Please God not this tomorrow!

I posted this two years ago.

Enough of the cheap antics.

You are a biblical expert.  You should know better.

Being entertaining is not the way to go.  It cheapens the biblical expertliness.

Jesuit Cardinal supports homosexuality

And the MSM once said that he is a frontrunner to the 2005 Conclave!

Nah.  You can't fool the Holy Spirit.

SO stop emailing me about the Red Pope, ok!

Here is the excerpt from this disturbing news (not surprisingly) from Jesuit Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini about his views on homosexuality.

***

In his newly released book, Credere e conoscere (Faith and Understanding), Cardinal Martini posits his disagreement with the Catholic teaching against homosexual civil unions. “I disagree with the positions of those in the Church, that take issue with civil unions,” he wrote. “It is not bad, instead of casual sex between men, that two people have a certain stability” and that the “state could recognize them.”

Cardinal Martini says that he can even understand (but not necessarily approve) gay pride parades. He says he agrees with the Catholic Church’s promotion of traditional marriage for the stability of the human species, however he adds, it is “not right to express any discrimination on other types of unions.”

***

Read more about this poor guy's delusion by clicking here.

By the way, the cardinal is suffering from Parkinson's disease.

Pray for his conversion instead. He has spread a lot of errors in his lifetime.

HELP I NEED PROTECTION!!!

Someone is stalking me!  Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!

I was having a boring day when I received an email from a good friend who just came from an "event" in Pasig yesterday.

They were insisting that I am a brother of a priest!

WHA?!

I have a brother who is a priest?

Better ask my sister in law if she knew what my brother is doing.

Or maybe my brother is secretly Aglipayan or ordained by Milingo for the Moonies.

LOL!

I think I have an idea who they are talking about.  Poor guy.  He might get mauled one day for all the heat that the blog is generating, good and bad, and they think they got the RIGHT GUY!

Or maybe, just maybe.....

I AM A SECRET SSPX JUST LIKE WHAT THAT GUY IN CAPS USED TO SAY!!!!

And that other Vizayan guy thinks he cracked the code!

He just can't help it.  Try commenting on his bishop, even if the bishop did something bad, and you'll sure get a ton of fan heat from him.  You know the same kind of heat you get when you tell your female friends that Piolo Pascual is.............

LOL!!!!

Oh come on guys, cheer up!  I'm just ribbing you!

To cut to the chase guys, here are the clues to my real identity:

1. I am a Knight of Columbus, Faithful Navigator, Past Grand Knight and Former District Deputy
2. Former Major Seminarian of....................hahaha!  Think I'd tell you, huh?  Ask Andres Bonifacio if you can resurrect him from the dead.
3. Occasionally visits Intramuros to.............
4. Has LOTS of news sources here and abroad.
5. And I am a member of a Tertiary / Secular Order.  If you follow the blog, you'll know what Order I belong to.

That's all you'll ever get folks!

Ok, so, start the chase and here is your map to help you find where and who I am.

Australia looks to Asia for more priests

And what could be causing the shortage?

Hmmm....


From ABC News

***

The Catholic Church is keen to recruit priests from Asia to help overcome a shortage in regional Australia.

Bishop Greg O'Kelly from the Port Pirie diocese in South Australia says the church also needs to ordain younger people.  [you mean, younger men?]

He says only three of 23 priests in the diocese are under 50.  [And those 50 above belong to the Kumbaya era.]

Bishop O'Kelly says he has been to the Philippines and found strong support for the idea of relocations to Australia.  [I hope those Pinoy priests go there for the right reasons.  But I digress.]

"The Australian church has never supplied enough priests by itself, we've been dependant on Ireland until relatively recent times," he said.

"There's scarcely a Catholic in the older generation who wasn't taught by an Irish nun or had an Irish parish priest or an Irish brother.

"Now that source from European overseas, Ireland, has dried up, we have to look to Asia I believe."

***

The Catholic Church in Australia and the rest of the world is not addressing the issue why there are shortages of priests.

BAH! Enough of the married thing and the women thing.

They are non-negotiable especially the WOMYN priests. No such thing. It is almost the same as saying that Felix Manalo and his cohorts start hating money, and Eli Soriano stops hating boys. WHA!

A survey conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate of uhm, Jesuit run, uhm, Georgetown University, found out that "clearly and unambiguously that most new vocations in the United States are going to Orders (and seminaries!) that practice and stress more traditional forms of religious life and priestly formation."

Even if there is no research in other parts of the world, this trend is happening worldwide! Traditional Orders are running out of space, while liberal orders especially those spending more time in (get your pen and paper) Justice and Peace, Liturgical Inculturation, Eco-Spirituality, Gender Equality, and the whole nine yards of 60s madness.

The CARA study concluded:

"The most successful seminaries and institutes in attracting and retaining new members at this time are those that follow a more traditional style of priestly formation and religious life in which members live together in community, participate in the daily Eucharist, pray the Divine Office and engage in devotional practices together. They wear a religious habit, work together in common ministires, and are explicit in their fidelity to the Church and the teachings of the Magisterium. All of these characteristics are especially attractive to the young people who are entering seminaries and Religious life today."

Remember how Christ called His disciples and sent them out into the world "like sheep among wolves"? How could you even atract men and women to a life of poverty, chastity and obedience if all they are going to do is be like Mao Tse Tung or Nelson Mandela without the spirituality of an Mother Teresa or Josemaria Escriva?!

Is it worthwhile to give up the world's pleasures with most of our congregations and orders "marketing" their lifestyle to be "missionaries of love and presence"? Whatever happened to saving souls, or harvesting for the Lord?

The difference with most liberal orders as against traditional ones is not only in their garbs. Traditional ones always wear theirs all the time. Liberals and modernists, hate to be identified, as if they hate being nun, brothers and priests.

The difference is traditional ones always talk about salvation of the soul, while liberals talk about salvation of the marginalized and oppressed, salvation of our planet...and any other new things other than those taught by the Church for 2,000 years.

That is the fruits of Modernism. They are so stale that they have no chance of survival. They do not multiply, just like the RH Bill that they espouse. They are so full of anger with the Church that the new breed of Modernists end up tearing their very own Modernist professors. They just cannot survive.

Modernists are dying!

Just find a congregation of Modernist priests, brothers and sisters and see if their numbers are even increasing. While the Modernists find new ways of trying to destroy the Church from within, traditional Catholic orders are silently increasing in number. In due time, their chants and traditional hymns will subdue the "Praise and Thanksgiving" songs of the Kumbaya church.

These are just two of the traditional orders whose numbers are on the rise.

The Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration aka Mother Angelica Sisters :)

Canons of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest where Canon Jean Marie Moreau is a member.

And I almost forgot, Michael Voris has his Vortex episode for today about this.

CBCP urges flock to support Earth hour

Uhm....

As long as this does not lead to "Eco-Spirituality" which smacks of Wicca!

***

MANILA, March 18, 2012—Two weeks before the observance of Earth Hour, a Church leader has invited Filipinos in advance to participate in the worldwide event promoting energy conservation and care for Mother Nature.

Fr. Conegundo Garganta, executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY) of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), specifically urged the youth to encourage their family, friends, community, and other people in their network to observe the Earth Hour on March 31.  [Eeeeee.....swshshwhshshwshshwshshhh...]

“As in the past years, I enjoin everyone to join in the observance of Earth Hour this 31st of March 2012, the last Saturday of this month, and to extend this invitation to everyone within our respective networks to take part,” Garganta said.

