I am beginning to enjoy prayer. I have been saying five decade novenas of the Rosary. I had a false start when I omitted a day, so I began again. Now I am wrapping up my second novena. I am looking forward to my prayer time. I do need prayer. I will begin to read Scripture, too. Little baby steps are my way.
St. Augustine: 'the greatest sin of man is that he enjoys the things he should use and uses the things he should enjoy.'
I hope to get my using and enjoying entirely right this time. Missteps can be overcome and, with God's Grace, will be. Eutreya!!!(forward with courage- a cry associated with El Camino de Compostela de Santiago, a pilgrims' route to the Church of St James across Northern
Spain though, I am told, not used much on that pilgrimage in present day. Still a great rallying cry- 'Forward with courage!"-EUTREYA!!!)
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
'Once' and Natalie Cole
I watched an autobiographical movie on Natalie Cole the other morning. She narrates part of the movie and then takes over the lead role (as herself) after the drug rehab which helps her to grief for the death of her father at about the age of 14. (She wrote the movie.) It was a touching journey and remarkably close to, in many ways, mine: She began college in 1968, so did I; She was in boarding school when her father died, me, too; Her father's death was a shock to her (she did not know the severity of his illness,- I was shocked, though my father was killed in a car crash; She was 14 or 15. I was 14; She continued to go to boarding school, though she did not want to. I went to another boarding school. I didn't want to, but voiced no opinion, just did it. She got way off track in college far from her true pain, me, too.
There the similarities end. She had talent, got fame and money, but we both found depth in rehab, though she was there for cocaine, we were both there for surpressed grief. I was touched by her tale. I got a bit closer to letting the depth of my grief out. She apparently released her great grief.
I enjoyed the movie 'Once'. It is a rock musical filmed in Dublin, Ireland. It shows a deep love between a young man and a young woman. Both help each other fulfill their dreams and they don't have sex, though the guy wants to initially, then he backs off and enjoys the relationship. They respect each other and reach a depth of intimacy through music and chastity that they would not have attained through sex.
There are some great characters in the movie which makes a movie good in my eyes: the father of the boy is very good, hard working and supportive of his son; the drummer in the studio band is so good; the studio tech shows respect through his expected boredom. He is very sharp. The piano is great, as is the guitar with the hole in its body from all of the late night therapy seesions with the boy. I love compositions and this movie filled a hole nicely in me. I would love to mix something, but what!!?? (waffle batter?)
Movies are therapy. There is nothing like a good story and autobiographies are sooooo interesting.
There the similarities end. She had talent, got fame and money, but we both found depth in rehab, though she was there for cocaine, we were both there for surpressed grief. I was touched by her tale. I got a bit closer to letting the depth of my grief out. She apparently released her great grief.
I enjoyed the movie 'Once'. It is a rock musical filmed in Dublin, Ireland. It shows a deep love between a young man and a young woman. Both help each other fulfill their dreams and they don't have sex, though the guy wants to initially, then he backs off and enjoys the relationship. They respect each other and reach a depth of intimacy through music and chastity that they would not have attained through sex.
There are some great characters in the movie which makes a movie good in my eyes: the father of the boy is very good, hard working and supportive of his son; the drummer in the studio band is so good; the studio tech shows respect through his expected boredom. He is very sharp. The piano is great, as is the guitar with the hole in its body from all of the late night therapy seesions with the boy. I love compositions and this movie filled a hole nicely in me. I would love to mix something, but what!!?? (waffle batter?)
Movies are therapy. There is nothing like a good story and autobiographies are sooooo interesting.
Monday, July 23, 2007
One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic
It is hard to get people from Faith in Christ to the Catholic Church, but God can do that. We can only plant a seed. Last night Van, a self proclaimed Christian in his own rite, claimed to believe in the Word of God. I proceeded to say that if that were the case then he would believe in the Church because Christ established the Church and this is clearly written about in the Gospel. He was not convinced. He talked of the faults and falls of Man and I answered with the Divine and the human elements of the Church: the Divine always True, the human always in need of reform, but, still, the miracle that the Church was still around, despite Man. Butting heads doesn't lead to conversion, for the most part, but trying to lead with reason does, though usually what seems like reason from my perspective looks like self righteousness from the non Catholic's perspective. Still, it is worth the energy for the clarity and for the other soul, as well as my soul.
I am not sure where I would send a man interested in the Catholic Church at this point. I sit in the Tridentine Mass and reflect and absorb. I am getting a prayer life, again. I was told from the pulp Sunday to read Scripture. I will. I have the Rosary. I have the Mass, again. It seems like a new day, though I am well aware that the winds can change in a harsh manner. I know that Faith is beyond consolation. I know that Hope is always present and I am learning more and more about Charity each day.
I am not sure where I would send a man interested in the Catholic Church at this point. I sit in the Tridentine Mass and reflect and absorb. I am getting a prayer life, again. I was told from the pulp Sunday to read Scripture. I will. I have the Rosary. I have the Mass, again. It seems like a new day, though I am well aware that the winds can change in a harsh manner. I know that Faith is beyond consolation. I know that Hope is always present and I am learning more and more about Charity each day.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
spiritual warfare
I realize the importance of prayer, again, as I read 'Lepanto' edited by Dale Ahlquist. Pope Pius V knew how important prayer was in the naval battle at Lepanto. Many Catholics were praying for the Catholic warriors as they faced the Moslem aggressors before they could make a direct attack on Rome, the Red Apple. This Battle was spiritual, as well as bloody.
I was reminded of what happened in the movie 'Cinderella Man' when Jim Braddock, Russell Crowe, went in to fight for the Heavyweight Championship of the world. It was the time of the depression and he was a ray of hope to many people. Many Catholics were in Churches praying for him in this fight. Braddock was an underdog whom many thought would lose his life in this fight. It didn't happen. He won just as the Catholic fleet won, as the underdog, at Lepanto. Deo Gratias.
Now Catholics face their own battles in the 21st century and so does the church. the power of prayer is still Man's greatest gift in times of crisis. This is a time for prayer. There is Faith on earth. There are big battles lurking.
I was reminded of what happened in the movie 'Cinderella Man' when Jim Braddock, Russell Crowe, went in to fight for the Heavyweight Championship of the world. It was the time of the depression and he was a ray of hope to many people. Many Catholics were in Churches praying for him in this fight. Braddock was an underdog whom many thought would lose his life in this fight. It didn't happen. He won just as the Catholic fleet won, as the underdog, at Lepanto. Deo Gratias.
Now Catholics face their own battles in the 21st century and so does the church. the power of prayer is still Man's greatest gift in times of crisis. This is a time for prayer. There is Faith on earth. There are big battles lurking.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Time doesn't change substance
The Tridentine Mass had been around for well over a thousand years, probably more than 1,500, when it began to be discontinued in the Latin Rite in 1967 by Paul VI. It was the Mass of St Anselm, St Dominic, St Francis, St. Thomas Aquinas, Dante, St Joan of Arc, St Thomas Moore, St Ignatius, St Francis Xavier, St Isaac Jogues, St Theresa. Then, suddenly, it was not good enough. As a matter of fact it was disallowed in a majority of Churches. Those who loved this Mass were scoffed at and, eventually, pushed out of the church doors.
