. Bishops in Germany, France and England grew angry over the prospect of reviving the old Mass. British Bishop Kieran Conry said that "any liberalization of the use of the [Latin] rite may prove seriously divisive. It could encourage those who want to turn back the clock throughout the church." According to several prelates I have spoken to, Bishop William Skylstad, the president of the American Bishops Conference, flatly told the pope that the U.S. bishops opposed any revival of the old rite. Why would the pope risk alienating so many of his own churchmen to appeal to a relatively small group of "disaffected" Catholics?
Reform of the liturgy has been a central concern for Pope Benedict for decades. Disgusted by some of the liturgical experimentation he witnessed in the past few decades, the pope suggested in a letter to the bishops (issued along with the decree) that these "arbitrary deformations of the liturgy" provoked his actions. There is little room for such tomfoolery in the old Mass, whose focus is on the Eucharist and not on the assembled or the celebrant.
During an interview I conducted with the pope in 2003, before his election, he said of the Latin Mass: "[What] was at one time holy for the church is always holy." He also spoke of the need to revive the "elements of Latin" to underscore the "universal dimension" of the Mass. Before Vatican II, a Mass celebrated in New York was identical to the Mass celebrated in Israel. That is not true today. For a faith that crosses borders and cultures, common language and practice in worship are essential signs of unity.
The pope's decree also underscores for Catholics the origins of the new Mass and the continuity of the two rites. Pope Benedict tells his bishops that as a result of his decree, "the celebration of [the vernacular Mass] will be able to demonstrate, more powerfully than has been the case hitherto, the sacrality which attracts many people to the former usage." By placing the two Masses in close proximity, the pope is hoping that the new Mass will take on the sensibilities of the old. The pope is betting that sacrality and reverence will win out over innovation and novelty, no matter which rite people choose.
There are inevitable problems: Many priests today simply don't know Latin. But they can learn it, or at least enough of it to get through the Mass. The movements of the traditional rite can also be gleaned from older clergy and from groups like the Fraternity of St. Peter that offer intensive instruction in the ritual. Just as the laity have grown accustomed to the incessant hand-holding and hand-shaking that make the Mass look like a hoe-down, they will learn to embrace the gestures of the old liturgy. Parishioners can actively follow the Mass using a Missal, which usually provides side-by-side translations. Listening with attention will be required. But who said worshiping God should be effortless?
Since Vatican II, generations of Catholics have participated in Masses and repeated actions that they have no historical appreciation or understanding of. This move by the pope will not only provoke a healthy conversation about why Catholics do what they do but ground them in the beauty and meaning of the liturgy, both new and old.
More on Latin: Why Latin?
Labels: Holy Father, Latin, Liturgy, News, Novus Ordo, Summorum Pontificum, Thoughts
Sunday, July 15, 2007
A Visible Sign: The Roman Collar
The Directory for the Ministry and Life of Priests, prepared by the Congregation for the Clergy and approved by Pope John Paul II on January 31, 1994 has this to say:
In a secularized and tendentiously materialistic society, where even the external signs of sacred and supernatural realities tend to bedisappearing, the necessity is particularly felt that the priest-man of God, dispenser of His mysteries-should be recognizable in the sight of the community, even through the clothing he wears, as an unmistakable sign of his dedication and of his identity as arecipient of a public ministry. The priest should be recognizable above all through his behavior, but also through his dressing in away that renders immediately perceptible to all the faithful, even to all men, his identity and his belonging to God and to the Church.
When collars were quickly taken off a few decades ago, the common argument proclaimed was, "What's really important is what's inside me . . . I don't need an article of clothing to define my priesthood".
Let us examine the importance of the Roman Collar.
The Roman Collar is a clerical collar that should be worn by all ranks of clergy. Bishops, priests, transitional deacons, and seminarians who have been admitted to candidacy for the priesthood (as is the case in the Diocese of Rome and many other Seminaries throughout the world). Apart from entirely exceptional circumstances, the non-use of clerical clothing on the part of the cleric can manifest a weak sense of his own identity as a pastor completely dedicated to the service of the Church.
Rev. Ken Collin's, explains that "clothing conveys a message. A business suit says, 'Money!' A police uniform says, 'Law!' A tuxedo says, 'Wedding!' Casual clothing says, 'Me!' Clericals say, 'Church!' "
A priest is never 'off-duty' when he puts on the Roman Collar. Any occassion he is in can be turned into a pastoral ministry. Whenever a priest has his collar one, he no longer needs words to explain his presence. It is unlikely that anyone would stop a Roman Catholic priest with his collar on from entering a hospital after visiting hours or bar him from crossing the yellow tape at an accident scene.
A priests' ministry is unending and there are no definate working hours. Casualness about being publicly identified as a priest of the Catholic Church may signify a desire to distance himself from his priestly vocation. The collar becomes 'workclothes,' which are put away when one is not 'on duty.' The functionalistic notion of the priesthood revealed by this attitude is in contradiction to the ontological configuration to Christ the High Priest conferred by priestly ordination. Furthermore, to have a 'split personality' is never healthy. No priest can temporarily put his priesthood on the shelf. To hide one's priesthood may often be symptomatic of a desire to engage in something sinful, or-at the very least-disedifying.
Archbishop Emeritus Gregory in his clericals
With this visible symbol of his sacred ministry around his neck, the priest allows the faithful to approach him no matter where he is; be it at the cafe having his morning cuppa or at the grocers picking up some provisions.
A person can make a confession and be reconcilled to God, a young teen may ask a quick question about the faith and be strengthened, an lost soul may come up to the priest and ask, “Father, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”, a businessman may receive a blessing before his flight, etc... Christ's faithful (and even those outside the fold) deserve nothing less. Lay people depend on their priests for spiritual support andstrength. They feel that something is not right when their priests try to blend into the crowd and, as it were, disappear.
Many priests often say that their people are adverse to the Collar. Well, trying to 'blend-in' isn't really the solution. Allowing the reactions of others affect the priest's decision to wear the collar is only allowing the problem to fester unresolved. Could it be that some think that what the collar signifies- Jesus Christ, the Catholic Church, the priesthood- are obstacles? Priests must relate to others as priests, never in spite of being priests.
"A white collar on a priest's neck should remind him of a ring and collar - his marriage to Christ and to the Church and giving his freedom to Christ, thus letting him control his life. We, priests, wear a collar because we want to be directed by Christ in all things. Please notice that our collars are white as opposed to our cassocks. In the background of a black robe it is a symbol of the light of resurrection. We go through the world giving up baubles and colours, living the hope of participation in the brightness of resurrection. This white collar in the background of our black dress is actually a sign of our desires and aspirations." Rev. Fr. Andrzej Przybylski.
We use symbols all the time, and need not be embarrassed by them. To obediently and humbly wear the collar expresses one's submission to the authority of God and his Holy Church.
Dear Rev. Fathers, please display the desire to manifest the presence of the Savior to a world gone mad... The reward is to be able to lead others to Christ is significant. Be aware that the priestly work you now do will not suffer but will be enhanced when you dress according to the venerable custom of the Church.