“Let us join millions in our country and around the world in switching off non-essential lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 PM, and using this time to engage in activities which promote care for our planet,” he added.

The priest likewise urged young Filipinos to join the “I Will If You Will” campaign. The ECY has started off with its "I Will if You Will" statement “the ECY will change its office light bulbs to compact fluorescent lights if you will switch off your lights on March 31, join the ‘I Will If You Will’ campaign, and share these two with your community.”

“This campaign empowers people to share to the world their own personal contribution on how they can willingly do ways to save Mother Earth,” Garganta added.

Organizers of the Earth Hour hope that the initiative will spur people to be more aware of their energy usage and its effect to the environment.

The initiative began in Sydney, Australia in 2007 and has since become a global event. (YouthPinoy)


***

Have you noticed that the CBCP website did not even cover the Solemn Pontifical High Mass of Cebu Archbishop and CBCP president Jose Palma?

This kind of initiative gets attention in the CBCP website but not the Solemn Pontifical High Mass?

Duh.  What a bummer.

So, the old man from Bukidnon is not yet fully retired eh.  Oh!  Maybe its the nun who is doing his bidding along with the two priests of RCAM.

Communiqué from the General House of the Society of Saint Pius X

From the website of the SSPX.

***

Since the meeting on March 16, 2012, with Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X, has urgently been inviting the faithful to redouble their fervor in prayer and their generosity in making sacrifices during these Holy Days of Lent and in the weeks that will follow the solemnity of Easter, that the Divine Will may be done, and it alone, after the example of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Garden of Olives: non mea voluntas, sed tua fiat (Luke 22:42).

The Rosary Crusade that started on Easter 2011 and is scheduled to end on Pentecost 2012 is proving more than ever to be indispensable. This is why the Society of St. Pius X, which wants only the good of the Church and the salvation of souls, turns with confidence to the Blessed Virgin Mary, so that she might obtain from her divine Son the lights necessary to know His will clearly and to carry it out courageously.

May the faithful be so kind as to offer one holy communion for this intention. May they make fully their own, in thought and in deed, the prayer that Our Lord asked us to address to our heavenly Father: Sanctificetur nomen tuum, adveniat regnum tuum, fiat voluntas tua sicut in caelo et in terra; hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven!

Menzingen, March 29, 2012

***

Oh there!

Start ranting that I am an undercover supporter from the SSPX.

LOL!

By the way, did that apologete comment anything about the SSPX inviting bishops from the CBCP for the Rosary Crusade against the RH Bill?

I guess he/she did not!

All he cares about is that he is more Catholic than anyone else out there.

Wait!

Isn't that how the sedevacantists and some SSPXers behave?

This is today!

EF Mass is not for nostalgia

Take that Deacon Ashmore!

A married deacon rants about the EF Mass

And surprisingly, I will not!

Here is the excerpt of an obvious hippie deacon, Deacon John Ashmore, who is sounding the alarm bells for the glorious and slow death of the Spirit of Vatican II.

And he used powerpoint presentation!!!

Like that SVD priest on ABS-CBN who is so annoying you'd think you were trapped in a classroom with Eli Soriano teaching you homiletics and morality.

Ugh!

***

…I think over the period of a couple thousand years, the church developed some institutional “money changers.” ["lovely" term to use.]  The “rites,” that’s R-I-T-E-S, became failings in some ways. Just to be clear, there is nothing inherently wrong with the old rites, Latin or the Tridentine Mass. [Oh really, now eh?] They were beautiful and mystical, but sometimes they were so mystical that they cut us off from the immanent reality of Jesus with us and in us. [Here comes the We are Church hippies.] If you’re near my age, you might recognize this little book. It’s the Missal that my Mom & Dad bought for me as a Confirmation gift. This gift was a symbol that I was no longer a child. I was now, at the age of ten, responsible to take my missal to every mass I attended, and follow the reading and prayers as they were said by the priest. There was just one minor problem, and it began like this: “In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen. Introibo ad altare Dei. Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam.” (That means, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. I will go in to the Altar of God. To God, the joy of my youth.”)  [minor?]

The mass was celebrated entirely in a language that none of us understood. [uhm...kids I see serving at Mass DO!] The priest stood with his back to us  [he wants to see the priest not pray along with the priest, worshiping in the same direction just like how the Jews, like Jesus Christ, worshiped in the Temple.]   saying words that, even if we could hear them, which we seldom could, we didn’t understand. Missals had Latin and English translations, so those who had them tried their best to keep up, eyes darting back and forth between the Latin and the English. [he did this every Mass?  Gosh!  He must not have been a regular Mass-goer then if he still cannot remember what those words meant in English!] did This language confusion caused some people to just give up.  [give up?  people?  maybe he did.  Oh yeah, obviously he did.] People often spent their time at mass in personal devotions like the rosary.

As we celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the beginning of Vatican II, [Kumbaya!!!] I think it’s important to remember what things looked like before the council reforms. As the people of God we have always been called to worship well. But, as Father Dibble reminded us last week, the council was called to “open the windows,” to bring some fresh air into every aspect of the church, including worship. [As Pope Paul VI, the pope who closed the Council said, ""From some fissure the smoke of satan entered into the temple of God."  Need I say more?  Some opening we did there, huh!  Lotsa fresh air to expect but what we got is stench of the modern world coming in!] If you are as little as five or ten years younger than I, you probably have few memories of the pre-Vatican II church. So I want to take a few minutes to walk down memory land and share with you what it looked like back then.    [And the ridicule begins. Note folks!  This is nasty.  As nasty as that narcissist priest in Megamall and his infamous Swsswswswswhshhhh joke.]

(Slide 1) This is what the inside of a typical Catholic Church looked like in 1960. There was beautiful art work, painted ceilings, and many statues. If you look at either side of this picture, you’ll notice the “side altars.” Very often, while one mass was being offered at the main altar, separate masses would be offered at one or both of the side altars. The idea that any mass was more about the celebrant than the people might be viewed as one of the pre-Vatican II failings of the church.   [Where on earth did this deacon get his theological training!  It ought to be burned to the ground!  The concept that there are simultaneous Masses going on is that there was no such thing as a concelebrated Mass where concelebrating priest just stand up, raise there hands, MUMBLE, put down their hands, and that's it.  Each priest MUST celebrate his OWN MASS.  No concelebration.  That was his duty.  Imagine the number of Masses offered for you and me back then!  1 Mass with 10 concelebrating priest is waaayyy too different from 11 priest each saying his own Mass.]

(Slide 2) As we look at a closer shot, we see a wooden structure that separates the body of the church from the sanctuary. That’s the communion rail, and it served two functions. It was where one received communion, but it was also a physical barrier between the altar and the people. Could that be a money changer? I’ll come back to that in a minute.   [He is a people person folks.  He hates barriers.  But, yes of course, I was being sarcastic.]

(Slide 3) Look at this altar, with its ornate carvings. You could always tell if the mass was really “important” by two things: [Didn't the reforms of Vatican II did that?  Ever heard of Solemnity, Memorial, Optional Memorial?  Isn't that a way of telling how "important the Mass being celebrated is?] how many candles were lit on the altar and how many acolytes served at mass. The more important the feast was, the greater were the numbers of both. Look at all of the steps the priest had to climb to approach the tabernacle. Do you think these trappings might be thought of as institutional failings or “money changers”?   [FAILINGS?!?!?!]