I came into the Tridentine Masses after I had been slowed down in my desire to convert from the Episcopal Church, which according to a Catholic priest, 'was very close to the Catholic Church'. Later this same priest, whom I was taking catechism from, apologized for blessing a lady's Rosary with Holy Water, but, he said, 'It made her feel better.' God led me to a man who had been a convert and had remained true to the Tridentine Mass and Catholic doctrine, regardless of what the Novus Ordo church was preaching. He instructed me in Catholic doctrine and explained the Mass to me. Then I found a priest who had been forced out of his parish because he wanted the Tridentine Mass and he said the Tridentine Mass. He took early retirement and abuse from parishioners over the Mass, over the Catholic school dress code, over the Baltimore catechism, etc.
Now the Tridentine Mass is being allowed back into the Church after 40 years of the Novus Ordo. There was a conflict. There is a conflict between the two and this conflict will not go away. It will continue to cause a division which will eventually be a gulf. We are meant to seek God's Guidance. I have to stand with the Mass which St Pius V tried to preserve until the End of Time.
Dale Ahlquist writes in his edition of GK Chesterton's 'Lepanto': 'The Sultan and the writer both smile. Cervantes, however, smiles 'not as Sultans smile' because the Sultan's smile is a sneer, and the writer's smile is a laugh, which for Chesterton sums up the whole difference between fate and free will. Chesterton, the jolly journalist, is never far from laughter.' This, to my mind, is the difference between the consecration of the Wine in the Novus Ordo and in the Tridentine Mass. The Novus Ordo promotes fate, the Tridentine Mass promotes free will.
The Council of Trent expressed clearly why 'for you and for many' was used in the Consecration. It was for the Apostles and for all others who accepted this Sacrifice, for the many who used their free will to accept God's Sacrifice. The Novus Ordo uses 'for all' which takes out free will and means that we are all to be saved. Will is not involved here. It is just Man's fate to be saved. How convenient. How unCatholic.
This, to my mind, is enough to make the Novus Ordo invalid, no Mass. The Consecration is the Heart of the Sacrament of the Mass and the Novus Ordo has it just wrong. It is invalid. I go with the many Saints who received Christ in the Tridentine Mass and with St Pius V who has protected it. I hope with free will to be able to laugh with Chesterton. I hope to be able to fight like St Pius V. Laus tibi Christe.
I came into the Tridentine Masses after I had been slowed down in my desire to convert from the Episcopal Church, which according to a Catholic priest, 'was very close to the Catholic Church'. Later this same priest, whom I was taking catechism from, apologized for blessing a lady's Rosary with Holy Water, but, he said, 'It made her feel better.' God led me to a man who had been a convert and had remained true to the Tridentine Mass and Catholic doctrine, regardless of what the Novus Ordo church was preaching. He instructed me in Catholic doctrine and explained the Mass to me. Then I found a priest who had been forced out of his parish because he wanted the Tridentine Mass and he said the Tridentine Mass. He took early retirement and abuse from parishioners over the Mass, over the Catholic school dress code, over the Baltimore catechism, etc.
Now the Tridentine Mass is being allowed back into the Church after 40 years of the Novus Ordo. There was a conflict. There is a conflict between the two and this conflict will not go away. It will continue to cause a division which will eventually be a gulf. We are meant to seek God's Guidance. I have to stand with the Mass which St Pius V tried to preserve until the End of Time.
Dale Ahlquist writes in his edition of GK Chesterton's 'Lepanto': 'The Sultan and the writer both smile. Cervantes, however, smiles 'not as Sultans smile' because the Sultan's smile is a sneer, and the writer's smile is a laugh, which for Chesterton sums up the whole difference between fate and free will. Chesterton, the jolly journalist, is never far from laughter.' This, to my mind, is the difference between the consecration of the Wine in the Novus Ordo and in the Tridentine Mass. The Novus Ordo promotes fate, the Tridentine Mass promotes free will.
The Council of Trent expressed clearly why 'for you and for many' was used in the Consecration. It was for the Apostles and for all others who accepted this Sacrifice, for the many who used their free will to accept God's Sacrifice. The Novus Ordo uses 'for all' which takes out free will and means that we are all to be saved. Will is not involved here. It is just Man's fate to be saved. How convenient. How unCatholic.
This, to my mind, is enough to make the Novus Ordo invalid, no Mass. The Consecration is the Heart of the Sacrament of the Mass and the Novus Ordo has it just wrong. It is invalid. I go with the many Saints who received Christ in the Tridentine Mass and with St Pius V who has protected it. I hope with free will to be able to laugh with Chesterton. I hope to be able to fight like St Pius V. Laus tibi Christe.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Sense of loss
I feel a sense of loss today. It is in my heart, so I try to face it. I felt a bit humiliated because I made a comment on a blog in which I just repeated what the author had already written. I did this without realizing it. Later I thought: 'How stupid.' but I pushed on: 'At least I am getting involved.' A year ago I would not have, could not have written a comment on a blog.
A friend's son was dying of cancer and he had a blog where he, his wife and his mom made comments. I considered commenting a few times, but did not, could not. I thought: 'It is family. It is personal. What can I add?' Well, I have gone beyond that now. (I might even be able to write or talk with someone who has just lost a loved one. This I was not able to do. It was too imaginary for me.) I put down comments and some foolish ones. I feel bad, but this is living. I had buried my mind and heart with the death of my father in 1963, though I became Catholic in 1976 much of my life, especially my emotional life, was gone. Jesus choose a visit to my brother, who is a Scientologist in LA, to open my mind and heart up in April of 2005 to show me that life had gone on, that my 'little brother' had grown up and that I had, too.
In April of 2005 I toured the drug rehabs that my brother ran and at the last one it hit me that my brother was in charge of this, that he was helping others restore their lives. This had a great deal to do with his efforts. I realized that I needed rehab for grieve and that at that moment I was getting rehab for grief. I wound up, a year later spending 31/2 weeks at a Narconon rehab center where I saw that my drug was grief and where I fought through some of the walls that I had set up to preserve my life as a fourteen year old. I got to know my brother better through my time at this rehab center, though he was not there. God did bless me.
Now I struggle to put my heart and mind on the line. It often isn't easy, but it isn't death, either. Deo Gratias
A friend's son was dying of cancer and he had a blog where he, his wife and his mom made comments. I considered commenting a few times, but did not, could not. I thought: 'It is family. It is personal. What can I add?' Well, I have gone beyond that now. (I might even be able to write or talk with someone who has just lost a loved one. This I was not able to do. It was too imaginary for me.) I put down comments and some foolish ones. I feel bad, but this is living. I had buried my mind and heart with the death of my father in 1963, though I became Catholic in 1976 much of my life, especially my emotional life, was gone. Jesus choose a visit to my brother, who is a Scientologist in LA, to open my mind and heart up in April of 2005 to show me that life had gone on, that my 'little brother' had grown up and that I had, too.