References & Acknowledgements:
- 'Why a Priest Should Wear His Roman Collar' by Reverend Gerald E. Murray.
- The Directory for the Ministry and Life of Priests, prepared by the Congregation for the Clergy and approved by Pope John Paul II on January 31, 1994.
- 'Why Clergy Should Wear Clericals' by Reverend Ken Collins.
Labels: Clerical Clothing/Cassock/Habit, Priesthood, Thoughts
This Week In Photos
Have been moving quite a bit lately as a relative from Australia is back on vacation. Here are some of the numerous snapshots I took over the week using my Sony Erricson Cybershot 3.2MP camera phone.
Visited the newly revamped Changi Village
A view of the sunset from the new boardwalk; the hilly terrain ahead is Ubin Island.
Took a glass calbe car from Harbourfront in Vivo City to the peak of Mount Faber.
Here's a view of Telok Blangah and the city from Mount Faber.
Whilst visitng my mom,I realised a new addition to the Altar; a statue of Santo Ninio de Cebu.
(Finally) organized my study.
Purchased a book on the Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Couldn't resist buying a keg of Heineken (at SGD49) from Cold Storage Supermarket...
It's supposed to last a month in the refrigerator.
It's supposed to last a month in the refrigerator.
Labels: Personal, Photos, Rants/Musings/Thoughts
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Youth Day Cross Arrives to Australia
(via Zenit)
Hundreds Gather to Welcome Symbols
SYDNEY, Australia, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The arrival of the World Youth Day cross and icon of Our Lady to Australia were welcomed by hundreds at an airport gathering in Sydney.
The cross measuring 3.8 meters (12.5 feet) and the icon of the Mother of Christ and the Child Jesus were welcomed Sunday by Australia's Prime Minister John Howard, New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma, and numerous youth, clergy and laity.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Howard said: "The cross and the icon [are] a reminder that next year World Youth Day will be a magnificent opportunity for the young in their thousands, not only from Australia, but around the world, to reaffirm their faith and to remind the world and to remind this nation of the enduring relevance and resonance about the Christian message.
"It's an occasion not only for Catholics, but for all who profess the Christian faith and the Christian belief, to celebrate the marvelous message of the Christian religion and its continuing importance to our country and the life of all of its citizens."
Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Fisher, the coordinator of World Youth Day, said that "these symbols will herald the coming of World Youth Day to Australia next year. In the meantime, they will be carried upon the shoulders of young Australians and touch the hearts of us all."
Meaning
Cardinal Pell, the archbishop of Sydney, called the cross "the Olympic torch of World Youth Day," and spoke of its importance.
In his weekly column published in the Sunday Telegraph the day that the symbols arrived, the 66-year-old cardinal explained that the "cross is the best known symbol of Christianity. Jesus was executed on it between two thieves in Jerusalem. But it has lost its power to shock."
He continued: "Only slaves and foreigners were put to crucifixion in the Roman Empire. St. Paul, as a citizen of Rome, could not be crucified and was beheaded instead.
"The cross was originally a horrifying image, standing for the triumph of brute force and death over everything good. By his resurrection, Jesus broke the power of death and showed that love is stronger."
"For more than 20 years," Cardinal Pell explained, "the World Youth Day Cross has traveled to parish churches, youth detention centers, prisons, schools, universities, national historic sites, shopping centers, nightclub districts and parks throughout the world.
"It has even been taken to the German parliament and to Ground Zero in New York. It has been carried by a commercial airline, light aircraft, dog sled, pick-up truck, tractor, sailboat, fishing boat and on shoulders. It has been accompanied by the icon of Mary since 2003."
These two symbols are reminders, said Cardinal Pell, that it "is not death that has the last word over human life, but love."
After the welcome at the Sydney Airport, the cross and icon traveled to the shrine of Blessed Mary MacKillop in North Sydney, beginning a 12-month pilgrimage across Australia.
Deo Juvante: Any readers planning to attend the WTD '08 in Sydney?
Hundreds Gather to Welcome Symbols
SYDNEY, Australia, JULY 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The arrival of the World Youth Day cross and icon of Our Lady to Australia were welcomed by hundreds at an airport gathering in Sydney.
The cross measuring 3.8 meters (12.5 feet) and the icon of the Mother of Christ and the Child Jesus were welcomed Sunday by Australia's Prime Minister John Howard, New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma, and numerous youth, clergy and laity.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Howard said: "The cross and the icon [are] a reminder that next year World Youth Day will be a magnificent opportunity for the young in their thousands, not only from Australia, but around the world, to reaffirm their faith and to remind the world and to remind this nation of the enduring relevance and resonance about the Christian message.
"It's an occasion not only for Catholics, but for all who profess the Christian faith and the Christian belief, to celebrate the marvelous message of the Christian religion and its continuing importance to our country and the life of all of its citizens."
Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Fisher, the coordinator of World Youth Day, said that "these symbols will herald the coming of World Youth Day to Australia next year. In the meantime, they will be carried upon the shoulders of young Australians and touch the hearts of us all."
Meaning
Cardinal Pell, the archbishop of Sydney, called the cross "the Olympic torch of World Youth Day," and spoke of its importance.
In his weekly column published in the Sunday Telegraph the day that the symbols arrived, the 66-year-old cardinal explained that the "cross is the best known symbol of Christianity. Jesus was executed on it between two thieves in Jerusalem. But it has lost its power to shock."
He continued: "Only slaves and foreigners were put to crucifixion in the Roman Empire. St. Paul, as a citizen of Rome, could not be crucified and was beheaded instead.
"The cross was originally a horrifying image, standing for the triumph of brute force and death over everything good. By his resurrection, Jesus broke the power of death and showed that love is stronger."
"For more than 20 years," Cardinal Pell explained, "the World Youth Day Cross has traveled to parish churches, youth detention centers, prisons, schools, universities, national historic sites, shopping centers, nightclub districts and parks throughout the world.
"It has even been taken to the German parliament and to Ground Zero in New York. It has been carried by a commercial airline, light aircraft, dog sled, pick-up truck, tractor, sailboat, fishing boat and on shoulders. It has been accompanied by the icon of Mary since 2003."
These two symbols are reminders, said Cardinal Pell, that it "is not death that has the last word over human life, but love."
After the welcome at the Sydney Airport, the cross and icon traveled to the shrine of Blessed Mary MacKillop in North Sydney, beginning a 12-month pilgrimage across Australia.
Deo Juvante: Any readers planning to attend the WTD '08 in Sydney?
Labels: News, World Youth Day 2008
One, Holy, Catholic, & Apostolic Church
CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH
RESPONSES TO SOME QUESTIONS REGARDING CERTAIN ASPECTS
OF THE DOCTRINE ON THE CHURCH
RESPONSES TO SOME QUESTIONS REGARDING CERTAIN ASPECTS
OF THE DOCTRINE ON THE CHURCH
INTRODUCTION
The Second Vatican Council, with its Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, and its Decrees on Ecumenism (Unitatis redintegratio) and the Oriental Churches (Orientalium Ecclesiarum), has contributed in a decisive way to the renewal of Catholic ecclesiology. The Supreme Pontiffs have also contributed to this renewal by offering their own insights and orientations for praxis: Paul VI in his Encyclical Letter Ecclesiam suam (1964) and John Paul II in his Encyclical Letter Ut unum sint (1995).