(Slide 4) Here’s another communion rail in front of the altar. This is where everyone had to kneel to receive the Blessed Sacrament. The Communion Cloth, this white cloth, was draped over the communion rail by the altar servers, and then communicants had to kneel with their hands under the cloth in case the priest dropped the host and the altar server didn’t catch it with the paten that was held under the chin of each Communicant. Only the priest and bishop had thumbs and forefingers consecrated so they could touch the host. [STILL IS!  Ever saw an EMHC got his fingers CONSECRATED.  In Catholic theology, consecration is sooooo different.] To me the idea that only consecrated fingers could touch the Blessed Sacrament was a bit silly. Why is any finger more sacred than any other?   [So he is just telling you and me that getting ordained, getting consecrated is SILLY.  Poor you and me.  We are no different from Buddhist who did not get baptized and confirmed because we are no different from each other.  Poor bishops and priests, they wore all these "trappings" of a vestment but they do not mean a thing since their fingers are no sacred than Joe the Plumber's fingers.  And this guy is a DEACON!!!!  Ugh!]

(Slide 5) This is a rather innocent looking picture, but there is one thing that is worth noting: we didn’t have altar servers, just altar boys! That’s a pretty obvious failing in the institutional church, and we thankfully now include both girls and boys in altar service.   [They didn't have altar servers?!?!  Only altar boys?!?!  What the?!?!  What dictionary this guy is using?  And what good did it bring to the Church for having girls serve at the altar?  Isn't that a form of discrimination?  To have girls, young WOMYN serve MEN at the altar?  My goodness!  WOMYN are not born to serve MEN!!!  Que horror!!! Que barbaridad!!! This is outrageous!!! Call Gabriela!!! Call Sr. Mary John Mananzan!!!  Call.............Oh forget it!]

(Slide 6) And then, after we realized that we had so many money changers in our own lives, we had to go to the confessional. It was dark. It was scary and it seemed to be focused on us doing the correct penance rather than on understanding our failings.   [Huh?!  Was he confessing in the sewers?  This guy must have been watching too much Indiana Jones movies.]

(Slide 7) This last slide shows a joyous day, the day that these young people were confirmed. Don’t they look joyful? I think "terrified" is a better adjective. And look how the boys and girls are segregated.   [Ugh!]

Fifty years since the beginning of Vatican II, I think the reforms instituted have made our church into a much better place. [WHA?!  In Mars!] The people of God are the worshiping community, not a community separated from the clergy.  [When?  Whenever we worship at a TLM, we followed what the priest does and we worship at the same time.  We are no mere audiences watching a showman do his stuff up on stage.] While we praise and worship our mystical God, we are more in touch with the immanent God who sits with us in our own skin.  ["Sits with us on our own skin?!?!"  What in the world does that mean?!?!] There is still much work to be done. There are still too many ignored and silenced voices. [Do I hear an "Occupy the Vatican" somewhere in this cranky Vatican II guy?] But let us rejoice during this anniversary in the strides that we have made, and ask our good and gracious God to be with us as we strive to chase the money changers out of the temple and become the people and church that he wants us to be.

***

If you want to suffer a migraine attack, read the rest of this mockery here and feel free to bash at the deacon.
First things first.

This deacon is serving in the Diocese of Oakland, Callifornia where its bishop, Most. Rev. Salvatore Cordileone, regularly celebrates the Latin Mass in a parish administered by the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, which is centered on the traditional liturgy.

Secondly, this deacon has painted a picture that the situation before Vatican II is all too grim and that Vatican II made the Church so rosy. Well reality check my friend! Thank Vatican II for giving us Cardinals Martini, Mahoney and Wuerl. Thank Vatican II for giving me such sorry excuse for a married deacon like you who do not even know what he is commenting about, which quite honestly is what most hippies do.

And lastly, I did not keep my promise. You know I will rant against this aging hippies. Ha!

Let me share to you some comments posted in reaction to this train-wreck of a homily, (I wish he gets his license to preach revoked.)

Posted Wednesday, March 28, 2012 12:10 AM By charlio
"If you’re near my age" (57), you might still be able to crawl up into the choir loft, at one of California's Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter parishes (FSSP). You'll be amazed. In "normal" parishes, young people of any age, whether teenagers, primary school or toddlers, are actually rather scarce; or to invert it, most of the heads are gray. In an FSSP parish, the pews are filled with the next generation of the New Evangelization, in all young age ranges. The enlightened practice of altar girls isn't visible; instead there are solemn quasi-military processions of dedicated young men altar servers. Many of these are the priests of tomorrow - who will be serving the new world of Christ's faithful long after the Deacon John Ashmores have relavenced themselves into extinction.

Posted Wednesday, March 28, 2012 12:52 AM By Clinton
Now in fairness, Deacon Ashmore should show a slideshow of the 'fresh air' that Vatican II supposedly brought in: Slide 1: Wreckovations of Catholic parishes, ie removal of statues,removing the high altar and introducing the Cranmer table, etc. Slide 2: The priest from saying the Mass facing God to facing the people, just one of many novelties of the Novus Ordo Mass. Slide 3: Men and women religious disgarding their cassocks and habits, as well as sound Catholic teaching. Slide 4: Closing of Catholic parishes and schools. Slide 5: Communion in hand. Slide 6: Pro homosexual "Dignity Masses". Slide 7: The Religious Education Congress. Slide 8: "Liturgical Dancing" Slide 9: Guitars and tambourines for folk and rock and roll 'masses'. Slide 10: Altar girls (and we wonder why there is a shortage of priests? Many altar boys became priests) Slide 11: the horde of EMOCs at every mass. Slide 12: The apostasy of Catholic colleges and universities (Notre Dame honors Barack Obama) Slide 13: Interfaith prayer services (what happened to the Catholic faith being the only true faith?) I could go on and on, but most readers of Cal Catholic know how the 'spirit' of Vatican II has been a significant cause of the apostasy of the Catholic faith around the world.

Posted Wednesday, March 28, 2012 7:28 AM By Alicia G. Mendiola
I was born in 1953. During that time, going to Church was a serious way. We dress up decently and dressing up for the Sacrifice of the Mass, our dress was called 'Sunday Dress'. We were wearing veil and we had Missal and Rosary with us.Even the Priests then wore Sotanas or the Collar. They never wore civilian clothes. Now, because of too much liberty, tolerance to convenience and the mentality formed to be "In", more often balance is lost between solemnity and loudness. To cut the story short, there is really a necessity to evaluate the Vatican II. We Laity will always be in union with our Holy Father who acts too in union with his Bishops. I hope the Clergy will also be in union with the Bishops.

***

I wish my good friend Jay Balza reads this and sends a note to Bishop Cordileone about this. Not only because this deacon ridiculed a centuries old liturgy, but because he gave a sloppy homily on that Mass' Gospel: Jesus cleaning the Temple.

Yup, that is where this deacon got his inspiration for "money-changers". Hope I see "deacon's changing" soon.

Ha!

Coptic "conclave"

A blindfolded child will deliver the final word on the election of the successor of Shenouda III, the recently deceased Coptic Pope. According to customary voting practice, the child will pull one of three cards, with various names written on them, out of a silver urn. For centuries, the Coptic Orthodox Church has chosen its leaders through this unique system, at the end of a complex, multi-step process which lasts several months.