In April of 2005 I toured the drug rehabs that my brother ran and at the last one it hit me that my brother was in charge of this, that he was helping others restore their lives. This had a great deal to do with his efforts. I realized that I needed rehab for grieve and that at that moment I was getting rehab for grief. I wound up, a year later spending 31/2 weeks at a Narconon rehab center where I saw that my drug was grief and where I fought through some of the walls that I had set up to preserve my life as a fourteen year old. I got to know my brother better through my time at this rehab center, though he was not there. God did bless me.
Now I struggle to put my heart and mind on the line. It often isn't easy, but it isn't death, either. Deo Gratias
Monday, July 16, 2007
olio for the Bread
I just watched 'Long, Hot Summer' with Orson Welles, Joan Woodward and Paul Newman. What a beautiful movie. The characters find interior beauty in each other that is not apparent initially. The father, Pa Varna, is particularly wise and kind under his redneck facade. Yes, we are all creatures of God meant for God. Oh, let us choose this end and love Our Lord. Let God light our insides.
It does seem that there will be a deep spiritual battle over the Tridentine Mass which St. Pius V preserved to be said for All Time, but this is how it should be. Spiritual gifts from God are worth living for and fighting for. If we can't argue about words, then what can we argue about GK Chesterton writes. The Mass is a set of words with definite meaning that is worth fighting for. These words become The Word and the Most Holy Sacrifice.
There are no secrets with God. Let all things come out into the open for all to examine. I just read a letter to 'Inside the Vatican' by a priest. His dislike, need I say hatred, for the Tridentine Mass in the April issue was clear and direct. God Bless Pope Benedict XVI. I am sure that he knows and has been warned by God about the ensuing battles, but we as Catholics are not here for leisure and ease. We are here to grow spiritually: to know, love and serve God. We bow at the Foot of the Cross and offer ourselves in service.
It does seem that there will be a deep spiritual battle over the Tridentine Mass which St. Pius V preserved to be said for All Time, but this is how it should be. Spiritual gifts from God are worth living for and fighting for. If we can't argue about words, then what can we argue about GK Chesterton writes. The Mass is a set of words with definite meaning that is worth fighting for. These words become The Word and the Most Holy Sacrifice.
There are no secrets with God. Let all things come out into the open for all to examine. I just read a letter to 'Inside the Vatican' by a priest. His dislike, need I say hatred, for the Tridentine Mass in the April issue was clear and direct. God Bless Pope Benedict XVI. I am sure that he knows and has been warned by God about the ensuing battles, but we as Catholics are not here for leisure and ease. We are here to grow spiritually: to know, love and serve God. We bow at the Foot of the Cross and offer ourselves in service.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Sunday at Mass
I am being to feel like part of the present day Church. I have always felt united to the Catholic Church which is outside of time. A Church which has produced Saints throughout the ages and protected the Faithful with encyclicals, dogma, the Sacraments, etc, but I have felt isolated from a most churches which are in buildings today. When I would pass by a Roman Catholic Church I would bless myself because Our Lord use to be present on the altar, but, for me, this was no longer the case. Now the Tridentine Mass is once again allowed in these churches. May we all stand up for this Mass protected by St Pius V.
I first started going to the Tridentine Mass in at St Margaret Mary's in Homer. The priest said the Novus Ordo, but he had been a seminarian with Father Hatala many years before and he allowed Father Hatala to offer up the Tridentine Mass between Masses on Sunday. This may not have lasted even a Sunday after my conversion. People were directed to Father Hatala's house. The Tridentine Mass was no longer allowed In St Margaret Mary's. The word was that the Bishop did not want the Tridentine Mass in one of his churches, so we retreated to Father Hatala's little chapel. This was to be my life as a Catholic: little private chapels, other non Latin Rites (Slovac, Ukranian). It was like being an outsider.
I was baptized in St Margaret Mary's. I received my first Holy Communion there, too, but when I was married in 1980 it was in Father Hatala's little chapel. St Margaret Mary's was no longer open to Catholics who wanted to offer the Tridentine Mass.
After Mass today I bought the Vatican magazine, 'Inside the Vatican', which pictured Pope Benedict on the front. On the last page was a column by a Washington lawyer entitled, 'Return to the Baltimore Catechism'. It reminded me that when I began going for instruction with Father Hatala in late winter that he had begun instructing me out of one of the new catechisms, but it was unclear, vague and, I would say, not Catholic, so I suggested that we use the Baltimore Catechism. Father Hatala was very agreeable. He said that he did not like the new catechisms, but hadn't known how I felt, so we began instruction, again, with the Baltimore catechism. I often made it to his house three times a week, so by July I was ready to be received into the Church. Now, once again, I am ready to be part of the Church in a new way that I have not experienced before. May God and His Holy Mother, along with St Pius V help me help beyond my many faults.
I first started going to the Tridentine Mass in at St Margaret Mary's in Homer. The priest said the Novus Ordo, but he had been a seminarian with Father Hatala many years before and he allowed Father Hatala to offer up the Tridentine Mass between Masses on Sunday. This may not have lasted even a Sunday after my conversion. People were directed to Father Hatala's house. The Tridentine Mass was no longer allowed In St Margaret Mary's. The word was that the Bishop did not want the Tridentine Mass in one of his churches, so we retreated to Father Hatala's little chapel. This was to be my life as a Catholic: little private chapels, other non Latin Rites (Slovac, Ukranian). It was like being an outsider.
I was baptized in St Margaret Mary's. I received my first Holy Communion there, too, but when I was married in 1980 it was in Father Hatala's little chapel. St Margaret Mary's was no longer open to Catholics who wanted to offer the Tridentine Mass.
After Mass today I bought the Vatican magazine, 'Inside the Vatican', which pictured Pope Benedict on the front. On the last page was a column by a Washington lawyer entitled, 'Return to the Baltimore Catechism'. It reminded me that when I began going for instruction with Father Hatala in late winter that he had begun instructing me out of one of the new catechisms, but it was unclear, vague and, I would say, not Catholic, so I suggested that we use the Baltimore Catechism. Father Hatala was very agreeable. He said that he did not like the new catechisms, but hadn't known how I felt, so we began instruction, again, with the Baltimore catechism. I often made it to his house three times a week, so by July I was ready to be received into the Church. Now, once again, I am ready to be part of the Church in a new way that I have not experienced before. May God and His Holy Mother, along with St Pius V help me help beyond my many faults.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
celebrations
My son turns 21 today. He just went out in 'birthday' car (decorated by his sister, Maria) with his sister for breakfast. I had gotten up at 5:00 AM and seen the celebration of the Tridentine Mass in what looked to be the Mass' official reentrance into Rome on television. I had no intention of watching this, nor any idea that EWTN had it on, but there was the Mass being celebrated with Catholics from all over the world there to enjoy the mystical Gifts and the Sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. The was great joy and devotion. Deo Gratias!