The consequent duty of theologians to expound with greater clarity the diverse aspects of ecclesiology has resulted in a flowering of writing in this field. In fact it has become evident that this theme is a most fruitful one which, however, has also at times required clarification by way of precise definition and correction, for instance in the declaration Mysterium Ecclesiae (1973), the Letter addressed to the Bishops of the Catholic Church Communionis notio (1992), and the declaration Dominus Iesus (2000), all published by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
The vastness of the subject matter and the novelty of many of the themes involved continue to provoke theological reflection. Among the many new contributions to the field, some are not immune from erroneous interpretation which in turn give rise to confusion and doubt. A number of these interpretations have been referred to the attention of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Given the universality of Catholic doctrine on the Church, the Congregation wishes to respond to these questions by clarifying the authentic meaning of some ecclesiological expressions used by the magisterium which are open to misunderstanding in the theological debate.
RESPONSES TO THE QUESTIONS
FIRST QUESTION
Did the Second Vatican Council change the Catholic doctrine on the Church?
RESPONSE
The Second Vatican Council neither changed nor intended to change this doctrine, rather it developed, deepened and more fully explained it.
This was exactly what John XXIII said at the beginning of the Council.[1] Paul VI affirmed it[2] and commented in the act of promulgating the Constitution Lumen gentium: “There is no better comment to make than to say that this promulgation really changes nothing of the traditional doctrine. What Christ willed, we also will. What was, still is. What the Church has taught down through the centuries, we also teach. In simple terms that which was assumed, is now explicit; that which was uncertain, is now clarified; that which was meditated upon, discussed and sometimes argued over, is now put together in one clear formulation”.[3] The Bishops repeatedly expressed and fulfilled this intention.[4]
SECOND QUESTION
What is the meaning of the affirmation that the Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church?
RESPONSE
Christ “established here on earth” only one Church and instituted it as a “visible and spiritual community”[5], that from its beginning and throughout the centuries has always existed and will always exist, and in which alone are found all the elements that Christ himself instituted.[6] “This one Church of Christ, which we confess in the Creed as one, holy, catholic and apostolic […]. This Church, constituted and organised in this world as a society, subsists in the Catholic Church, governed by the successor of Peter and the Bishops in communion with him”.[7]
In number 8 of the Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium ‘subsistence’ means this perduring, historical continuity and the permanence of all the elements instituted by Christ in the Catholic Church[8], in which the Church of Christ is concretely found on this earth.
It is possible, according to Catholic doctrine, to affirm correctly that the Church of Christ is present and operative in the churches and ecclesial Communities not yet fully in communion with the Catholic Church, on account of the elements of sanctification and truth that are present in them.[9] Nevertheless, the word “subsists” can only be attributed to the Catholic Church alone precisely because it refers to the mark of unity that we profess in the symbols of the faith (I believe... in the “one” Church); and this “one” Church subsists in the Catholic Church.[10]
THIRD QUESTION
Why was the expression “subsists in” adopted instead of the simple word “is”?
RESPONSE
The use of this expression, which indicates the full identity of the Church of Christ with the Catholic Church, does not change the doctrine on the Church. Rather, it comes from and brings out more clearly the fact that there are “numerous elements of sanctification and of truth” which are found outside her structure, but which “as gifts properly belonging to the Church of Christ, impel towards Catholic Unity”.[11]
“It follows that these separated churches and Communities, though we believe they suffer from defects, are deprived neither of significance nor importance in the mystery of salvation. In fact the Spirit of Christ has not refrained from using them as instruments of salvation, whose value derives from that fullness of grace and of truth which has been entrusted to the Catholic Church”[12].
FOURTH QUESTION
Why does the Second Vatican Council use the term “Church” in reference to the oriental Churches separated from full communion with the Catholic Church?
RESPONSE
The Council wanted to adopt the traditional use of the term. “Because these Churches, although separated, have true sacraments and above all – because of the apostolic succession – the priesthood and the Eucharist, by means of which they remain linked to us by very close bonds”[13], they merit the title of “particular or local Churches”[14], and are called sister Churches of the particular Catholic Churches.[15]
“It is through the celebration of the Eucharist of the Lord in each of these Churches that the Church of God is built up and grows in stature”.[16] However, since communion with the Catholic Church, the visible head of which is the Bishop of Rome and the Successor of Peter, is not some external complement to a particular Church but rather one of its internal constitutive principles, these venerable Christian communities lack something in their condition as particular churches.[17]
On the other hand, because of the division between Christians, the fullness of universality, which is proper to the Church governed by the Successor of Peter and the Bishops in communion with him, is not fully realised in history.[18]
FIFTH QUESTION
Why do the texts of the Council and those of the Magisterium since the Council not use the title of “Church” with regard to those Christian Communities born out of the Reformation of the sixteenth century?
RESPONSE
According to Catholic doctrine, these Communities do not enjoy apostolic succession in the sacrament of Orders, and are, therefore, deprived of a constitutive element of the Church. These ecclesial Communities which, specifically because of the absence of the sacramental priesthood, have not preserved the genuine and integral substance of the Eucharistic Mystery[19] cannot, according to Catholic doctrine, be called “Churches” in the proper sense[20].
The Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI, at the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, ratified and confirmed these Responses, adopted in the Plenary Session of the Congregation, and ordered their publication.
Rome, from the Offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, June 29, 2007, the Solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.
William Cardinal Levada
Prefect
Angelo Amato, S.D.B.
Titular Archbishop of Sila
Secretary
Labels: Catholic Belief, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Holy Father, Protestants, Reply, Second Vatican Council, Vatican
Friday, July 13, 2007
Preparation for Holy Mass
O LORD Jesus Christ, King of everlasting glory,(PROFESSION)
Thou art the Triune God in whom my mind and heart remain fixed, firm and rooted immovably for evermore.
(DIRECT YOUR INTENTION)
Behold I desire to come to Thee this day to commemorate all Thy sufferings, and receive Thy Body and Blood in the heavenly Sacrament.
(INVOCATION)
Send down upon this sacrifice your Holy Spirit. May He declare the Bread we eat to be the Body of Christ,and the cup we drink to be the blood of Christ. May He fill me with His presence to make me worthy of Thy promises, and obtain for me life everlasting.
(PETITIONS)
May my reception of this Eucharist bring thee honor and glory, health to my soul, and deliverance from all my evils. I embrace Thee, my sole good. May I always be happily united to Thee forevermore. I beseech Thee- who hast commanded that thy Holy Sacrifice be perpetuated daily on the all the Altars throughout the world- to perpetuate Thy Holy Sacrifice also on the Altar of my Heart. May it nourish, comfort, and enliven my sickly soul. Save me from the darkness of false doctrine bypreventing me from faltering on my way to the heavenly inheritance Thou hast promised me.
