Amused?

Not at all amused. No. Not. At. All.

World-ly Vission

A "supposedly Christian" relief organization will now recognize employees' same-sex marriages.

Christian relief organization World Vision has announced that it will no longer define marriage as between a man and a woman in its employee conduct manual, a groundbreaking change for an evangelical institution and a reflection of the impact that gay marriage is having on religious organizations.

The organization’s U.S. branch will recognize same-sex marriage as being within the norms of “abstinence before marriage and fidelity in marriage” as part of the conduct code for its 1,100 employees.

“I want to be clear that we have not endorsed same-sex marriage, but we have chosen to defer to the authority of local churches on this issue,” said World Vision’s U.S. President Rich Stearns in a letter to employees.

World Vision is the second-largest organization listed with the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, behind Salvation Army. It also ranks among America’s top 10 charities, with revenue around $1 billion.

“I want to reassure you that we are not sliding down some slippery slope of compromise, nor are we diminishing the authority of Scripture in our work,” Stearns said. “We have always affirmed traditional marriage as a God-ordained institution. Nothing in our work around the world with children and families will change.”

A World Vision spokesperson said Stearns was traveling and not available for an interview.

In an interview with Christianity Today, Stearns said the organization’s board was “overwhelmingly in favor” of the change. But he stressed the decision is not driven by theology.

“This is not an endorsement of same-sex marriage,” he told the magazine. “We have decided we are not going to get into that debate. Nor is this a rejection of traditional marriage, which we affirm and support.

“There is no lawsuit threatening us,” he added. “There is no employee group lobbying us. This is simply a decision about whether or not you are eligible for employment at World Vision U.S., based on this single issue, and nothing more.”

In 2012, Washington state, where World Vision U.S. is based, became one of the first states to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. The organization also has employees who attend churches that conduct same-sex marriages, including the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, among others.

In 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a case involving three employees who were fired by World Vision, allowing the relief group to maintain its mandatory statement of faith for its workers. A ruling from the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with World Vision in a case involving three former employees who were fired because they did not believe in the deity of Jesus or in the doctrine of the Trinity.

Read the rest of the article here

"Incidentally", World Vision supports REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

World Vision has received grants from The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and has a history of working with USAID, the source of the definition of HTSP above. On a USAID site which gives information on HTSP, this list is included as part of the ways in which the government agency encouraging pregnancy spacing:
D. Hormonal Contraceptives:

• Oral Contraceptive Pill:

• Combined Pill (COC);

• Progesterone Only Pills (POP);

• Emergency Contraceptive Methods

• Injectables: Monthly and Three Monthly

• Implants

• Patch

• Vaginal Rings

E. Intrauterine Contraceptive Device: Copper bearing and Hormonal
Source: basics.org/documents/Advocacy-Presentation_What-is-HTSP.pdf

While other non-abortive methods are also listed, it’s impossible to separate that from the obvious abortifacients, such as emergency contraception and hormonal birth control, which has the ability to expel a fertilized egg. Ella, which is chemically composed like RU-486, is considered a contraceptive by the FDA and would be included on this list, as it qualifies as emergency contraception, but Ella can kill a baby even five days after conception. 

As early as 2006, Archbishop Socrates Villegas, D.D. has warned us AGAINST World Vision.

Pastoral Letter on Worl Vision

Ang pakikipag-ugnayan sa World Vision ay maaaring magdulot ng pagkalito at pagkaligaw sa mga Katoliko sa Pilipinas. Noon pa mang taong isang libo siyam na raan at pitumpu at walo, humingi na ang World Vision na liham mula sa mga Obispo ng Pilipinas upang kilalanin sila bilang kabalikat sa gawain para sa mahihirap. Ang sabi ng World Vision ay nababawasan ang abuloy na tinatanggap nila dahil ayaw silang kilalanin ng mga Obispo ng Pilipinas. Ang lahat ng Obispo sa Pilipinas sa kanilang pulong noong Hulyo, 1978 ay tumangging magbigay ng pagsang-ayon sa World Vision sapagkat ang samahang ito ay nang-aakit na maging Protestante ang mga Katoliko.

GULP Exam: LTO Chapel

A chapel in the middle of LTO's main office along East Avenue in Quezon City.

Your comments are welcome!

Are you listening Ariel Rivera and Gelli de Belen???