So this is a birthday for my son and a special rebirthday for me. May the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church feed the souls of the world and get them beyond this world, beyond GPAs to the wonders of God and the Glories of Heaven. Laus tibi Christe!
So this is a birthday for my son and a special rebirthday for me. May the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church feed the souls of the world and get them beyond this world, beyond GPAs to the wonders of God and the Glories of Heaven. Laus tibi Christe!
Friday, July 13, 2007
reflections
So Wednesday, July 11th, I celebrated my 31st year as a Catholic. I was raised Quaker, so I was never baptized until a Pentecostal woman baptized me in her bathtub in about 1972 after an attempt to peddle my songs in NYC from where I left with a cult, The Children of God, and went to her house in Belmar, New Jersey. She believed in total emersion and I insisted on being totally naked. When she submerged me I did not care if I ever came up. I felt the water going down my nose. I was relaxed. She lifted my head and said that she had expected that to happen.
I had just returned from a hitchhiking trip from her house to the headquarters of the Children of God in New york State somewhere (I never made it.). They had basically kicked me out of Sister Joan's house because I had somehow separated myself from the group. I had got into a Scripture quoting struggle with one of the young leaders with my eyes closed before I got out of bed. I had shaken physically as I sat at a table and the words, 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock.' came out of my mouth. No way I could shake like that, but to them it was all a sham. And I had wound up in Sister Joan's bedroom, protected by her from the angry 'elders' who wanted me gone and agreed to letting me hitchhike to their headquarters.
Anyway, I traveled many miles in many different cars. It was like I was in the middle of a battle between God and Satan. When I got near to those headquarters I was moved to reverse my direction. I stopped and decided to return to Sister Joan's house. Somehow I made it back and when I returned the Children of God were gone. They'd been kicked out by Sister Joan's renegade son, Jack.
When I was accepted into the Episcopal Church in about 1974--after a time of living outside of wedlock with a woman who was a Bhahi (sp)--I was accepted without baptizm. My previous baptism in Sister Joan's bathtub was accepted as valid, but when I was ready to enter in Catholic Church in July 11, 1976 I was baptized conditionally by Father Hatala. My confession a week later only had to go from the time of my baptism, but I wanted to confess everything. I had no secrets from God and the priest was God's representative. I needed to confess before a man given authority by God. I needed ablution. God forgave me. Now my work as a Catholic began.
Years mean nothing, so much can and did happen in minutes, in days after years, but journey within the Church began with my baptism. Thanks be to God. Deo Gratias.
I had just returned from a hitchhiking trip from her house to the headquarters of the Children of God in New york State somewhere (I never made it.). They had basically kicked me out of Sister Joan's house because I had somehow separated myself from the group. I had got into a Scripture quoting struggle with one of the young leaders with my eyes closed before I got out of bed. I had shaken physically as I sat at a table and the words, 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock.' came out of my mouth. No way I could shake like that, but to them it was all a sham. And I had wound up in Sister Joan's bedroom, protected by her from the angry 'elders' who wanted me gone and agreed to letting me hitchhike to their headquarters.
Anyway, I traveled many miles in many different cars. It was like I was in the middle of a battle between God and Satan. When I got near to those headquarters I was moved to reverse my direction. I stopped and decided to return to Sister Joan's house. Somehow I made it back and when I returned the Children of God were gone. They'd been kicked out by Sister Joan's renegade son, Jack.
When I was accepted into the Episcopal Church in about 1974--after a time of living outside of wedlock with a woman who was a Bhahi (sp)--I was accepted without baptizm. My previous baptism in Sister Joan's bathtub was accepted as valid, but when I was ready to enter in Catholic Church in July 11, 1976 I was baptized conditionally by Father Hatala. My confession a week later only had to go from the time of my baptism, but I wanted to confess everything. I had no secrets from God and the priest was God's representative. I needed to confess before a man given authority by God. I needed ablution. God forgave me. Now my work as a Catholic began.
Years mean nothing, so much can and did happen in minutes, in days after years, but journey within the Church began with my baptism. Thanks be to God. Deo Gratias.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
words, words, words
GK: 'What is the good of words if they aren't important enough to quarrel over? Why do we choose one word more than another if there isn't any difference between them? If you called a woman a chimpanzee instead of an angel, wouldn't there be a quarrel about a word? If you're not going to argue about words, what are you going to argue about? Are you going to convey your meaning to me by moving your ears? The Church and the heresies always used to fight about words, because they are the only things worth fighting about.('The Ball and the Cross 96 from 'Chesterton University').
Hilaire: GK, I know that 'many' and 'all' are completely different words. Of course the use of 'all' in the consecration of the wine takes away the free will that God gave to us, so that we could choose Him freely and love Him because He is Love.
GK: 'When you break the big laws, you do not get liberty; you do not evenget anarchy. You get the small laws.'('The Man Who Was Orthodox 119, 'Chesterton University')
Hil: It's true. Take away free will there is chaos. Everyone is saved. No one is responsible. There is only Mercy. There is no Justice, but God in His Infinite Goodness; Became Man; Died for us and lifted us beyond death and beyond earth to Heaven with Mercy and Justice.. 'Oh, happy sin!" But we must will to love God, as He willed to Die for us. God now allows us to choose His Love.
GK: 'There never was anything so perilous or so exciting as orthodoxy.' ('Orthodoxy CW 1:305)
Hil: GK, you have me so excited that I can't wait to offer up the Mass with Father Brown. Oh, the Mass that is outside of time and was to be said until the End of Time. It is always new. It is always beyond the world and the ways of man. We don't need a 'Novus Ordo'. We need the Divine Sacrifice that St Pius V preserved for us for all time. Enough of words. Let us ride the Cross to Heaven.
Hilaire: GK, I know that 'many' and 'all' are completely different words. Of course the use of 'all' in the consecration of the wine takes away the free will that God gave to us, so that we could choose Him freely and love Him because He is Love.
GK: 'When you break the big laws, you do not get liberty; you do not evenget anarchy. You get the small laws.'('The Man Who Was Orthodox 119, 'Chesterton University')
Hil: It's true. Take away free will there is chaos. Everyone is saved. No one is responsible. There is only Mercy. There is no Justice, but God in His Infinite Goodness; Became Man; Died for us and lifted us beyond death and beyond earth to Heaven with Mercy and Justice.. 'Oh, happy sin!" But we must will to love God, as He willed to Die for us. God now allows us to choose His Love.
GK: 'There never was anything so perilous or so exciting as orthodoxy.' ('Orthodoxy CW 1:305)
Hil: GK, you have me so excited that I can't wait to offer up the Mass with Father Brown. Oh, the Mass that is outside of time and was to be said until the End of Time. It is always new. It is always beyond the world and the ways of man. We don't need a 'Novus Ordo'. We need the Divine Sacrifice that St Pius V preserved for us for all time. Enough of words. Let us ride the Cross to Heaven.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
foggy English day
GK: Hilaire, you know I heard that laymen were receiving the Host in their hands. I just have to shake my head, my good friend.