(OFFERING)
Gracious God after whom my hart and soul panteths,In union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer this Mass for: STATE YOUR INTENTION(s). Grant that the insurmountable graces hidden behind this Eucharistic Celebration be directed to these intentions; as Thou willest.
(THANKSGIVING)
Jesus, I thank Thee for giving me Thy Sacred Body and Blood-the pledge of my redemption and the Victim of my ransom-under the veil of this Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
(PRAYER OF CONFIDENCE)
Grant that I may one day see Thee face to face. May nothing in life, or death separate me from Thee. AMEN.
A compilation from the prayers of St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas. Includes my own compositions.
Labels: Liturgy, Photos, Prayer, Spirituality
Thursday, July 12, 2007
A Model Priest: St. Fr. Francis A. Fasani
Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives. Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts. God calls each one of us to be a saint.
Background
Born and raised in southern Italy, Francis Anthony was a pious and reserved youth who joined the Order at age 14. During the novitiate year he befriended a gregarious novice, Blessed Antonio Lucci. Bl. Antonio Lucci told him that "the fastest way to become a saint was through laughter." These two young friars remained friends and witnessed the importance of close fraternal bonds in the sanctification of self and the world.
Spirituality
St. Francis Fasini was loving, devout and penitential. He was a sought-after confessor and preacher. One witness at the canonical hearings regarding Francesco’s holiness testified, "In his preaching he spoke in a familiar way, filled as he was with the love of God and neighbor; fired by the Spirit, he made use of the words and deed of Holy Scripture, stirring his listeners and moving them to do penance." It is no doubt then, that he is one of the most famous preachers in the Franciscan world.
It was said in Lucera: "Whoever wants to see how St. Francis looked while he was alive should come to see Padre Maestro." In imitation of St. Francis he built his religious life on the basis of a generous participation in the mysteries of Christ through the most faithful practice of the evangelical counsels, which he considered to be a radical expression of perfect charity. In his constant prayers, inflamed with seraphic love, he called out to God, saying to Him: "O Highest Love, Immense Love, Eternal Love, Infinite Love."
Shepherd
The priestly life of Father Anthony Fasani is a splendid testimony to fidelity and dedication to the mission given to all priests in the Church. It is their duty-as Vatican Council II so vigorously confirms-to promote "the glory of God the Father in Christ by their ministry and their life" (PO, 2).
The duty which falls to all priests "to invite all people to conversion and holiness" (PO, 4) was carried out by Fr. Fasani through a type of preaching based on the scriptures that was well prepared, persuasive, and had the particular purpose, as one witness recalled, "of rooting out vices and sins and planting in their place goodness and the exercise of virtue."
As a worthy ministry of "the one who uninterruptedly exercises his priestly mission for us in the Liturgy through the Spirit" (PO, 5), Fr. Fasani dedicated himself with zeal-especially the administration of the sacrament of Penance and the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. "He heard the confession of every type of person," asserted a witness, "with the greatest patience and kindness on his face". He was charitable and welcoming to all, giving as his reason the hope of being able one day to say to the Lord: "I was indulgent, I don't deny it; but it was You who taught me to be so."
He visited and comforted the sick, exhorting them to seek reasons for hope and resignation in the goodness of God. The spiritual care of the imprisoned, an apostolate given him by the bishop of Lucera, permitted him to visit them daily and to exhort them to trust in the merciful love of God. He was given the responsibility of assisting those condemned to death in their last moments.
Eucharistic Priest
The most holy Eucharist was the summit of his religious life and wholly represented the goal toward which be ordered his entire priestly ministry. In fact, he always considered the Eucharist "the source and summit of evangelization," and that the faithful were "fully incorporated into the Body of Christ through the Eucharist" (PO, 5). A fervent minister of the Eucharist, Fr. Fasani celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass with an intense ardor that lifted and nourished his spirit while at the same time it edified all who were present. In his preaching he inculcated in the faithful the love of the Eucharist, promoting even daily communion.
This Is My Paradise
When Fr. Fasani was taken by his final illness in 1742, he wanted to offer it to the Lord in a spirit of perfect joy, with that same expression with which he had always offered God all the actions of his life: "The Will of God: that is my Paradise." On November 2 of the same year, comforted by the holy sacraments and the protection of the Immaculate Virgin Mary for which he prayed, Fr. Francis Anthony Fasani returned his soul to God in the friary of the city where he was born and where, for thirty-five years, he showed himself a faithful witness to Christ.
At his death in Lucera, children ran through the streets and cried out, "The saint is dead! The saint is dead!"
Conclusion
The values of the sacred ministry of the Roman Catholic Priesthood were totally fulfilled in the priestly life of Fr. Francis Anthony Fasani. Vatican Council II expresses this the following terms: "Priests, whether they devote themselves to prayer and adoration, to the preaching of the Word, to offering the Eucharistic Sacrifice and administering the other sacraments, or to carrying out other ministries in the service of mankind, always contribute to the increase of the glory of God and at the same time to enriching mankind with divine life" (PO, 2).
Eventually we become what we choose. If we choose stinginess, we become stingy. If we choose compassion, we become compassionate. The holiness of Francesco Antonio Fasani resulted from his many small decisions to cooperate with God’s grace.
References
- Vatican News Service
- American Catholic Online
Labels: Eucharist, Liturgy, Saints
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Ad Orientum & Versus Populum
Instruction of the Liturgy issued by the Sacred Congregation of Rites on October 16, 1964.
95. Reservation of the Most Holy Eucharist
The most holy Eucharist shall be reserved in a solid and inviolable tabernacle placed in the middle of the main altar or of a minor, but truly outstanding, altar, or, according to lawful customs, and in particular cases approved by the local ordinary, in some other noble and properly adorned part of the Church. It is lawful to celebrate Mass facing the people even if there is a tabernacle, small but suitable, on the altar.
Cardinal Jorge Medina Estevez, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments,
"Whatever may be the position of the celebrating priest, it is clear that the Eucharistic Sacrifice is offered to the one and triune God, and that the principal, eternal, and high priest is Jesus Christ, who acts through the ministry of the priest who visibly presides as His instrument. The liturgical assembly participates in the celebration in virtue of the common priesthood of the faithful which requires the ministry of the ordained priest to be exercised in the Eucharistic Synaxis. The physical position, especially with respect to the communication among the various members of the assembly, must be distinguished from the interior spiritual orientation of all. It would be a grave error to imagine that the principal orientation of the sacrificial action is [toward] the community. If the priest celebrates versus populum, which is a legitimate and often advisable, his spiritual attitude ought always to be versus Deum per Jesus Christum [toward God through Jesus Christ], as representative of the entire Church. The Church as well, which takes concrete form in the assembly which participates, is entirely turned versus Deum [towards God] as its first spiritual movement."