The current procedure dates back to 1957, and thus has been used to choose the last two Coptic popes: Cyril VI, who reigned from 1959 to 1971, and Shenouda III, who led the largest Egyptian Church for the last forty years. On 31 October 1971, he, too, was chosen through the “sacred election by lot”: before the entire community, the smallest of the altar boys was given the task of extracting one of the three cards which contained the names of monks Samuel and Timothy al-Maqarinext alongside Shenouda's name. This is an ancient way to visibly demonstrate that the election has been entrusted to the will of God.

Read more about this in the Vatican Insider.

Cebu Archbishop's Solemn Pontifical Mass

Cappa magna...and tons of silk! :)

SIMPLY BEAUTIFUL!!!

You'll never expect this kind of solemnity in a Mass with narcissistic powerpoint priests with liturgical, tambourine waving dancers around!  Ha!

The Lord Archbishop, the Most Revernd Jose S. Palma on the occasion of the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord celebrated the Extraordinary Form of Mass (acc. to the Missal of Bl. John XXIII) on the 26th of March in the year of our Lord 2012

Some cranky old guy in Bukindon just had the runs! :)

You may view the photos of this historic event in the website of the Una Voce Philippines' site by clicking here.  I learned that the Society is the recognized TLM Society for the Philippines, recognized by the International group Una Voce Federation which promotes the use of the 1962 Missal.

CHEERS TO ARCHBISHOP PALMA!!!

Cardinale Subito!!!

Heard from some nutty fan down South that I am a member of Una Voce Philippines!

WHA?!

I must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed.

"MOM!  Did you forget to tell me that I joined in some other club other than the Knights?"

"No, my child.  You just got NUTTY!"

WHA?!

But, nutty as it may seem, not a bad idea, huh?

But!

My hands are already full being a Faithful Navigator and all.

Uy, may clue!

By the way, I hope our new archbishop in Davao will follow suit!

Hmmmm.....That I gotta see!

And Tagle as well. :)

***

I have photos in my email from Jordan as well.  I am having trouble with my Internet connection.  I will add them up as soon as I get the connection fixed.

Why you MUST WEAR your Brown Cloth Scapular all the time!

Father John Higgins shares a true story about the power of the Brown Cloth Scapular.

Who doesn’t enjoy a good BBQ with friends? When I was asked to a young couple’s home for a Young Adult Ministry Home Mass and BBQ I packed my Mass kit and off I went. I arrived about 6:00 pm with a hearty appetite and was greeted by about 15 young people. Then the phone rang and everything changed. I had to drive about 10 miles to a hospital where there was an emergency call.

I drove quickly, thinking that the nurse in charge of the ER, Anne, would be waiting for me. I knew her and her husband and children from the parish. When I walked in I could see paramedics at the foot of the only occupied gurney there, so I hurried and walked in. “Sorry, Fr. John, you’re too late. He’s gone.” Anne said, smiling. She had a lot of compassion, but also understood that I’d come as fast as I could. They were removing wires from an older man. I noticed that he was wearing a Brown Scapular, one of the old cloth ones. I reached and said “He’s wearing an old fashioned Scapular”. When I touched it there was a beep from a monitor, then another. The nurse, Anne, said “What did you do?” I said “Nothing!” She and another nurse jumped to work, reconnecting wires and calling for help. The Paramedics stood with their jaws dropped. The patient opened his eyes and said (in an Irish accent) “Oh, good, Father. I’ve been waiting for you. I want to go to Confession.” I nearly fell over. I’d done nothing but seen and touched his Scapular. The next thing I knew they were working on him. He didn’t get to go to Confession, but I gave him an emergency absolution as they worked. One of the Paramedics asked if I was OK and sat me in a chair.

A couple of weeks later the man came to me for Confession and told me that the doctor couldn’t figure out what happened and had to tear up the Death Certificate he’d already started to fill out. The Paramedics had come to see him in the hospital and shown him their notes. At the bottom of the page they’d written the time and place of his death and then in big bold letters had added “BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE BY GOD”.

Miracles still happen. And no, I didn’t do it. It just happened according to God’s will. Why does He intervene in some cases and not in others? I really don’t know. I haven’t figured that out yet. But I do know that God has worked miracles in my life, the most important for me not being what He did for someone else, but what He has done over and over to bring me back from sin and death, through the Sacraments into His Covenant Relationship.


That man still had to die a natural death to be raised from the dead into eternal life. The resurrection Jesus offers all of us is eternal too. And that’s what we look forward to at Easter.

Father Higgins

***

That is why I personally prefer the cloth scapular rather than the brown plastic ones and even the Scapular medal.

Look who is also wearing his.

I read once that up until he died in 2005, he was wearing his Brown Scapular. When he was being operated upon by the doctors after he was shot in St. Peter's Square, he asked his doctors not to remove the scapular.

Make sure that you are properly imposed with it ok, using the approved ritual and formula.

By the way, Fr. Higgins has his own Facebook account. :)

I really pity the Bible-totting "Christians" who do not have anything on their hands like these powerful sacramentals that Holy Mother Church has given us.

They are channels of God's blessings, indeed.

And our Blessed Mother has made her promise also.

Wear yours, ALWAYS!

Knights lead the March for Life against RH!

From CBCPforLife

Hmmm....I think I see myself in one of the photos. :D

All photos courtesy of CBCP for Life.

***


MANILA, March 25, 2012–An estimated 30,000-50,000 members of the Knights of Columbus and their families trekked from Intramuros to the Rajah Sulayman park on Roxas Blvd. yesterday to carry out the annual Walk for Life to manifest the group’s pro-life stand and demonstrate its strong opposition to the Reproductive Health (RH) bill.  [And they were not even paid P350 each!  Ha!]

Dubbed with the theme “We Value Life” this year, the activity started with a 6:00 a.m. Eucharistic celebration at San Agustin Church, Intramuros, with Luzon State Chaplain and Cubao Bishop Honesto Ongtioco as main celebrant.

After the mass, participants from different Knights of Columbus Councils and other organizations assembled in front of the church then walked to Roxas Blvd., carrying streamers and placards identifying their group, and bearing life-affirming messages as well as expressions of anti-RH bill sentiments.

“Give us a chance to breathe because life is a wonderful gift,”” No to RH bill, We value life,” “Defend life,” “We fight for the Culture of Life, Against the Culture of Death,” “Ang buhay na isang regalo huwag sayangin, pahalagahan ito” and “Take my hand, not my life” read some of the placards that dotted the kilometric line of participants of varied ages, from a handful of preschool children and numerous elementary school and high school kids, to adults and quite a few seniors who were upbeat during most of the way to Rajah Sulayman where a program was held.

Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim commended the supposed concern of the RH bill’s proponents for caring for the women’s health issues but pointed out that the measure’s name can be deceiving.

“Ang hindi ko ho maintindihan, ang title ng proposed bill na ito, ‘reproductive health bill’. Ang sinasabi ng mga proponents nito, ay pinangangalagaan daw nila ‘yung kalusugan ng mga ina na manganganak dahil maaari daw mamatay sa panganganak at meron silang mga statistics na nagsasabi kung ilan ang namamatay sa panganganak,” Lim said.

“Sa biglang pandinig, napakagandang pakinggan — inaalagaan ang kalusugan ng mga ina natin.”

He segued into a personal testimony of living a welcoming attitude toward life and being contraceptives-free with his first wife of 44 years before she died and with whom he has eight children, and with his second wife with whom he has four children.

Zambales Representative Ma. Milagros “Mitos” Magsaysay, known for her firm opposition to the RH bill as well as her prowess in discussing it in plenary debates, explained what makes the measure unnecessary and thereby unworthy of support.