Hil: Ah, it is the Modern World breaking into the Sacred Realm. I would throw a few pews around if I had the strength, but those days are over. I'd walk to Rome, again. Only this times on my knees, but I only have the strength to pray my Rosary. Perhaps, that is best.
GK: If only our Faith were stronger-just the Faith of a child. We could go to Our Father and appease Him.
Hil: This democracy affair has just gone too far, too far. The priests are actually letting laymen take Holy Communion to the sick. Such a Sacred duty for consecrated hands. Remember the Frenchman Isaac Jogues who had his thumbs cut off by the Indians and had to get special permission from the Pope to offer up the Mass because he could no longer follow the rubric which declared that the priest must lift up the Host between his thumb and forefinger?
GK: I do. How many priests have I seen walking through the town carrying Holy Communion to the sick without saying a word. Oh the solemnity. Oh, the sacredness of that stroll.
Hil: Priests' work is priests work: the Mass, the Host, the confessional. We have always needed priests, but God worked miracles through them and with them. He seemed to multiply their slightest efforts a hundred fold.
GK: I marvel at priests. The temptations, the demonic attacks must be dreadful, but the priesthood is a Sacrament and they receive all that they need to perform their duties.
Hil: Until recently. Now it seems that their sacred duties are secondary, an aside.
GK: Yes, yes. I need a little mystery.
Hil: I had all the mystery that I wanted in the Mass. Now I'm given a meal without real fellowship.
GK: Father Brown has both mysteries. Let us receive Our Lord from his hands.
Hil: Yes, take me back to the Cross, the Foot of the Cross, before breakfast. You are fasting, aren't you GK?
GK: Of course, I am always ready to receive Jesus before 8:00 in the morning. Come on.
Hil: Ah, it is the Modern World breaking into the Sacred Realm. I would throw a few pews around if I had the strength, but those days are over. I'd walk to Rome, again. Only this times on my knees, but I only have the strength to pray my Rosary. Perhaps, that is best.
GK: If only our Faith were stronger-just the Faith of a child. We could go to Our Father and appease Him.
Hil: This democracy affair has just gone too far, too far. The priests are actually letting laymen take Holy Communion to the sick. Such a Sacred duty for consecrated hands. Remember the Frenchman Isaac Jogues who had his thumbs cut off by the Indians and had to get special permission from the Pope to offer up the Mass because he could no longer follow the rubric which declared that the priest must lift up the Host between his thumb and forefinger?
GK: I do. How many priests have I seen walking through the town carrying Holy Communion to the sick without saying a word. Oh the solemnity. Oh, the sacredness of that stroll.
Hil: Priests' work is priests work: the Mass, the Host, the confessional. We have always needed priests, but God worked miracles through them and with them. He seemed to multiply their slightest efforts a hundred fold.
GK: I marvel at priests. The temptations, the demonic attacks must be dreadful, but the priesthood is a Sacrament and they receive all that they need to perform their duties.
Hil: Until recently. Now it seems that their sacred duties are secondary, an aside.
GK: Yes, yes. I need a little mystery.
Hil: I had all the mystery that I wanted in the Mass. Now I'm given a meal without real fellowship.
GK: Father Brown has both mysteries. Let us receive Our Lord from his hands.
Hil: Yes, take me back to the Cross, the Foot of the Cross, before breakfast. You are fasting, aren't you GK?
GK: Of course, I am always ready to receive Jesus before 8:00 in the morning. Come on.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Hilaire and GK chatting
Hil: What is this Novus Ordo of Paul VI all about? It sounds so whimisical. It sounds so American- trying to keep up with the times and such. Christ is always new and so is His Mass.
GK: Ah, didn't you know that people are kinder and gentler now. They probably don't want to see Jesus Sacrificed upon the Altar. Oh, these modern people. There is nothing like a good handshake and little chatter with your neighbor to brighten your day. God's Sacrifice is just too cruel and too spiritual for this materialistic, communistic/capitalistic world. And all of this makes Man fallen and in need of God's Justice and Mercy. Down right terrible in the modern world.
Hil: GK, before you know it the priest will be facing the people and Man will be dictating to Man, not God. The people will not be behind the priest offering up Christ for their sins, but in front of the priest listening to comforting words. The Tabernacle will be put off to the side and man will be facing man. It will all be so symbolically man-centered.
GK: Oh, haven't we seen this before in England. There is nothing new under the sun. Fads and fancies, you know. And, I do believe, when the Church and the world unite that that is the end of the church.
Hil: Yes, except that Christ said that He will be with us until the End of Time.
GK: Yes, that is exactly why St Pius V put his warning in the front of the missal to protect the Mass for us. God bless him.
Hil: Well, what can we do? Christ gave us the Mass. People rebelled. St Pius V protected the Mass for us after the Council of Trent. Now the people rebel. God's Sacrifice is always old and always new and always for our redemption. I would think that there would be people willing to preserve the Mass with their lives.
GK: Spot on, my good friend, spot on. Still we have given our lifeblood in writing to show the wonders and mercies of God and His Hand in history. God has allowed this to happen, but I have faith that Catholics will again be filled with the Wonder of God and that the Mass will be returned to them and that they will cherish this new and old Gift of the Cross with a new and marvelous love.
Hil: GK, you are always so trusting. I mean you are with God, but you are with fallen people, too. You just can't see that everyone doesn't have your wonder.
GK: Well, we do have Father Brown, you know. He told me that he will say the Tridentine Mass until the End of Time just as St. Pius demanded.
Hil: Ah, there is reason to have good cheer and hasn't the Church suffered through hard times before.
GK: She has and we have, too. Yet Faith is all we have. After we have tried everything else we will always return to Faith and to the Church and to the Mass.
Hil: Wonder, oh wonder. You are wonderfilled my dear man, wonderfilled, wonderfilled. Amen.
GK: Ah, didn't you know that people are kinder and gentler now. They probably don't want to see Jesus Sacrificed upon the Altar. Oh, these modern people. There is nothing like a good handshake and little chatter with your neighbor to brighten your day. God's Sacrifice is just too cruel and too spiritual for this materialistic, communistic/capitalistic world. And all of this makes Man fallen and in need of God's Justice and Mercy. Down right terrible in the modern world.
Hil: GK, before you know it the priest will be facing the people and Man will be dictating to Man, not God. The people will not be behind the priest offering up Christ for their sins, but in front of the priest listening to comforting words. The Tabernacle will be put off to the side and man will be facing man. It will all be so symbolically man-centered.
GK: Oh, haven't we seen this before in England. There is nothing new under the sun. Fads and fancies, you know. And, I do believe, when the Church and the world unite that that is the end of the church.
Hil: Yes, except that Christ said that He will be with us until the End of Time.
GK: Yes, that is exactly why St Pius V put his warning in the front of the missal to protect the Mass for us. God bless him.