Cardinal Schonborn FAITH Magazine May-June 2007,
"Both directions of celebration are justified and neither should be suspected or “ideologized” . Mass isn’t celebrated “to the people” or “to the wall”, but to God through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit. The celebration turned “to the people” has the meaning that we all, priests and laypeople, gather around Christ who symbolizes the altar and whose Body and Blood become present on the altar. The celebration “with the back to the people” is not a turning away from the faithful but facing in the same direction in prayer, expressive of the path we walk towards God as pilgrims, His wandering people."
Labels: Ad Orientum/Versus Populum, Altar, Liturgy, Official Documents, Quote, Quotes, Sacred Congregation of Rites, Second Vatican Council, Tabernacle
Conversion’s storm – Evangelical returns to the faith after not be able to explain why he wasn’t a Catholic
(By Tim Drake)
Emphasis in red completely mine
NORTH HAVEN, Conn. (National Catholic Register) – Until a few weeks ago, Francis Beckwith served as president of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS), an association of 4,300 Protestant theologians. That was until he made the announcement on the Right Reason blog of his return to the Catholic faith of his youth.
Beckwith returned to the church after 32 years as an evangelical. The online “storm” that followed led Beckwith to resign as president of the prestigious society.
He serves as associate professor of church-state studies at Baylor University. He spoke recently to National Catholic Register from his home in Waco, Texas.
National Catholic Register: It’s been a while now since your announcement. Can you believe your reversion is still generating so much online discussion?
No, it’s beyond remarkable. Prior to my announcement, our blog averaged 1,500 hits per day. The weekend after my announcement, it hit 20,000. We’re still getting between 5,000 and 7,000 per day.
National Catholic Register: You were born into a Catholic family. When did you leave the Catholic Church?
I was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1960. My mother, Elizabeth, also born in Brooklyn, is Italian-American. My father, Harold Beckwith, was born in Connecticut. I’m the eldest of their four children. In the mid-1960s we moved to Las Vegas, Nev., where my father worked as an accountant and internal auditor at a number of hotels. In the late 1970s, both he and mother founded Sweets of Las Vegas, a candy business that had two retail stores in the area.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was part of the first generation of Catholics who would have no memory of the church prior to Vatican II. This also meant that I grew up, and attended Catholic schools, during a time in which well-meaning Catholic leaders were testing all sorts of innovations in the church, many of which were deleterious to the proper formation of young people.
On the other hand, there were some very important renewal movements in the church at the time.
The Catholic Charismatic Movement had a profound impact on me.
During my middle school years, while attending Maranatha House, a Jesus People church in downtown Vegas, I also frequented a Catholic Charismatic Bible study. Some of the folks at that Bible study were instrumental in bringing to my parents’ parish three Dominican priests who offered a week-long evening seminar on the Bible and the Christian life. I attended that seminar and was very much taken by the Dominicans’ erudition and deep spirituality, and the love of Jesus that was evident in the way they conducted themselves.
But I was also impressed with the personal warmth and commitment to scripture that I found among charismatic Protestants with whom I had interacted at Maranatha House.
Looking back, and knowing what I know now, I believe that the church’s weakness was presenting the renewal movements as something new and not part of the church’s theological traditions.
For someone like me, who was interested in both the spiritual and intellectual grounding of the Christian faith, I didn’t need the “folk Mass” with cute nuns and hip priests playing “Kumbaya” with guitars, tambourines and harmonicas. And it was all badly done.
After all, we listened to the Byrds, Neil Young and Bob Dylan, and we knew the church just couldn’t compete with them.
But that’s what the church offered to the young people of my day: lousy pop music and a gutted Mass. If they were trying to make Catholicism unattractive to young and inquisitive Catholics, they were succeeding.
What I needed, and what many of us desired, were intelligent and winsome ambassadors for Christ who knew the intellectual basis for the Catholic faith, respected and understood the solemnity and theological truths behind the liturgy, and could explain the renewal movements in light of these.
National Catholic Register: You spent 32 years in the evangelical world. What could Catholics learn from evangelicals?
I learned plenty, and for that reason I do not believe I ceased to be an evangelical when I returned to the church. What I ceased to be was a Protestant. For I believe, as Pope Benedict has preached, that the church itself needs to nurture within it an evangelical spirit. There are, as we know, too many Catholics whose faith needs to be renewed and emboldened.
There is much that I learned as a Protestant evangelical that has left an indelible mark on me and formed the person I am today. For that reason, it accompanies me back to the church.
For instance, because Protestant evangelicals accept much of the great tradition that Catholics take for granted – such as the Catholic creeds and the inspiration of scripture – but without recourse to the church’s authority, they have produced important and significant works in systematic theology and philosophical theology.
Catholics would do well to plumb these works, since in them Protestant evangelicals often provide the biblical and philosophical scaffolding that influenced the church fathers that developed the Catholic creeds as well as the church’s understanding of the Bible as God’s word.
But these evangelicals do so by using contemporary language and addressing contemporary concerns. This will help Catholics understand the reasoning behind the classical doctrines.
In terms of expository preaching, as well as teaching the laity, Protestant evangelicals are without peers in the Christian world.
For instance, it is not unusual for evangelical churches to host major conferences on theological issues in which leading scholars address lay audiences in order to equip them to share their faith with their neighbors, friends, etc. Works by evangelical philosophers and theologians such as [J.P.] Moreland, [Paul] Copan, and William Lane Craig, should be in the library of any serious Catholic who wants to be equipped to respond to contemporary challenges to the Christian faith......
......National Catholic Register: What can evangelicals and Catholics learn from one another?
As I have already noted, I believe that Catholics can learn from evangelical Protestants how to preach, teach and offer support for doctrines and beliefs that Catholics often just leave to authority.
Evangelicals can learn from Catholics that Christianity is a historical faith that did not vanish from the earth between the second and 16th centuries. That is what I mean by “learning from the great tradition.”
Much of what evangelicals think of as the odd beliefs of Catholics have their roots deep in Christian history. This, of course, may not convince a Protestant that these views are correct.
But what it will do is help the Protestant to appreciate that the very same Christians that deliberated over the content of the biblical canon also believed in the Real Presence, purgatory, intercession of the saints and indulgences.
If these Christians, who knew the Bible far better than us, did not think these practices and beliefs “unbiblical,” one should not be so quick to dismiss these practices and beliefs simply because they are outside of one’s Protestant experience.
On the other hand, the fact that many Catholic parishes do not offer the expository preaching and theological teaching to their members found in the best Protestant churches should force Catholics to critically reflect on whether they are adequately evangelizing and equipping their own people to enter a world hostile to the Christian worldview.
We have much to learn from each other.
(Read the entire article here.)
Emphasis in red completely mine
NORTH HAVEN, Conn. (National Catholic Register) – Until a few weeks ago, Francis Beckwith served as president of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS), an association of 4,300 Protestant theologians. That was until he made the announcement on the Right Reason blog of his return to the Catholic faith of his youth.
Beckwith returned to the church after 32 years as an evangelical. The online “storm” that followed led Beckwith to resign as president of the prestigious society.
He serves as associate professor of church-state studies at Baylor University. He spoke recently to National Catholic Register from his home in Waco, Texas.