From Ansel Beluso's Facebook account:

Tune in to Digma ng Buhay 6-7 P.M. tonight (Thursday) on Veritas 846 and listen to the testimony of an ex-gay living with HIV-AIDS who ruefully confirms that the condom is not a protection against sexually transmitted death traps. In his promiscuous past, he always used the condom whenever he engaged in his multi-partner sexually active gay lifestyle. Now, as he prays for a healing miracle, he cautions everyone against the false sense of security that the condom and all the other artificial contraceptives engender. He powerfully testifies, contraceptives can kill! Are you listening, Ariel Rivera and Gelli de Belen?

We all know celebrity couples Gelli de Belen and Ariel Rivera are the latest endorsers of the promoter of promiscuity and disease, DKT - Trust.

What so ironic about that commercial about "CHOICES" is that the only CHOICE not available there is abstinence and natural family planning method.

Why?

Duh!  

DKT - Trust won't earn anything out of fidelity to spouse, chastity and discipline.

And when women start having cancer from the pills, homosexual men contracting HIV because of condoms, will the talent fee this couple received be even enough to foot the bill of the sick people who were convinced with their ad campaign and bought and used the products?

Celebrities, think twice before you endorse a product!

You have a very big responsibility to society!

And you and I answer to God after we die!

And you cannot escape that fact.

Are you still listening Ariel Rivera and Gelli de Belen?

Even the Pope doesn't like the uber attention

To the die-hard fanatics of Pope Francis!

Listen up!

The pope himself does not like it!

And stop making Pope Francis look good by making Pope Emeritus Benedict look bad!

It makes you dumb.

***

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis finds the hype that is increasingly surrounding him "offensive," according to an interview published Wednesday, even as the Vatican is marking the anniversary of his election with commemorative stamps and coins and a DVD with never-before-seen footage of the pope.

Francis told Italian daily Corriere della Sera he doesn't appreciate the myth-making that has seen him depicted as a "Superpope" (as an Italian street artist recently painted him) who sneaks out at night to feed the poor (as Italian newspapers have suggested).

On Wednesday, he had to contend with a new bout of celebrity as "My Pope" hit Italian newsstands, a weekly gossip magazine devoted entirely to Francis. It is published by Mondadori, which is owned by ex-Premier Silvio Berlusconi's media empire. In addition, at his general audience, someone tried to give him a replica of an Oscar statue that said "Oscar Pope" on it.  [Oh God!....]

"I don't like ideological interpretations, this type of mythology of Pope Francis," the pope told Corriere. "If I'm not mistaken, Sigmund Freud said that in every idealization there's an aggression. Depicting the pope as a sort of Superman, a star, is offensive to me.  [There's your aggression!  hihi]

"The pope is a man who laughs, cries, sleeps calmly and has friends like everyone else. A normal person."

Francis marks his anniversary as pope March 13. For the occasion, the Vatican has issued new coins and stamps. The DVD will feature behind-the-scenes footage of the pope leaving the Sistine Chapel just after he was elected and praying in the nearby Paoline Chapel before he went out onto the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to greet the world with his famous "Buonasera." [Good evening in Italian.  Much like the greeting you hear when you go to Sunday Mass, no?  Whatever happened to "Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.."  or "The Lord be with you."]

In the interview, Francis also said he and Pope Benedict XVI had agreed that the emeritus pontiff wouldn't remain hidden away, as Benedict had said he would spend his retirement, but would participate more in the life of the church. That's in keeping with Francis' belief that the elderly have a wealth of wisdom to offer younger generations.

"The emeritus pope isn't a statue in a museum. He's an institution," Francis said. "We talked about it and we decided together that it would be better if he sees people, gets out and participates in the life of the church."  [Boohoo!!! Sorry for the anti-Benedict's out there!  Boohoohoo!]

Benedict recently attended the recent ceremony to formally install 19 new cardinals, the first time he and Francis had appeared together in St. Peter's. He is widely expected to attend the April 27 canonizations of Popes John Paul II and John XXIII.

"Some might have wanted him to retire away in a Benedictine abbey far from the Vatican," Francis said. "I thought about grandparents who with their wisdom and advice give strength to their families and don't deserve to end up in an old folks' home."


***

Two important points were raised here by Pope Francis which surely the liberals and Francis fanatics would not like:

1.  He doesn't like the adulation.  We all thought he did because he was silent about it, until this interview.

2.  Benedict is adviser of Francis.  So we would see more of Benedict's influence with Benedict around.


And aren't you not surprised the western media did not report about this?