Hil: Well, what can we do? Christ gave us the Mass. People rebelled. St Pius V protected the Mass for us after the Council of Trent. Now the people rebel. God's Sacrifice is always old and always new and always for our redemption. I would think that there would be people willing to preserve the Mass with their lives.
GK: Spot on, my good friend, spot on. Still we have given our lifeblood in writing to show the wonders and mercies of God and His Hand in history. God has allowed this to happen, but I have faith that Catholics will again be filled with the Wonder of God and that the Mass will be returned to them and that they will cherish this new and old Gift of the Cross with a new and marvelous love.
Hil: GK, you are always so trusting. I mean you are with God, but you are with fallen people, too. You just can't see that everyone doesn't have your wonder.
GK: Well, we do have Father Brown, you know. He told me that he will say the Tridentine Mass until the End of Time just as St. Pius demanded.
Hil: Ah, there is reason to have good cheer and hasn't the Church suffered through hard times before.
GK: She has and we have, too. Yet Faith is all we have. After we have tried everything else we will always return to Faith and to the Church and to the Mass.
Hil: Wonder, oh wonder. You are wonderfilled my dear man, wonderfilled, wonderfilled. Amen.
Monday, July 9, 2007
Pope Benedict XVI allows Tridentine Mass
On July 8th I was sitting in a Catholic Church helping offer up the Tridentine Mass when the priest mentioned during his sermon that Pope Benedict XVI had officially allowed the Tridentine Mass to be offered up in Catholic Churches. It was a paradoxical comment, but a welcome one to me. On SAturday, the 7th the Pope had given a Motu Proprio three pages long with a four page.
Will this cause grave problems? No doubt there will be fights and battles over this, but here is a chance for Catholics to take a stand for the Sacrifice of the Mass which St Pius V defended, the Mass which is to be offered up in the Latin Rite until the End of Time.
I can see clearly that my job is to always be ready to receive Holy Communion. I remember reading about St John Bosco offering up Mass. When it came time for Catholics to receive there were no boys in the school ready to receive. St John's sorrow showed on his face, so St Dominic Savio and others formed a group, so that there would always be someone or many ready to receive Holy Communion. Should we not try to always be ready to receive Our Lord?
May Catholics be ready to receive Our Lord in Holy Communion.
Will this cause grave problems? No doubt there will be fights and battles over this, but here is a chance for Catholics to take a stand for the Sacrifice of the Mass which St Pius V defended, the Mass which is to be offered up in the Latin Rite until the End of Time.
I can see clearly that my job is to always be ready to receive Holy Communion. I remember reading about St John Bosco offering up Mass. When it came time for Catholics to receive there were no boys in the school ready to receive. St John's sorrow showed on his face, so St Dominic Savio and others formed a group, so that there would always be someone or many ready to receive Holy Communion. Should we not try to always be ready to receive Our Lord?
May Catholics be ready to receive Our Lord in Holy Communion.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
The Mass is there for the Faithful
I was thinking that God knows all. Nothing, whether good or evil, is done in the shadows. If Vatican II was used to destroy the Mass, God permitted it. He knew about it. Satan was behind it and some men willed it, but God has all veto power. He has all power. The only problem for the promoters of evil is if there are God's servants who are willing to stand up and die for God's Sacrifice on the Cross.
I believe that the Sacrifice of the Mass will be here until the End of Time. I believe that if there is only one priest on earth offering the Mass that it will be here on earth until the End of Time. Ultimately, I think that this Great Sacrifice of God will be here on earth somewhere. It will never be ultimately destroyed because there will be Faith in the heart of at least one person who desires it and, so, God through His Love will offer this Sacrifice. All believers will benefit from the Sacrifice of the Mass and they can spiritually participate in It. It cannot be taken from them. Perhaps they would all congregate where that Mass is being offered, with that priest who is offering it in the Last Days. So in reality the Church cannot be destroyed in Time and the Mass will always be there in the Center of the Church. Christ will be Sacrificed daily on earth somewhere.
I never received Holy Communion for the first 26 years of my life, but I benefited from the Sacrifice. I was born in Germany where my parents ran an orphanage. There must have been many Catholics in that home. There must have been many who went to confession and who received Holy Communion. I benefited.
My grandmother came over to visit us in Germany after my birth. She got a beautiful wooden statue of the Blessed Mother at the Passion Play which is given every ten years. Later her hairdresser said that her family would become Catholic- my grandmother was raised Lutheran, but went to the Methodist Church with my grandfather (his father, who died at 94, was a Christian Scientist when he died.). Perhaps my grandmother's hairdresser offered a Mass up to God for my family, for me. Perhaps she prayed at Mass for me. She was not surprised when my Grandmother told herof my conversion.
When I was about 12 I went on an all star baseball trip with a team coached by Mr. Van Gorder. There were many Catholics on the team. We slept over Saturday night and on Sunday several Catholics rose to go to Mass. I went with them. I had no idea what was going on. I didn't understand the Latin. I couldn't follow the Missal. I looked to others to know when to stand and kneel, but I was there and I was impressed by the Faith and confidence of my teammates who followed the Mass and received Holy Communion.
Yes, I would say that I benefited from the Mass before I became Catholic.
After I became Catholic I was able to go to the Tridentine Mass. I received instruction from a priest almost daily before I went to my community college. Then I received communion in the Latin Rite with the Tridentine Mass. Later I went to an Eastern Rite Catholic Church where the Mass had not been changed, though sometimes it was said in an accurate English translation . (There we received under the appearance of Bread and Wine.)
But then I had a long period when I did not go to Mass. There was no Latin Rite Tridentine Mass available that I knew of. It seemed like going to an Eastern Rite Catholic Church was not right anymore. Though I knew the Rite and could assist the priest as a server, it seemed improper to attend since it appear that something was drastically wrong in Rome with the Papacy. John XXIII seemed to be sort of a transitional Pope. Paul VI had ushered in so many changes through Vatican II, along with the Novus Ordo Mass. Yes, Ubi Papa Ubi Ecclesia. but things were not right. People began to flee from this Novus Ordo Church. Sisters seemed to be pushed out of convents by the new beliefs. Churches were being closed. In Canada the State had to purchase Catholic Churches to save them from destruction as historical landmarks. Catecism became unCatholic. Things had changed. Though I was on a little island with the Baltimore Catecism, I was aware that I did not fit in this Novus Ordo which was being led from Rome and by Rome.
Still God has blessed me through Catholics who attend the Novus Ordo. Catholicism is not eradicated from Catholics quickly. I learned from students when I coached at a Catholic High School. I was asked by one of the parents to join a Dante group taught by two retired professors. I have learned so much as I have studied Dante over the last seven years. He attended the Tridentine Mass before the Council of Trent.
Then I was at the Chesterton Conference in June of 2007. I heard the wisdom of Belloc and Chesterton. I purchased a book entitled 'The Thrill of the Chaste...' for my daughter. I had the author sign it to her. I mentioned the Tridentine Mass to the author. She said that I should get get a spiritual guide. Little did I know that her book would become my spiritual guide and lead me closer to myself and to God. (She is a Catholic who probably has never been to a Tridentine Mass, but still she has Faith.)