National Catholic Register: It’s been a while now since your announcement. Can you believe your reversion is still generating so much online discussion?
No, it’s beyond remarkable. Prior to my announcement, our blog averaged 1,500 hits per day. The weekend after my announcement, it hit 20,000. We’re still getting between 5,000 and 7,000 per day.
National Catholic Register: You were born into a Catholic family. When did you leave the Catholic Church?
I was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1960. My mother, Elizabeth, also born in Brooklyn, is Italian-American. My father, Harold Beckwith, was born in Connecticut. I’m the eldest of their four children. In the mid-1960s we moved to Las Vegas, Nev., where my father worked as an accountant and internal auditor at a number of hotels. In the late 1970s, both he and mother founded Sweets of Las Vegas, a candy business that had two retail stores in the area.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was part of the first generation of Catholics who would have no memory of the church prior to Vatican II. This also meant that I grew up, and attended Catholic schools, during a time in which well-meaning Catholic leaders were testing all sorts of innovations in the church, many of which were deleterious to the proper formation of young people.
On the other hand, there were some very important renewal movements in the church at the time.
The Catholic Charismatic Movement had a profound impact on me.
During my middle school years, while attending Maranatha House, a Jesus People church in downtown Vegas, I also frequented a Catholic Charismatic Bible study. Some of the folks at that Bible study were instrumental in bringing to my parents’ parish three Dominican priests who offered a week-long evening seminar on the Bible and the Christian life. I attended that seminar and was very much taken by the Dominicans’ erudition and deep spirituality, and the love of Jesus that was evident in the way they conducted themselves.
But I was also impressed with the personal warmth and commitment to scripture that I found among charismatic Protestants with whom I had interacted at Maranatha House.
Looking back, and knowing what I know now, I believe that the church’s weakness was presenting the renewal movements as something new and not part of the church’s theological traditions.
For someone like me, who was interested in both the spiritual and intellectual grounding of the Christian faith, I didn’t need the “folk Mass” with cute nuns and hip priests playing “Kumbaya” with guitars, tambourines and harmonicas. And it was all badly done.
After all, we listened to the Byrds, Neil Young and Bob Dylan, and we knew the church just couldn’t compete with them.
But that’s what the church offered to the young people of my day: lousy pop music and a gutted Mass. If they were trying to make Catholicism unattractive to young and inquisitive Catholics, they were succeeding.
What I needed, and what many of us desired, were intelligent and winsome ambassadors for Christ who knew the intellectual basis for the Catholic faith, respected and understood the solemnity and theological truths behind the liturgy, and could explain the renewal movements in light of these.
National Catholic Register: You spent 32 years in the evangelical world. What could Catholics learn from evangelicals?
I learned plenty, and for that reason I do not believe I ceased to be an evangelical when I returned to the church. What I ceased to be was a Protestant. For I believe, as Pope Benedict has preached, that the church itself needs to nurture within it an evangelical spirit. There are, as we know, too many Catholics whose faith needs to be renewed and emboldened.
There is much that I learned as a Protestant evangelical that has left an indelible mark on me and formed the person I am today. For that reason, it accompanies me back to the church.
For instance, because Protestant evangelicals accept much of the great tradition that Catholics take for granted – such as the Catholic creeds and the inspiration of scripture – but without recourse to the church’s authority, they have produced important and significant works in systematic theology and philosophical theology.
Catholics would do well to plumb these works, since in them Protestant evangelicals often provide the biblical and philosophical scaffolding that influenced the church fathers that developed the Catholic creeds as well as the church’s understanding of the Bible as God’s word.
But these evangelicals do so by using contemporary language and addressing contemporary concerns. This will help Catholics understand the reasoning behind the classical doctrines.
In terms of expository preaching, as well as teaching the laity, Protestant evangelicals are without peers in the Christian world.
For instance, it is not unusual for evangelical churches to host major conferences on theological issues in which leading scholars address lay audiences in order to equip them to share their faith with their neighbors, friends, etc. Works by evangelical philosophers and theologians such as [J.P.] Moreland, [Paul] Copan, and William Lane Craig, should be in the library of any serious Catholic who wants to be equipped to respond to contemporary challenges to the Christian faith......
......National Catholic Register: What can evangelicals and Catholics learn from one another?
As I have already noted, I believe that Catholics can learn from evangelical Protestants how to preach, teach and offer support for doctrines and beliefs that Catholics often just leave to authority.
Evangelicals can learn from Catholics that Christianity is a historical faith that did not vanish from the earth between the second and 16th centuries. That is what I mean by “learning from the great tradition.”
Much of what evangelicals think of as the odd beliefs of Catholics have their roots deep in Christian history. This, of course, may not convince a Protestant that these views are correct.
But what it will do is help the Protestant to appreciate that the very same Christians that deliberated over the content of the biblical canon also believed in the Real Presence, purgatory, intercession of the saints and indulgences.
If these Christians, who knew the Bible far better than us, did not think these practices and beliefs “unbiblical,” one should not be so quick to dismiss these practices and beliefs simply because they are outside of one’s Protestant experience.
On the other hand, the fact that many Catholic parishes do not offer the expository preaching and theological teaching to their members found in the best Protestant churches should force Catholics to critically reflect on whether they are adequately evangelizing and equipping their own people to enter a world hostile to the Christian worldview.
We have much to learn from each other.
(Read the entire article here.)
Labels: Catholic Belief, Liturgy, Protestants, Second Vatican Council, Testimonials
Summorum Pontificum
This Moto Proprio, according to Rev. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf, via WDTPRS "effectively levels the playing field for people who want to use the older liturgical forms.
Remember: the MP applies to all the sacraments as they were before the Council, not just Holy Mass. It concerns the liturgy, not just Holy Mass. Thus clerics (bishops, priests, deacons), who are obliged to recite the Liturgy of the Hours can use the older Breviarium Romanum as it was in 1962. Benedict is establishing the older form of liturgy, as in was in 1962, as an extraordinary form (forma extraordinaria). The Novus Ordo of the Roman Missal and all other liturgical books remain the ordinary way of celebrating the liturgy.
“Extraordinary”, here, does NOT mean “rare” or “unusual” or “special”. It simply means “out of the common order”. If we turn to how the Church uses Latin in, for example, a pretty good Latinist, St. Jerome, the adverb extraordinarie means “with excessive frequency” (cf. On Ephesians 1 ad. 2, 13). It cannot be argued legitimately from the word “extraordinary” that use of the older forms must necessarily be “rare”. It can be quite regular, depending on the circumstances, while in the larger scheme of things the Novus Ordo remains now the usual way things are done.
The Motu Proprio responds to THREE GROUPS of people:
1) Followers of the SSPX, for whom this form of Mass is a “mark of identity”, even though there are also deeper theological reasons for that break.
2) There are many lay people who also remember the older form of Mass from before the changes. And you don’t have to be to 80 to remember those days. There are people in the 40’s and 50’s who remember living with the old Mass. They have always remained attached to the old Mass or have regained a longing for it.