Some 80 percent of the provisions in the RH bill, she said, are contained in the Magna Carta of Women which was signed into law in 2009.  [And they still want the RH.  You know why?  It's all about the money, money, money!]

“Nakalagay po sa proposed RH bill that we should provide pre-natal and post-natal care sa lahat ng mga babae dito sa Pilipinas. Iyang provision na ‘yan nasa Magna Carta na eh. Kapag sinabi niyo pong ‘access to all kinds of family planning methods,’ nasa Magna Carta na rin ‘yan. Kapag sinabi mong ‘the right to space your children,’ nasa Magna Carta ‘yan.”

“Kapag sinabi mong dapat mag-provide ng birthing facilities ang mga health centers nationwide, nasa Magna Carta na rin ‘yan. At ‘pag sinabi mong dapat magkaroon ng midwife, nurse at duktor ang mga health centers nationwide, nasa Magna Carta na rin ‘yan,” Magsaysay continued.

“So bakit pa natin kailangang ipasa ang RH bill? Eh dapat ngayon pinapatupad na po namin sa pamahalaan ‘yung provisions ng Magna Carta.”

The congresswoman also delved on the concept of essential medicines and how she regards the attempt to categorize birth control drugs and devices as “essential medicines” as senseless.

“Anong sakit ba ang ginagamot ng contraceptives? Ang pagbubuntis ba ay isang sakit?” she recalled asking RH bill sponsors in plenary debates, to which the latter replied in the negative.

“Ang alam ko sa ‘essential medicine,’ ‘yan ay iniinom ng isang tao sapagkat siya ay may sakit, at kung sakaling inumin niya yung gamot, gagaling siya. Kung hindi naman pala sakit ang pregnancy, ibig sabihin walang sakit, so hindi mo pwedeng i-consider na ‘essential medicine’ ang condoms at contraceptives,” the solon explained.

The bigger picture that could explain the bill’s proponents’ motivation was revealed by Magsaysay.

“Ang sabi kasi nila, sa DoH, mas mabilis ang priority sa pagbili ng gamot kapag ‘essential medicine’ ang classification. Kaya gusto nilang lokohin tayong lahat at sabihin ang contraceptives ay dapat gawing ‘essential medicine,’ she said.  [it's all about the MONEY!!!!]

The Zambales congresswoman also mentioned that she would rather that students were taught values formation rather than sex education, as the youth need to learn to know and value their self-worth, understand principles such as integrity and focus on character building in general.  [Oh no!  Lagayman would not want this.]

Allen Paolo Guballa, State Chief Squire, also spoke as part of the program, which ended with the release of white balloons as the song “Habang May Buhay” was played.

The Walk for Life took place a day before the Day of the Unborn, a special day officially designated in several countries including the Philippines for celebrating the sacredness of the lives of babies before birth. Besides the Philippines, March 25 is marked with a pro-life theme in El Salvador, Argentina, Guatemala, Chile, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, Peru, Panama, Paraguay, Slovakia, Cuba, Austria and Romania. (CBCP for Life)

***

And has anyone heard of this in the MSM?

Nada.  Zilch.  Nil.  Kaput.

Why?

Not media worthy?  Or not convertible to cash?

Right, Howie?

Ha!

Papal Mass at Mexico City

Liturgy check: 5th Sunday of Lent

 Yesterday was the 5th Sunday of Lent.

Just asking.

Are the images of your church, chapel or oratory veiled?

Mine isn't.  Surprise!!! We're still possessed by the Spirit of Vatican II!

Chime in and share your experiences.

For more about this Lenten practice which unfortunately and without basis, liturgical wrecknovators of the school of Bukidnon among them Payawal and Diwa, still spread, (I'm digressing)...

      Read Fr. Z's excellent post about this practice of veiling images.

Is LA Archbishop Gomez really orthodox?

Ever since Cardinal Roger Mahoney's retirement was quickly accepted by the Holy Father and the "shocker" of an appointment of Archbishop Jose Gomez as his co-adjutor archbishop, Catholic bloggers, like yours truly are very hopeful that this Opus Dei priest can bring back the "holy" to the Los Angeles Archdiocese.

But since sitting at the the throne of Los Angeles in March 2011, Archbishop Jose Gomez has not done
anything to arrest the dissent festival called Religious Education Congress.

Apart from the brazen disregard for liturgical laws, the REC is where theological dissenters spread their lies and heresies.  A group called Concerned Roman Catholics of America (CRCOA) sounded the alarm and concern for the seeming inaction of the reputed orthodox archbishop against this event.


The CRCOA mentioned the following:

 The 185 REC speakers include:

A priest who's said he's "not anti-choice," has publicly discussed his genitals, and has criticized the idea that truth is superior to dissent.

A priest who says the Church needs "public models" of "healthy gay priests for Catholics to reflect on," to counter "the stereotype of the gay priest as child abuser."

A professor who subtly undermines Church teachings on papal authority, sodomy, contraception and women's ordination.

A nun who's taught that "ordinary genital self-touch can be very important" for children.

A laicized priest who wants not only women priests but also women bishops.

This will be the second year that the REC will be held under the leadership of Archbishop Gomez and he still has not undone what Mahoney left behind.

Questions are:  Is Gomez really the archbishop running the archdiocese?  Is Mahoney's hand still in this event?

My dear People of God, the speakers deliver lessons openly challenging the dogmas of the Church.  And we bring in our very own Catholics to listen to their filth.

What do we do?  Well, what will Archbishop Gomez do about this?

Is he really orthodox, or more of a comformist?

All about the old rite of Blessing Holy Water

My post about the comparison of the new and old ritual of blessing of the Water is still generating a lot of hits for the blog. And I got an interesting comment here which I am sharing with you.

Of course I was just joking.

But seriously, this is symptomatic of the problems with most of today's clergy which are:

1. Some priests honestly think that the Old ritual books have already been burned and need not be resurrected from the ashes, just as they were taught at their theology schools. Probably because their Liturgy professors.
2. Some priests are simply too obstinate to think that they can get away with liturgical murder all the time, which unfortunately they always do since no one has ever been tried or penalized for committing horrible liturgical abuses. Does Cardnal Mahoney and St. Vincent School of Theology and Euntes come to mind?
3. Some priests, and I think a large number of them, are not even informed about Summorum Pontificum, which strangely enough, in this day and age of the Internet and social media, their bishops or superiors still keep them in the dark.

So, as far as I can assess that campus minister?

He is a pinakbet!

He is a mix of all three.

But on second thought, I love veggies and this Pinoy version of Ratatouille.

But I do not appreciates priests like that campus minister acting that way.

My advice is not to push the issue. Just look for another one who is willing to do it.

Solemn Pontifical High Mass in the Philippines!!!

A "catholic" politician's rants. And I do too!

From the column of former senator and ambassador Ernesto Maceda in the Philippine Star.

***

BE MODERN . . If there is one ongoing criticism of the Catholic Church, it is the fact that it is antiquated and has not modernized.  [On what areas?]

Here comes Legaspi Bishop Joel Baylon telling the faithful to dress properly to go to church, and not wear skimpy shorts or t-shirts and sandals or sneakers in church.

Shorts and miniskirts are accepted dressing even in business offices. [Shorts are accepted in offices?!]  Why ban it in church? Haven’t priests given up using long dresses?