I'm not.

But you can share this so people would know!

Where are our priests most of the time?

Need I say more?

I have been blogging about how some priests spend more time in the public eye (social media, mass media) they think the power of the Sacrament of Holy Orders made them instant "rock stars" (right John Allen?).

And we hear a cardinal calls for more mercy to divorced and remarried Catholics to be re-admitted to Holy Communion, which is an implicit way of undermining the Sacrament of Matrimony, giving the impression to the divorcee and other Catholics that divorcee is not in a state of mortal sin and therefore can receive Holy Communion!

But on the other side, on the issue of dispensing the Mercy of the Lord through the Sacrament of Reconciliation / Penance...where have all our priests gone?  Have you seen them regularly in the confessional?

Here is a great point of discussion from Cardinal Piacenza about the priest's work of dispensing God's mercy.

***

Priests should sit and wait patiently for faithful in the confessional at times that are convenient for penitents. Cardinal Mauro Piacenza said this this afternoon during the inauguration of the course on the inner conscience, the private inner space of each individual. The week-long course has become something of a tradition. It will be taking place in the Chancery office and attended by about five hundred priests and seminarists who are approaching ordination. The meeting will conclude Friday with an Audience with [pope] Francis. In the afternoon there will be a penitential liturgy in the St. Peter’s Basilica, when the Pope will confess some of those present, inaugurating the “feast of forgiveness”, during which churches will stay open 24/7 for confessions.  [Has your diocese or parish done something similar?]

The Sacrament of Reconciliation “is possibly the most concrete and real way to renew one’s personal meeting with Jesus Christ,” Piacenza said.  Although it is true that the celebration of this sacrament often comes after a long and trying inner journey and is a destination one reaches after a previous personal Church-mediated encounter with the Lord, there are cases of radical conversions taking place during the very celebration of the sacrament. During this time, a supernatural grace acts through the confessor, working on the penitent’s conscience and can lead to brief instants of unimaginable spiritual highs.”

“When we deal with the inner conscience, what we’re dealing with is God!,” the cardinal said. “The conscience is a shrine where God always speaks to all humans in accordance with creation  and to Christians in accordance with creation and redemption… Accompanying a brother in the process of discerning his or her personal way of acting and receiving everything that emerges from the inner conscience, means entering into sacred territory with this person and one needs to be extremely careful when doing so. It’s like walking on silk.”

Piacenza invited confessors to prepare  for the celebration of this sacrament by “invoking the Spirit of prudence and wisdom, asking the Lord to be his obedient instruments” and to pause for a moment of prayer after confession “to thank the Lord for what he has achieved through our poor persons and always invoke the protection of the Holy Spirit and the powerful intercession of the Mother of Mercy on each of the souls that have renewed their personal encounter with Christ through us.”

[Here is the best part.]
 “What all of us as well as penitentiaries of papal basilicas have noticed, is that the Sacrament of Reconciliation  is going through a crisis, particularly where confessors are facing a crisis. That is, where  the sacrament is only offered to “Catholic adults” who consciously ask for it and may even have the priest’s phone number at hand. But this risks reducing the sacrament to something individualistic  which has nothing to do with one’s personal encounter with Christ,” the cardinal said. [Some people call their priests as if the priests are their own toy dog!]

The Father who sees his youngest child arriving in the distance is a good example of this. [The parable of the prodigal son.] It is a patient, often painful and sometimes disappointed wait but we can always pray, meditate, read spiritual texts and offer our sacrifice as we wait. If even just one penitent finds reconciliation with God because the priest waited for them faithfully in intense prayer possibly, the time spent waiting will have been well worth it. Even if no one turns up, the majority within the Church, that is the angels and saints, will have been witness to our sacrifice and our willingness.”

“Being faithful to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the Major Penitentiary concluded, is one of the most efficient ways to be faithful to Christ and his inescapable mandate: “If you forgive anyone's sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." [The mandate given by Christ to the apostles and not just to any Christians as most liberals think it is.] These words are also to be understood “as the personal responsibility of every priest towards all those whose sins have not been forgiven because of the scarcity of this sacrament and the consequent difficulty in celebrating it.”