3) There are those who were neither in a separated group nor remember the pre-Conciliar Mass. These are younger people who have discovered the older form.
As a result, it is unacceptable to suggest that these provisions were made merely to accomodate a bunch of nostalgic old foggies who can’t get with the program. The provisions were made with anyone in mind who wants older forms, for any decent reason. People who want to avail of this extraordinary use are not second rate citizens.
They may not be treated any longer like the nutty aunt in the attic."
Remember: the MP applies to all the sacraments as they were before the Council, not just Holy Mass. It concerns the liturgy, not just Holy Mass. Thus clerics (bishops, priests, deacons), who are obliged to recite the Liturgy of the Hours can use the older Breviarium Romanum as it was in 1962. Benedict is establishing the older form of liturgy, as in was in 1962, as an extraordinary form (forma extraordinaria). The Novus Ordo of the Roman Missal and all other liturgical books remain the ordinary way of celebrating the liturgy.
“Extraordinary”, here, does NOT mean “rare” or “unusual” or “special”. It simply means “out of the common order”. If we turn to how the Church uses Latin in, for example, a pretty good Latinist, St. Jerome, the adverb extraordinarie means “with excessive frequency” (cf. On Ephesians 1 ad. 2, 13). It cannot be argued legitimately from the word “extraordinary” that use of the older forms must necessarily be “rare”. It can be quite regular, depending on the circumstances, while in the larger scheme of things the Novus Ordo remains now the usual way things are done.
The Motu Proprio responds to THREE GROUPS of people:
1) Followers of the SSPX, for whom this form of Mass is a “mark of identity”, even though there are also deeper theological reasons for that break.
2) There are many lay people who also remember the older form of Mass from before the changes. And you don’t have to be to 80 to remember those days. There are people in the 40’s and 50’s who remember living with the old Mass. They have always remained attached to the old Mass or have regained a longing for it.
3) There are those who were neither in a separated group nor remember the pre-Conciliar Mass. These are younger people who have discovered the older form.
As a result, it is unacceptable to suggest that these provisions were made merely to accomodate a bunch of nostalgic old foggies who can’t get with the program. The provisions were made with anyone in mind who wants older forms, for any decent reason. People who want to avail of this extraordinary use are not second rate citizens.
They may not be treated any longer like the nutty aunt in the attic."
The "reform of the reform"
Phil Lawler writes: Perhaps the most intriguing line in the Pope's explanatory letter accompanying the motu proprio comes immediately after he notes that "the two forms of the usage of the Roman rite can be mutually enriching." The Pope says that new Prefaces, and celebrations for some new saints, should be added to the 1962 Missal. Then he adds: "The Ecclesia Dei ommission, in contact with various bodies devoted to the usus antiquior, will study the practical possibilities in this regard."
That passage confirms that Pope Benedict sees Summorum Pontificum as one necessary step in a long-term reform of the liturgy. He apparently hopes that some elements of the new Novus Ordo liturgy will be integrated into the old Mass, while as some aspects of the extraordinary form will enrich the ordinary. In the long term, one suspects, the Pope sees a convergence of the two forms, bringing about the true organic reform of the liturgy that Vatican II envisioned. "In the history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture," the Pope writes. "What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church’s faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place."
Celebration!
To celebrate this great gift from H.H. Pope Benedict XVI, Fr. Tim of The Hermeneutic of Continuity has come up with this video:
"It is, therefore, permissible to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Mass following the typical edition of the Roman Missal promulgated by Bl. John XXIII in 1962 and never abrogated, as an extraordinary form of the Liturgy of the Church."
Links
Labels: Holy Father, Liturgy, Summorum Pontificum, Video
The Examen
The Examen or Examination of Conscience is a daily prayerful reflection on our service of God that can be made before the recitation of the Night Office or before retiring for the day.
The Examen comes in two parts: The General Examen and the Particular Examen.
The general examen, as the name implies, is a general overview of my moral behavior during the past day. We must assume that our conduct has been both praiseworthy and blameworthy. We should also look forward to the next day and prepare ourselves beforehand on how we should do God's will in the immediate future that awaits us.
The particular examen of conscience follows logically on the general examen. Some are more prone to pride than to lust. Some are more prone to anger than to greed. Some are more prone to envy than to sloth. In fact, each one of us changes from time to time in what failure of our moral conduct is dominant, depending on the circumstances and persons who enter our lives.
The particular examen concentrates on coping with the predominant moral weakness of our own personality.
Below is a prayer I composed. For each of the five wounds of Christ and the elevation of the Cross, we reflect on our obligations to God and to Man. The title Heart to God, Hand to Man- the motto of the Salvation Army- reminds us that our actions must always be two pronged.
HEART TO GOD, HAND TO MAN
(For Private Use)
1) General Examen: Thanksgiving, Failures, Resolutions
[Thank the Lord for the graces He has given to us, whether pleasant or painful]
BEHOLD, O kind and most sweet Jesus, I cast myself upon my knees in Thy sight. With deep affection and grief of soul, I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate Thy crucifixion.
For the times I have failed to keep thy passion in my mind and ignored the cries of my neighbors, Lord Jesus, thy hallowed crown was pierced.
For the times I failed to lift my hands to thee in worship and refused to lend assistance to my neighbors, Lord Jesus, thy sacred palms were pierced.
For the times I failed to love thee and my neighbors as thou hast commanded, Lord Jesus, thy precious side was opened.
For the times I failed to live the life of Christian poverty- by being tempted by material possessions- and not coming to the aid of my neighbors, Lord Jesus, thy linen was stripped away.
For the times I walked away from thee or from my needy neighbors, Lord Jesus, thy anointed feet were pierced.
For the times I failed to live a life of humility, Lord Jesus, thou went through the greatest mock trial and was crucified on Calvary
I BESEECH Thee therefore, my sweet Lord Jesus Christ to grant that thy Passion may be to me a power by which I may be strengthened, protected, and defended. May thy five sacred wounds be to me food and drink, by which I may be nourished, inebriated, and overjoyed. May the sprinkling of Thy Blood be to me the washing of my sins. May Thy death prove to me life eternal. Thy cross be to me an everlasting glory. In these be my refreshment, my joy, my preservation, and sweetness of heart. Who livest and reignest for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Particular Examem: Predominant Tendencies
[Examine predominant moral weaknesses in your own personality]
3) Concluding: Supplication for Grace and Salvation
[ALL: Confeitor* V/ Miseratur**… R/ Amen]
*Note: Any one of the formulas (Rites A, B, C i-viii) given in the Missal may be used.
Some Formularies
- Rite A
ALL: I confess to Almighty God,
and to you here present
that I have sinned through my own fault
[Strike Beast Thrice]
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done,
and in what I have failed to do;
and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin,
all the angels and saints,
and you, here present,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
-OR-
ALL: I confess to Almighty God,
o blessed Mary ever virgin,
to blessed Michael the archangel,
to blessed John the Baptist,
to the holy apostles Peter and Paul,
to all the saints and to you, brethren,
that I have sinned exceedingly in thought, word and deed:
[Strike Beast Thrice]
through my fault, through my fault, through my own most grievous fault.