Especially during summer, considering that churches are hot places, churchgoers should be allowed to use comfortable clothes. What is important is the people come to church, not what they wear. Remember 80% of our people are poor and cannot afford to buy several sets of clothes.

***

The Church is an agent to modernize the world.  Remember that some of the brilliant minds in the world are either Catholic clergy or laity.

Never did the Church was against the advancement of science.  In fact, the Church gave birth to the modern university system.  Almost all of the oldest universities in the world were started by Catholic orders.

But I digress, just as this politician and columnist is.

To get to point 1, "What is the proper attire when worshipping?'

Yeah, some people would say that it is not what is on the outside that matters but what is on the inside.  Uh-huh?

Some would say "Look at what Christ said against the hypocrisy of Pharisees and scribes."

Woah!  Wait a minute, little Jimmy!

Christ was condemning the incongruence of the inner reality with what the Pharisees were wearing.  Their holiness is only good from outside.  Christ did not condemn what they were wearing.  He condemned the Pharisees' hypocrisy for drawing attention to themselves, telling the whole world that "Hey look!  I am wearing this.  I maybe holy!"

This is not the case for wearing the appropriate garment for the appropriate occasion.  Going to work is not the same as going to a graduation ceremony or going to a job interview or going to an audience with the Queen of England.  No, siree!  They are not the same.

Same thing goes for this debate and quite frankly, either a stupid commentary from former Senator Maceda or some modernist priest telling him "that what matters is what is inside the heart" thing.

If what is important is what is inside, then, by golly PROVE IT OUTSIDE!

Show it with what you wear.  The inner reality becomes visible to the naked eye and audible to the human ear with what we say or do.

So, the next time you see someone coming to your wedding, to your birthday party, to any important event in your life and he or she comes wearing that fits a bum in a park, then you should look at that person as a.....bum!

Do the proper things in the appropriate time and setting, properly.

If Sen. Maceda were in front of the Queen of England, he would have told the Queen that all those layer of cloth are worthless and the "thing" she wear on top of her head is too antiquated and should be left at the museum.

Actually, somebody thought of it that way with the Queen.  Read it here.

And as a conclusion, read what the Gospel has to say about this topic:

Matt.22
[1]And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying,

[2] "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a marriage feast for his son,
[3] and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast; but they would not come.
[4] Again he sent other servants, saying, `Tell those who are invited, Behold, I have made ready my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves are killed, and everything is ready; come to the marriage feast.'
[5] But they made light of it and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,
[6] while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.
[7] The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.  [8] Then he said to his servants, `The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy.  [9] Go therefore to the thoroughfares, and invite to the marriage feast as many as you find.'  [10] And those servants went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.
[11] "But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment;  [12] and he said to him, `Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless.  [13] Then the king said to the attendants, `Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.'
[14] For many are called, but few are chosen."  [15]Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how to entangle him in his talk.

Yup, it is safe to say that the Pharisees did not like the lesson taught by Christ about the proper wearing of clothes.

And so do Sen. Maceda.

St. Joseph in the eyes of Pope Joseph Ratzinger

BREAKING!!! Knights' Supreme Chaplain named Archbishop of Baltimore

Here is the official press release from the website of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

***

Pope Benedict XVI today named Bishop William E. Lori of the Diocese of Bridgeport, 60, as the 16th Archbishop of Baltimore. He will succeed Edwin Cardinal O’Brien, who served as Baltimore’s 15th archbishop from October 2007 to August 2011. Cardinal O’Brien has served as Apostolic Administrator of the nation’s oldest Archdiocese since his appointment August 29 as Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem.

Archbishop-designate Lori will be introduced at a press conference today:

Tuesday, March 20, 2012
10:30 a.m.
Baltimore Basilica

Archbishop-designate Lori was ordained a priest in 1977 and a bishop by Pope John Paul II in 1995, serving as Bishop of Bridgeport, Connecticut since 2001. During his episcopacy in Bridgeport, Archbishop-designate Lori launched several initiatives in support of Catholic education, vocations, Catholic Charities, and evangelization. He has served on several committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, including the Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse, where he was instrumental in drafting the landmark Charter for the Protection of Children & Young People. He is also a current member of the Committee on Doctrine, the Pro-Life Activities Committee and the Ad-Hoc Committee for the Defense of Marriage. Archbishop-designate Lori is the Chairman of the newly-created Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty and has been a courageous voice for upholding marriage between one man and one woman, and for religious liberty.

***

I guess the Archdiocese's Media Office does not know that Archbishop-elect Loru is also the Supreme Chaplain of the Order of the Knights of Columbus, eh?

A request from a priest-friend

From the great Father Z, comes a simple request.

Yup. I used to chat with him when the ZChat was still on quite often

The death of St. Joseph in the presence of Our Lord and the Blessed Mother

This is a nice prayer and I hope you stop a moment and say this prayer for him and for all priest, good or those who are hard-headed.  They, too, need our prayers.  We are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ:    Church Triumphant, Militant and Suffering.  Don't forget that.

***

PRAYER TO SAINT JOSEPH FOR A PARTICULAR PRIEST

Saint Joseph,
I present to you this day
Father N., priest of Jesus Christ,
and beg you to be to him
advocate and defender,
counselor and friend.
Open your heart to him
as you opened your home to the Virgin Mother
in her hour of need.
Protect his holy priesthood
as you protected the life of the Infant Christ
threatened by cruel Herod.
In darkness bring him light;
in weakness, strength,
and in fear the peace that passes understanding.
For the sake of the tender love that bound you
to the Virgin Mary and the Infant Christ,
be for him, Saint Joseph, a constant intercessor
and a shield against every danger of body, mind, and soul
so that, in spite of his weaknesses and sins,
his priesthood may bring glory to Christ
and serve to increase the beauty of holiness
in his bride the Church.

Amen.

The Feast of the Annunciation is the Day of the Unborn!

Dear Pro-Life Advocates,

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ!

In 2004, Proclamation No. 586 made by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared March 25 of each year as the “DAY OF THE UNBORN” in the Philippines.

Like in other countries, this day is devoted to the souls of the vast number of babies forbidden to live and partake in this world. It is a day when all people of good will should rededicate themselves to advocate that societies around the world include every unborn child within their understanding of the human community. It is a day for people of faith to pray for the eradication of abortion from the face of the planet.
On this day, please organize pro-life activities to promote the Dignity and Protection of the Unborn.

Suggested Activities:


Candle lighting Activity
Meditation and prayer on the life of Jesus in the Womb
Organizing prayer meetings to spread the message of life.
Designing and raising posters communicating pro-life messages.
Organizing small public meetings to propagate the pro-life message.
Organizing rallies in our own localities.
Printing and distributing leaflets to impart pro-life awareness.
Organizing seminars, fora and exhibits related to pro-life issues by various organizations.

NOTE: Catholic Liturgical Ordo has announced the Feast of the Annunciation this year is on March 26 because March 25 falls on the Fourth Sunday of Lent. Feel free to organize activities on either day. Please give us a report on how your parish or organization participated in the Day of the Unborn. [ The Feast of the Annunciation is on March 25.  The Ordo of the Ordinary Form will celebrate it on March 26.  The Traditional Community will probably celebrate it on Sunday.  I will check it first.]

Contact Pro-Life Office at 7337027 or text us at 09192337783 for the sample intercessory prayers you could use during the Holy Mass.