I have read how the new Pope wants the Tridentine Mass in the Churches again. Will there be priests to offer it? There are many questions, but I conclude that God is still working in the hearts of many. If we show ourselves faithful enough the Mass will be returned to the alters of the churches. There Church will be here to the End of Time and the Mass will be somewhere ready to be everywhere if we, God's Children, show ourselves faithful. May our faith increase, even unto death. As DAwn Eden prepares herself for her future husband through a chaste life, so I can prepare myself for Mass and to receive Holy Communion and I can receive Holy Communion spiritual daily. God is present. We just have to turn to Him.
I believe that the Sacrifice of the Mass will be here until the End of Time. I believe that if there is only one priest on earth offering the Mass that it will be here on earth until the End of Time. Ultimately, I think that this Great Sacrifice of God will be here on earth somewhere. It will never be ultimately destroyed because there will be Faith in the heart of at least one person who desires it and, so, God through His Love will offer this Sacrifice. All believers will benefit from the Sacrifice of the Mass and they can spiritually participate in It. It cannot be taken from them. Perhaps they would all congregate where that Mass is being offered, with that priest who is offering it in the Last Days. So in reality the Church cannot be destroyed in Time and the Mass will always be there in the Center of the Church. Christ will be Sacrificed daily on earth somewhere.
I never received Holy Communion for the first 26 years of my life, but I benefited from the Sacrifice. I was born in Germany where my parents ran an orphanage. There must have been many Catholics in that home. There must have been many who went to confession and who received Holy Communion. I benefited.
My grandmother came over to visit us in Germany after my birth. She got a beautiful wooden statue of the Blessed Mother at the Passion Play which is given every ten years. Later her hairdresser said that her family would become Catholic- my grandmother was raised Lutheran, but went to the Methodist Church with my grandfather (his father, who died at 94, was a Christian Scientist when he died.). Perhaps my grandmother's hairdresser offered a Mass up to God for my family, for me. Perhaps she prayed at Mass for me. She was not surprised when my Grandmother told herof my conversion.
When I was about 12 I went on an all star baseball trip with a team coached by Mr. Van Gorder. There were many Catholics on the team. We slept over Saturday night and on Sunday several Catholics rose to go to Mass. I went with them. I had no idea what was going on. I didn't understand the Latin. I couldn't follow the Missal. I looked to others to know when to stand and kneel, but I was there and I was impressed by the Faith and confidence of my teammates who followed the Mass and received Holy Communion.
Yes, I would say that I benefited from the Mass before I became Catholic.
After I became Catholic I was able to go to the Tridentine Mass. I received instruction from a priest almost daily before I went to my community college. Then I received communion in the Latin Rite with the Tridentine Mass. Later I went to an Eastern Rite Catholic Church where the Mass had not been changed, though sometimes it was said in an accurate English translation . (There we received under the appearance of Bread and Wine.)
But then I had a long period when I did not go to Mass. There was no Latin Rite Tridentine Mass available that I knew of. It seemed like going to an Eastern Rite Catholic Church was not right anymore. Though I knew the Rite and could assist the priest as a server, it seemed improper to attend since it appear that something was drastically wrong in Rome with the Papacy. John XXIII seemed to be sort of a transitional Pope. Paul VI had ushered in so many changes through Vatican II, along with the Novus Ordo Mass. Yes, Ubi Papa Ubi Ecclesia. but things were not right. People began to flee from this Novus Ordo Church. Sisters seemed to be pushed out of convents by the new beliefs. Churches were being closed. In Canada the State had to purchase Catholic Churches to save them from destruction as historical landmarks. Catecism became unCatholic. Things had changed. Though I was on a little island with the Baltimore Catecism, I was aware that I did not fit in this Novus Ordo which was being led from Rome and by Rome.
Still God has blessed me through Catholics who attend the Novus Ordo. Catholicism is not eradicated from Catholics quickly. I learned from students when I coached at a Catholic High School. I was asked by one of the parents to join a Dante group taught by two retired professors. I have learned so much as I have studied Dante over the last seven years. He attended the Tridentine Mass before the Council of Trent.
Then I was at the Chesterton Conference in June of 2007. I heard the wisdom of Belloc and Chesterton. I purchased a book entitled 'The Thrill of the Chaste...' for my daughter. I had the author sign it to her. I mentioned the Tridentine Mass to the author. She said that I should get get a spiritual guide. Little did I know that her book would become my spiritual guide and lead me closer to myself and to God. (She is a Catholic who probably has never been to a Tridentine Mass, but still she has Faith.)
I have read how the new Pope wants the Tridentine Mass in the Churches again. Will there be priests to offer it? There are many questions, but I conclude that God is still working in the hearts of many. If we show ourselves faithful enough the Mass will be returned to the alters of the churches. There Church will be here to the End of Time and the Mass will be somewhere ready to be everywhere if we, God's Children, show ourselves faithful. May our faith increase, even unto death. As DAwn Eden prepares herself for her future husband through a chaste life, so I can prepare myself for Mass and to receive Holy Communion and I can receive Holy Communion spiritual daily. God is present. We just have to turn to Him.
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
How was the Mass in the Latin Rite destroyed?
GK Chesterton said that when the world and the Church unite that that is the end of the Church. It seems to me that Vatican II, as a pastoral council, was a place where enemies of the Church were able to attack the Mass under the guise of compassion and ecumenism and unite the world and the church (an impossibility, actually)
Every sacrament has its heart, its essential part. In the Mass it is the words of consecration, the Words of Christ, where bread and wine are turned into the Body and Blood of Christ. These Sacred Words are embedded in the cannon of the Mass. The cannon is unchangeable. Through the centuries there were pious sentiments to put the name of St Joseph in the cannon, but no this was not permitted. No additions. The cannon is the cannon until the End of Time.
But somehow through Vatican II the long hand of treachery reached into the cannon, to the heart of the Mass, and changed the Words of Christ: FOR THIS IS THE CHALICE OF MY BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL TESTAMENT, THE MYSTERY OF FAITH: WHICH SHALL BE SHED FOR YOU AND FOR MANY UNTO THE REMISSION OF SINS.
The new words of the new christ were that His Blood was shed For you and for all.
The Council of Trent had spoken directly to this point and said that the reason the words FOR YOU AND FOR MANY were used was because although one drop of Christ's Blood could redeem the whole world His Redemption was only good for those who accepted it of their own free will. The point is clearly made. The warning is clearly written that this Mass was to be said until the End of Time, but the Tridentine Mass in the Latin Rite was not put into English it was changed and changed so drastically that it was destroyed.
This act, in my opinion, was like the attack on the Twin Towers. It was simple and deadly. It is the world uniting with the church. This act has hurt and destroyed many people spiritually. The Mass is the Heart of the Church. Martin Luther, I've heard, said that if you destroy the Mass you destroy the Church. Whether he said that or not I believe it to be true. The Church needs the Sacrifice of the Mass (the Sacrifice of Christ at Her center) which St. Pius V supported and defended and will defend from Heaven until the End of Time.