Therefore I beseech blessed Mary ever Virgin,
blessed Michael the archangel,
blessed John the Baptist,
the holy apostles Peter and Paul,
all the saints and you, brethren,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
(Missal of Bl. John XXIII)
V/ May Almighty God have mercy on me,
forgive me my sins,
and bring me to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
- Rite C(i)
C/ You were sent to heal the contrite:
P/ Kyrie eleison
C/ You came to call sinners:
P/ Christe eleison
C/ You plead for us at the right hand of the Father:
P/ Kyrie eleison
V/ May Almighty God have mercy on me,
forgive me my sins,
and bring me to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
- Anglican Use Liturgy, Rite 1 (With Ecclesiatical Approvial)
ALL: Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, maker of all things, judge of all men: We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, which we from time to time most grievously have committed, by thought, word, and deed, against thy divine Majesty, provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, and are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; the remebrance of them is greivous unto us, the burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; for thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ's sake, forgive us all that is past; and grant that we may ever hereafter serve and please thee in newness of life, to the honor and glory of thy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
V/ May Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who of his great mercy hath promised forgiveness of sins to all those who with hearty repentance and true faith turn to him, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and bring us to everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
References
- Roman Catholic Daily Missal, Angelus Press
[Texts: "Behold" & "I Beseech"] - The Sunday Missal, Collins Liturgical Press
[Formularies] - The Book of Divine Worship (Anglican Use Liturgy)
- Examen of Conscience
[Definations/Introduction]
Labels: Divine Office/Liturgy of the Hours, Examen, Prayer, Spirituality
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Initium Sancti Evangelii Secundum N.
During this evening's Eucharistic Sacrifice, the celebrant used these words to introduce the Gospel, "May the proclaimation of the Holy Gospel accroding to N. be always on our minds, on our lips and in our hearts." Though I do not know if it was liturgically correct for him to do that, I felt that it was a good initiative as we often sign our forehead, mouth and breast with the cross without recalling what it really means.
We make these three crosses as a declaration never to be ashamed of the word of God, that we are ready to confess it by the word of mouth, and that we love it with all our heart.
We should always keep the word of God in our hearts, as well on our lips,
since it is important to not only know the Gospel but also to live it.
Labels: Catholic Belief, Gospel, Liturgy, LiturgyPlus
Title for Motu Proprio: Summorum Pontificum
(via CWN)
A papal document widening use of the 1962 Roman Missal will be released on July 7, the Roman news agency I Media says, confirming reports that circulated late in June.
The motu proprio will be entitled Summorum Pontificum, I Media adds. The title of the Pope's document had not previously been mentioned in the media, despite numerous reports of its existence and intense speculation over its contents.
The German-language agency Kath.net reported on June 27 that the document by Pope Benedict XVI will be released on Saturday, July 7. The Kath.net story appeared after a special Vatican meeting in which a small group of prelates were briefed about the contents of the motu proprio. The Vatican press office later confirmed that the meeting had taken place, but did not confirm the publication date for the document.
The motu proprio is reportedly a 3-page document. It will be released in conjunction with a 4-page explanatory letter in which the Pope sets out his reason for encouraging the use of the pre-conciliar liturgy as an "extraordinary" form of the Latin rite.
A papal document widening use of the 1962 Roman Missal will be released on July 7, the Roman news agency I Media says, confirming reports that circulated late in June.
The motu proprio will be entitled Summorum Pontificum, I Media adds. The title of the Pope's document had not previously been mentioned in the media, despite numerous reports of its existence and intense speculation over its contents.
The German-language agency Kath.net reported on June 27 that the document by Pope Benedict XVI will be released on Saturday, July 7. The Kath.net story appeared after a special Vatican meeting in which a small group of prelates were briefed about the contents of the motu proprio. The Vatican press office later confirmed that the meeting had taken place, but did not confirm the publication date for the document.
The motu proprio is reportedly a 3-page document. It will be released in conjunction with a 4-page explanatory letter in which the Pope sets out his reason for encouraging the use of the pre-conciliar liturgy as an "extraordinary" form of the Latin rite.
Labels: Holy Father, Liturgy, News, Summorum Pontificum, Vatican
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Singapore Pastoral Institute: Diploma in Sacred Scripture
Yesterday, I commenced my first lesson at the Singapore Pastoral Institute (SPI). The course I applied for is the third and last module of the Diploma course SPI offered some three years back. Lasting 12 sessions- 2 hours each-, this last module covers the Letter to the Hebrews as well as the Book of Revelation.
The course is conducted by local scripture scholar, Rev. Fr. Ambrose Vaz. It is no coincidence that Fr. Vaz,- brother of Msgr. Eugene Vaz- is the one of the Formators at St. Francis Xavier's Major Semionary.
Having missed part I and II, I'll not be receiving any certification for this course.
Below are some notes on the History/Background of the the Letter to the Hebrews and explaination of the Chapters 1 to 4. Enjoy!
Labels: Courses, Hebrews, Personal, Sacred Scripture, Singapore Pastoral Institute
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Confession: St. Mary of the Angels
This morning, I took 2 of my female cousins- 11 and 13 respectively- to the Franciscan Church of St. Mary of the Angels, Bukit Batok. Both of them had not been attending Sunday Mass regularly because of their parents lack of enthusiasm for Church and peer pressure to attend Protestant services at the Church of Singapore, Bukit Timah. Recently, they have been asking me to take them to Mass.
On the way to the parish, I explained to them to importance of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the importance of participating in Sunday Mass, and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Their confessor was Assistant Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Joseph Nasanathan. Both came out of the confessional with tears welling from their eyes (Fr. had packets of tissues in hand!). Fr. Joseph, spent approximately 10-15 minutes with each of them. Overall, I felt that their first confession was indeed a grace filled one; with clear and decisive rejection of the sins committed, out of their love for God.
As I reflect on the homily by Fr. Jivan Daniel (more of a Gospel reflection; Fr. Daniel wasn't feeling too well), the selection of hymns, and the scripture passages, I can clearly see the gracious hand of God in this matter. Praise Him!
Now on another matter, as I was waiting for my cousins in the Parish Office, Parish Priest Fr. John-Paul Tan approached me and struck up a conservation. We chatted as if we'd known one another rather well; he thought that I was his parishioner. Being a Canon Lawyer, he was excited to know that I was taking legal studies myself. He wanted me to form a group of Catholic Students in my diploma course for application to the Catholic Lawyers Guild!
One thing I found great about St. Mary's was that their priests do not 'run away' after Mass but stay behind and mingle with the faithful. I think our parishes need to have more of such interection to make Catholics feel more welcomed and at home and give them a sense of belonging.
LiturgyPlus!: Fr. Daniel incenses the gifts in the old cross-circular fashion.
Labels: Canon Law, Confession, Liturgy, Personal, Rants/Musings/Thoughts, Testimonials, Thanksgiving
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