***

This is from Pro-Life Philippines and CBCP for Life

A great way to celebrate the Feast of the Foster Father of the Son of God

 
Fr. Jojo Zerrudo of the Diocese of Cubao, one of a few priests in the country who publicly celebrate the Extraordinary Form of the Mass aka Traditional Latin Mass, celebrated a Solemn High Mass in celebration of the Feast of St. Joseph.  Assisting him are two "brave" priests, (those in the traditional movement often use this term and I am beginning to know what it means. ;),

Pray that more priest celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass and encourage the more solemn and reverent celebration of the Liturgy in both the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms.

And stop using tupperware as a ciborium!

Mark your calendars

Consider this!

And that moment when Mary said "Yes" to the archangel Gabriel's invitation.

And we will recall THAT MOMENT when God the Son became a human embryo...

This SUNDAY!

The Feast of the Annunciation!

FIAT!

***

Consider this also.

A human embryo is a unique being, with a unique DNA pattern.  It is not just a blob of blood.  It is not even just a simple part of a woman's body.  It is a human being!

There are contraceptives that either expel the embryo from the woman's womb or it makes the womb such a hostile environment that the embryo cannot implant itself on the uterine wall, thus the embryo, the unborn human being, is expelled from the body.

So, what do you call that process when a human life in the womb is terminated?

ABORTION.

See, why Holy Mother Church has been firm in its condemnation of oral contraceptive pills?

Weird comment

And I get lots of those.

Even rants from fans of certain VIPs I love to blog about.

Yeah, even from Cardinal Mahoney's fans!

O-ha!

Now...

Sharing to you a comment in my post about Manny Pacquiao being appointed Bible Ambassador by the CBCP.

Jesus wasn't a catholic, so why are you people convincing people to be a catholic?

WHA?!

He what..you know..uhm...well...who...where?

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...........

Yeah, a bit harsh.

But really got me thinking.

We really need more catechesis!

A beautiful article/blog post about St. Joseph

Visit this post from the website of the Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matará.

It is a very concise yet packed with beautiful info about this dearly beloved patron of the Church.

Name day of Pope Benedict XVI!

Paptized Joseph Alois Ratzinger.

Today is his name day!

Gloriously reigning and sitting upon Peter's Chair!

A great number of saints are devoted to both Our Lady and to dear St. Joseph.

Who is your patron saint? And when is your name day?

The Feast of St. Joseph

Foster Father of Jesus Christ

Husband of the Blessed Mother, the ever Virgin and Immaculate Mary

Protector of the Holy Family

Patron of the Universal Church

The only man God called "Father"

***

Oh, Saint Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in you all my interests and desires.


Oh, Saint Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession, and obtain for me from your Divine Son all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, So that, having engaged here below your heavenly power, I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most Loving of Fathers.


Oh, Saint Joseph, I never weary contemplating you and Jesus asleep in your arms; I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss his fine head for me and ask him to return the Kiss when I draw my dying breath.


Saint Joseph, Patron of departed souls – pray for me. Amen.

The Litany of St. Joseph

(one of a few litanies officially recognized by the Church to be said publicly. This was sanctioned by Pope St. Pius X in 1909.)

V/ Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

V/ Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.

V/ Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

V/ Jesus, hear us. R/ Jesus, graciously hear us.

V/ God, the Father of Heaven, R/ have mercy on us.

V/ God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, R/ have mercy on us.

V/ God, the Holy Spirit, R/ have mercy on us.

V/ Holy Trinity, One God, R/ have mercy on us.

R/ for ff:     * pray for us.

Holy Mary,
St. Joseph,
Renowned offspring of David,
Light of Patriarchs,
Spouse of the Mother of God,
Chaste guardian of the Virgin,
Foster father of the Son of God,
Diligent protector of Christ,
Head of the Holy Family,
Joseph most just,
Joseph most chaste,
Joseph most prudent,
Joseph most strong,
Joseph most obedient,
Joseph most faithful,
Mirror of patience,
Lover of poverty,
Model of artisans,
Glory of home life,
Guardian of virgins,
Pillar of families,
Solace of the wretched,
Hope of the sick,
Patron of the dying,
Terror of demons,
Protector of Holy Church,

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world, R/ spare us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world, R/ graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world. R/ have mercy on us.

He made him the lord of his household. R/ And prince over all his possessions.

Let us pray. O God, in your ineffable providence you were pleased to choose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of your most holy Mother; grant, we beg you, that we may be worthy to have him for our intercessor in heaven whom on earth we venerate as our Protector: You who live and reign forever and ever. R/ Amen.

Coptic Pope Shenouda has died!

The Coptic Pope lies in state.

Read more about this news here.

BREAKING!!! Rowan Williams to step down on December 2012!

BBC broke the news after the Archbishop's official website posted his official statement.

This is the official release in the Canterbury Archbishopric website:

Archbishop Rowan Williams has today announced his acceptance of the position of Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge with effect from January 2013. He will therefore be stepping down from the office of Archbishop of Canterbury at the end of December 2012.

Dr Williams’ intentions have been conveyed to The Queen, who is Supreme Governor of the Church of England and who formally appoints the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Dr Williams was appointed the one hundred and fourth Archbishop of Canterbury in 2002. He said today:

It has been an immense privilege to serve as Archbishop of Canterbury over the past decade, and moving on has not been an easy decision. During the time remaining there is much to do, and I ask your prayers and support in this period and beyond. I am abidingly grateful to all those friends and colleagues who have so generously supported Jane and myself in these years, and all the many diverse parishes and communities in the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion that have brought vision, hope and excitement to my own ministry. I look forward, with that same support and inspiration, to continuing to serve the Church’s mission and witness as best I can in the years ahead.

Dr Williams will continue to carry out all the duties and responsibilities of the Archbishop of Canterbury, both for the Church of England and the Anglican Communion, until the end of the year.

The Crown Nominations Commission will consider in due course the selection of a successor.

***

His resignation came 6 days after meeting the Holy Father.

Did he tell the Holy Father about this? Hmmm....

BREAKING!!! Holy See says NO to demands of SSPX

From National Catholic Register

***

The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has said that the theological position of the breakaway Society of St. Pius X is insufficient to restore full unity with the Church at present.

Pope Benedict XVI has reviewed a January 2012 letter from Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the society. In that letter, the bishop responded to a doctrinal statement intended to be a basis for full reconciliation with Rome.

However, following the decision of the Pope, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has found that the position Bishop Fellay expressed is “not sufficient to overcome the doctrinal problems which lie at the foundation of the rift between the Holy See and the Society of St. Pius X,” a March 16 communiqué from the Holy See Press Office said.

The congregation is concerned to avoid “an ecclesial rupture of painful and incalculable consequences” and has invited Bishop Fellay to clarify his position “in order to be able to heal the existing rift, as is the desire of Pope Benedict XVI.”  [Hmmm...sounds like the Holy See really wants to keep a door open for the SSPX.]

Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the Society of St. Pius X in 1970 in response to what he saw as errors that had arisen in the Church after the Second Vatican Council. The society broke from the Church in 1988, when its founder ordained four bishops against Pope John Paul II’s instructions, resulting in their excommunications.

Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications in 2009 as a prelude to talks about reconciling the society with the Church. At the time he said that the society would have to show “true recognition of the magisterium and the authority of the Pope and of the Second Vatican Council” to restore full communion.  [The SSPX wants nothing to do with Vatican II.  Wha?!  It happened so we have to deal with it.]


Vatican officials said that the restoration of unity could come in the form of a personal prelature, a special Church jurisdiction without geographic boundaries.