Every sacrament has its heart, its essential part. In the Mass it is the words of consecration, the Words of Christ, where bread and wine are turned into the Body and Blood of Christ. These Sacred Words are embedded in the cannon of the Mass. The cannon is unchangeable. Through the centuries there were pious sentiments to put the name of St Joseph in the cannon, but no this was not permitted. No additions. The cannon is the cannon until the End of Time.
But somehow through Vatican II the long hand of treachery reached into the cannon, to the heart of the Mass, and changed the Words of Christ: FOR THIS IS THE CHALICE OF MY BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL TESTAMENT, THE MYSTERY OF FAITH: WHICH SHALL BE SHED FOR YOU AND FOR MANY UNTO THE REMISSION OF SINS.
The new words of the new christ were that His Blood was shed For you and for all.
The Council of Trent had spoken directly to this point and said that the reason the words FOR YOU AND FOR MANY were used was because although one drop of Christ's Blood could redeem the whole world His Redemption was only good for those who accepted it of their own free will. The point is clearly made. The warning is clearly written that this Mass was to be said until the End of Time, but the Tridentine Mass in the Latin Rite was not put into English it was changed and changed so drastically that it was destroyed.
This act, in my opinion, was like the attack on the Twin Towers. It was simple and deadly. It is the world uniting with the church. This act has hurt and destroyed many people spiritually. The Mass is the Heart of the Church. Martin Luther, I've heard, said that if you destroy the Mass you destroy the Church. Whether he said that or not I believe it to be true. The Church needs the Sacrifice of the Mass (the Sacrifice of Christ at Her center) which St. Pius V supported and defended and will defend from Heaven until the End of Time.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Chesterton idea
I was at the Chesterton Conference in St Paul, Minnesota in the middle of June. I enjoyed the speakers. I enjoyed riding a bike in from my cousin's house along the Mississippi to St Thomas Aquinas University. I enjoyed the book sales and the participants, but I felt funny when there was the call for a scheduled Mass.
I had just found a Tridentine Mass and I had begun going to it at the beginning of Lent. I did not receive Holy Communion because I hadn't been to confession and I needed time to get my thoughts in order for confession, but on a Sunday after Easter, the 15th I believe, I went to confession and the following Sunday I received Holy Communion for the first time in a long time. It had been at least 15 years. I had lived by praying the Rosary, saying other prayers and reading Holy books, though I had not read the Bible as much as I could have or should have.
Anyway, here I was with people talking seriously about Catholic things and about one of my favorite Catholic writers prior to my entrance into the Catholic Church in 1976 and just after my entrance, though I hadn't read him in awhile. And in this gathering I was not able to go to Mass with them because I do not believe that the 'Novus Ordo' is a Mass. Am I wrong?
The Novus Ordo is not a translation of the Tridentine Mass which St Pius V said must be said until the End of Time or the wrath of Sts. Peter and Paul will rain down. No, it is a 'new mass' and, I believe, no Mass.
This grand Chesterton Conference was not the place to make a scene or an issue out of this most important topic, so I listened and I watched. One speaker, a Norweigan, who has not converted yet, but has been at the entrance of the Church for many years and has become an expert on Chesterton, made a comment that appeared to have the wish that Vatican II had never happened. There was a noise in the crowd that seemed to want to rise to a cheer in agreement, but this cheer may have been rebutted by an equally strong boo, so in the goal of unity it died down, but I had heard that this sentiment for the Church of St Pius V was still there and, perhaps, the longing for the Tridentine Mass.
I have been dormant for many years, raising a family and just trying to get by, but now I feel that it is my duty to putout all that I know and love about the Tridentine Mass. I call upon St. Pius V to help me in my explanations, as well as Mary who appeared to St Pius in a vision to let him know that the Catholic navy had been successful at Lepanto against the Moslem navy in 1571. (I learned about this great naval battle at the Chesterton Conference where shirts were sold proclaiming this victory.).
St. Pius V had protected Catholics from a physical invasion then, and he had established the Mass as it was to be said until the End of Time for our spiritual protection now, but, somehow, Vatican II bypassed his wall of defense and the Mass has been destroyed and is not being offered in most churches or is the 'Novus Ordo" truly a viable alternative?
This is my chore: to examine what has happened and to lay out my own personal journey through these troubled times. I hope to have the help of GK Chesterton anong others. We will see. This is a time when there are many spiritual battles being waged. May the Catholics rise to meet them for the salvation of souls and for the Glory of God.
I had just found a Tridentine Mass and I had begun going to it at the beginning of Lent. I did not receive Holy Communion because I hadn't been to confession and I needed time to get my thoughts in order for confession, but on a Sunday after Easter, the 15th I believe, I went to confession and the following Sunday I received Holy Communion for the first time in a long time. It had been at least 15 years. I had lived by praying the Rosary, saying other prayers and reading Holy books, though I had not read the Bible as much as I could have or should have.
Anyway, here I was with people talking seriously about Catholic things and about one of my favorite Catholic writers prior to my entrance into the Catholic Church in 1976 and just after my entrance, though I hadn't read him in awhile. And in this gathering I was not able to go to Mass with them because I do not believe that the 'Novus Ordo' is a Mass. Am I wrong?
The Novus Ordo is not a translation of the Tridentine Mass which St Pius V said must be said until the End of Time or the wrath of Sts. Peter and Paul will rain down. No, it is a 'new mass' and, I believe, no Mass.
This grand Chesterton Conference was not the place to make a scene or an issue out of this most important topic, so I listened and I watched. One speaker, a Norweigan, who has not converted yet, but has been at the entrance of the Church for many years and has become an expert on Chesterton, made a comment that appeared to have the wish that Vatican II had never happened. There was a noise in the crowd that seemed to want to rise to a cheer in agreement, but this cheer may have been rebutted by an equally strong boo, so in the goal of unity it died down, but I had heard that this sentiment for the Church of St Pius V was still there and, perhaps, the longing for the Tridentine Mass.
I have been dormant for many years, raising a family and just trying to get by, but now I feel that it is my duty to putout all that I know and love about the Tridentine Mass. I call upon St. Pius V to help me in my explanations, as well as Mary who appeared to St Pius in a vision to let him know that the Catholic navy had been successful at Lepanto against the Moslem navy in 1571. (I learned about this great naval battle at the Chesterton Conference where shirts were sold proclaiming this victory.).
St. Pius V had protected Catholics from a physical invasion then, and he had established the Mass as it was to be said until the End of Time for our spiritual protection now, but, somehow, Vatican II bypassed his wall of defense and the Mass has been destroyed and is not being offered in most churches or is the 'Novus Ordo" truly a viable alternative?
This is my chore: to examine what has happened and to lay out my own personal journey through these troubled times. I hope to have the help of GK Chesterton anong others. We will see. This is a time when there are many spiritual battles being waged. May the Catholics rise to meet them for the salvation of souls and for the Glory of God.
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