***

I find it disheartening to discover the following things:

1.  Some priest in Quiapo where I regularly go to Mass every Friday morning, give the absolution as if they are speaking like a machine!  My God!  It was lightning fast how he said the absolution!  And it is not just once I experienced that!

2.  Some shrines (diocesan, archdiocesan, national) usually have empty confessionals!

3. Confessions done in retreat houses are usually this:

    a.  write your sins in a piece of paper and then we burn it, and then the priest gives general absolution
    b.  pray and tell God your sins, and then the priest gives the absolution.


Dear priest, you were ordained for the purpose of forgiving sins!

Spend more time in the confessional rather than in your TV shows, di ba?

Better Manila Cathedral?

Professor Ferdinand Bautista gives us a glimpse of the brighter and bolder Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.

According to an ABS-CBN online article, the renovated Cathedral is brighter and has 4 ambiance options.

They have turned the seat of the See of Manila into a theater!

And seeing the flat screen televisions in the picture above makes me cringe!

I think I know what will happen next: palayok censers, liturgical dancing, and more performances for the enjoyment of the faithful.

Some priests and bishops and most especially EPAL EMHCs just don't get it.

‘This function is to be understood strictly according to the name by which it is known, that is to say, that of extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, and not “special minister of Holy Communion” nor “extraordinary minister of the Eucharist” nor “special minister of the Eucharist”, by which names the meaning of this function is unnecessarily and improperly broadened’ 

(Redemptionis Sacramentum, no. 156).


***

They always wanted to be called "Special" since according to some "smart-aleck" EMHC I talked to, they are "not ordinary" like the deacon, priests and bishops.

Ano yan?  Mami?  May special at ordinary?

Cut and paste into your status update so they'll know the truth.

"Ahhhh....what is Redemptionis Sacramentum?"

Epic failure of the Fishwrap..again...of course.

Of course it is the Fishwrap.

The only thing they get right is to sow dissent.

Here is a screencap from a TPC reader of a feature about Cardinal Quevedo's Thanksgiving Mass at the Cotabato Cathedral.  Apparently, the "author" was there at Cotabato for the Mass.

Apart from the cheesy headline, the "author", N.J. Viehland, identified the nuns as belonging to the RVM congregation when in fact these are Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena!

When you have an online website, teaching you about the doctrines of the Church, in a obviously heretical fashion, and they cannot even ask the sisters they photograph which society they REALLY belong to, would you even be surprised why all they produce is nothing but ERRORS?

Now you know.

Ad Multos Annos in Ministerio Christi!

On the anniversary of His Holiness' Inauguration to the Pontificate. 

THE RETURN: San Ignacio of Intramuros

From Old Manila Nostalgia

An image update of the restoration of the famous Jesuit San Ignacio Church in the walled city of Intramuros.

The government is behind this project, so let us not keep our hopes up that the Church would be restored to its original grandeur, or that proper ecclesiastical traditions regarding architecture would be observed.

Of course, do not expect the Jesuits to make sure the beauty that was San Ignacio is brought back. They preferred to build the monstrosity that is The Church of the Gesù instead.

What can we expect and what do we want to expect from the return of San Ignacio?

Post your answers!

GULP: The color

What liturgical color are the stoles in?

Tell me, please.

PLEASE!

Properly dressed for the Mass

Oh, wait the minute.

Nobody said about having the right grooming no?

Maybe he is a Nazareno devotee or someone who always stays at Mt. Banahaw during Lent no?

I think the nun on the left was trying to pull the priest and was saying:  "Tara nga dito Father.  Maligo ka muna bago kita gupitan ng buhok!"

When you go to school, you are disciplined to be "prim and proper", haircut, uniform and all.

And when you get older, you do this!

Don't ever start with me about "what counts the most is in the heart."

We are not talking about that.

This is not the way to teach our kids.

Never.

EVER!

A fitting throne for the Lord

See how the tabernacle was placed at the center of the retablo.  This looks more dignified than the before image.

And the Communion rails are back, not because they are for Communion purposes alone, but to clearly mark where the sanctuary is.

The Code of Canon Law actually declared:

Canon 938

º1. The Most Holy Eucharist is to be reserved regularly in only one tabernacle of a church or oratory.

º2. The tabernacle in which the Most Holy Eucharist is reserved should be placed in a part of the church that is prominent, conspicuous, beautifully decorated, and suitable for prayer.