In September 2011 Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, presented Bishop Fellay with the doctrinal preamble, a statement of principles that outlines points of doctrine which the breakaway group needed to accept to restore communion.  [And a lot within SSPX were up in arms for what they see as a preamble that would compromise their position as traditionalist and as, uhm, as uh....remnant Catholics?]

In November 2011, Bishop Fellay said that the society cannot endorse the preamble. He said he particularly wanted to discuss what the Vatican meant when it said there is “leeway” for a “legitimate discussion” on the documents and legacy of the Second Vatican Council.


***

Still the Holy See wants them back into the one fold of Jesus Christ under the leadership of Peter.

Now let me rant...

I guess the THAT priest-blogger will now say that I am happy that the SSPX did not go back to the Vatican II Rome since I am really an undercover SSPX and I do not want to have anything to do with Vatican II!


 ROFL!!!!

See what a lot of steam does.

Now he just lost show.

But I digress.

Please pray for him also.  He is a man full of anger.  He is always mad.

No really, not joking.  He always is.  Too much time fighting anti-Catholics got into him, much like a post-traumatic stress disorder that soldiers experience.  He needs help and guidance.

Pray for him.  When you pray please say "Please bless and heal the priest blogger that Pinoy Catholic is talking about."  Then say One Pater, Ave and Gloria for him.  That would suffice.

And pray One Pater, Ave and Gloria to soften the hearts of the SSPX and that they go back to the One Fold of Jesus Christ.

Now I love this group!

For making themselves known for who they are.

Bunch of brats, whiners and degenerates who desperately call out for attention.

The FAT HATTER trying to look manly......

The bi-sexual leader, Satan's agent.....

Robin the girl blunder who left her laundry duties just to hold a pole....

And a white board snatcher that SAYS IT ALL!!

They have done almost everything!

Except...........THINK.

And the fat dude is "groping" for money, no pun intended.

Sue him at the BIR!  Doña Carlita does not issue receipts!

And I noticed that as soon as she made the Manila Cathedral stunt, and I blogged about my open challenge to this tub of lard, he immediately issued a call to his Facebook followers to troll on the blog.  I did a little Googling on "her name" and noticed that my post would always end up on top of the list of searches.  Hmmmm...Carlita is looking for how many are writing about her!

Nasty attention devil!

And in case we forget...

These degenerates are mostly educated in Catholic schools.  They began "freethinking" when they were taught there!  Yup, all that freedom to think and all that stuff.  The problem is, they were indoctrinated to hate the Church and question what She teaches.

Dogma is like gravity.  It is unchanging.

Deal with it!

And these degenerates think it is simple child's play.

We are often told when we were kids never to play with fire.  Now this time, keep your kids away from these real life trolls, zombies who just crave attention and like the video game, love to eat brains for sustenance.  You know, making a scene just to look intelligent.


Hope to see these Brady Bunch do their stuff in Jolo.

Hmmm...When will they do the "stupid" white board with Allah on it.

That I gotta see!!!

Priests and nuns get stressed too!

Yes, folks because they are humans too!

From Agence France Press via ABS-CBNNews.com

***

ROME - Often stressed, lonely and besmirched, Catholic priests and nuns are increasingly at risk of "burnout" and some of them could do with a little therapy, experts said at an unusual conference this week.

Some 200 priests and nuns took part in the symposium entitled "Priests On the Couch" at the Salesian University in Rome, where they were asked to fill in a detailed survey to find out what psychological problems afflict the clergy.

British professor Leslie Francis, who has researched clergy in Australia and Britain, said a majority -- around 59 percent -- were introverted, preferring scholarly studies and personal reflection to socialising.  [Hmmm....this is interesting.  Are most of the respondents academicians or monastics?]

Francis said members of the clergy often feel "exhausted" by the demands of their ministry and can feel frustrated in a society obsessed with show and image that does not respect the traditional humility of the clerical life.  [Because most people get now the impression that most of the clergy and religious they see on TV.]

"The Church attracts many introverts. Our job has to be to equip them better," said Francis, pointing out that one particular focus was in helping clergy to handle human interactions outside of the strictly religious sphere.

Many at the conference felt that it is difficult for priests in trouble to be able to "knock on the door" of therapists without being judged.

Giuseppe Crea, a priest and psychotherapist, said some priests were "150 percent" engaged in their pastoral work and risked a "burnout."

They became so obsessed with their work that they lost perspective and could fall prey to narcissism, ambitiousness and aberrant behaviour, he said.  [Hmmmm...can it be that one priest I know who is doing a great job in defending the Church that he himself cannot distinguish who is the enemy of the Church and who are fellow Catholics that he is quick to blow his top off?]

Jesuit priest Hans Zollner, who organised an unprecedented Vatican conference last month on clerical child abuse, said that integrating priests' "psychological and spiritual dimensions" would help prevent such problems.  [Oooooo....new money making venture for MST and Euntes!  Bunch of pseudo psychiatrists.  LOL!]

The theme was raised publicly last year in Italian director Nanni Moretti's film "Habemus Papam", in which a psychologist is brought in to help the newly elected pope, who has suffered a breakdown and is treated in secret.

Conference participants also deplored the secondary role afforded to women in the Catholic Church [wha?!?!?!]  and said that priests should have more contact with female instructors during their training to make them more open to diversity.

The seminar looked at issues such as how a priest should react if someone seeking pastoral help makes a pass at him, if people should rat on a nun with a secret drink problem or if stern superiors cause depression among new curates.

"In Africa, when a priest goes to a psychologist people say he is crazy or distance themselves," an African priest told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"We are always a media target but we are also men. Who do we talk to?"

Fabrizio Mastrofini, editor-in-chief at Vatican Radio and co-author of a recent book entitled "Priests On the Couch", said that members of the clergy "need a rounded human education as much as they need bread."

Lucetta Scaraffia, a historian who writes for the Vatican's Osservatore Romano daily, said she had met inspiring youngsters training for the priesthood who then struggled to fit in with the Church's "extremely conformist world."

She said the Catholic culture they entered was "closed in on itself."  [Lots of double meaning words there.]

Instead of books on family and Christian sexuality, future priests would be better off reading lurid novels that describe real life, she said, adding: "It would be more useful to know about the history of the sexual revolution."  [Smell a rat named Sigmun Freud out there?]

***

Hey, how about a relaxing book entitled Spiritual Exercises?  or Secrets of a Devout Life?

Good grief!

I notice most people gang up on their priests after Mass.  This is both good and bad, people.  Good because it shows how we honor the gift of the Sacrament of Holy Orders that these once ordinary men now possess.  They would not gang up on an ordinary man, or if they are TV or movie celebrities.  Would you expect the same kind of reaction if the priest has been laicized?  Nope.  And it is bad in a way since: 1. It boosts their narcissism, ambitiousness and aberrant behavior!  2.  Priests might be too burned out after celebrating a lot of Masses in a single day that some people just don't care that they keep on pestering them with a lot of questions and requests.  

It is our duty also to care for our priests and not to abuse them with silly requests.

One visit for a spiritual direction is enough, don't do it on a weekly basis.  If you want it that way, see a snitch.

Don't ask a priest bless any thing that you can think that he can bless.  It can be annoying, just as a friend-priest laments.

Pray for them.  Don't spoil them with too much attention and gifts.  Give them just what they need.  Don't always take them to eat-outs and vacations.  They are needed more in their rectories.  Tell them kindly if they are having too much of something, like too much TV exposure.

It bloats their ego.

HEY!  Who put that there?!