The Catechism of the Catholic Church also teaches:

1183   The tabernacle is to be situated "in churches in a most worthy place with the greatest honor." The dignity, placing, and security of the Eucharistic tabernacle should foster adoration before the Lord really present in the Blessed Sacrament of the altar.


So.....will putting the tabernacle like this place the Lord in a most worthy place with the greatest honor?

This is Christ the King in Greenmeadows, Quezon City.

The tabernacle is found on the side, with the same equal placement at that of the pipe organ.

And the lower chapel also has the same arranegment.  The tabernacle os on the side.  Now who determines what side the tabernacle should be?  Left or right?  Which is of higher dignity and honor?

The Instruction on the Worship of the Eucharist Mystery (Eucharisticum Mysterium), issued as an implementation of the Vatican II Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium said:  "It is therefore recommended that, as far as possible, the tabernacle be placed in a chapel distinct from the middle or central part of the church, above all in those churches where marriages and funerals take place frequently and in places which are much visited for their artistic or historical treasures."

Never did it say you place it on the side like what most churches did.

I actually heard a couple of nuns, who "specialize in the Liturgy" and anything about liturgical materials, said that "it was mandated by Vatican II."

Yeah, right.

Bravo to the San Fernando Cathedral!!!

Bravo for giving honor to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament!

You placed him in his rightful place in the Cathedral!

GULP Fest!: The 3 days of Liturgical Darkness has started

This is so nauseating.

You better grab on to something.

This is how people destroy our Faith.

And we think that an Opus Dei archbishop like Most Rev. Jose Gomez will stop this liturgical horror, a legacy of Cardinal Roger Mahoney?

Yeah................right...................

And we expect the SSPX to respect us?

Yeah.........................right......................

And we expect the Faith to be strengthened in Los Angeles....

Yeah.....................right.................

And you think no one wrote to Rome about this?

Did someone?......................





In the similar event last year...........

BREAKING NEWS!!! Brother of former Davao archbishop shot dead!

ILOILO CITY – A former political detainee and younger brother of Davao Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla was gunned down early Saturday evening in Oton town in Iloilo.

At least two unidentified gunmen fired at Romeo Capalla in front of the Oton public market about 6:30 p.m., said Senior Inspector Jigger Gimeno, Oton police chief.

Capalla was pronounced dead on arrival at the Western Visayas Medical Center in Iloilo City where he was taken.

The victim was former general manager and current chairman of the board of the Panay Fair Trade Center (PFTC), which helps farmers and women organizations produce and sell natural and organic products for local and international markets.

Gimeno said the gunmen fled on two motorcycles with at least two other persons believed to be lookouts in the direction of the neighboring town of Tigbauan in southern Iloilo.

Police are still determining the identities of the assailants and the motive of the attack.

But the human rights groups Karapatan said the killing of Capalla was the culmination of continued harassment against him by the military.

“First they harassed him by filing trumped up charges. They were unsuccessful, so now they killed him,” said Reylan Vergara, Karapatan-Panay secretary general.

Policemen and soldiers arrested Capalla in August 2005 in Barangay (village) San Antonio in Oton town, 11 kilometers south of Iloilo City.

He was detained for 32 days on various charges for allegedly taking part in an attack by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels on a field office of a construction firm in Guimbal town in Iloilo in 2004.

The Regional Trial Court Branch 67 in Guimbal, Iloilo ordered Capalla’s release on Sept. 5, 2005 for lack of evidence.

In seeking dismissal of the charge against Capalla, his colleagues at the PFTC had pointed out that he had been working with the center since 1994 and the firm’s manager since 2001.

Capalla’s co-accused in the 2005 case, Fernando Baldomero, was also gunned down on July 5, 2010.

Baldomero, then councilor of Lezo town in Aklan and provincial chairman of the partylist group Bayan Muna, was the first political activist killed under the Aquino government. His case remains unsolved


***

Please pray for the repose of the soul of the victims of this summary execution.

If it were indeed the work of the military...

Lie in the Academy, you get kicked out and brutally punished!

When part of the brass, do whatever you want.

Honor is good on paper.

Oh, and have I told you that this Ampaw president is actually a puppet of the Communists?

BREAKING NEWS: New Archbishop of Zamboanga named!

Pope Francis has named Bishop Romulo T. De La Cruz the new archbishop of Zamboanga in the Philippines. At the time of the announcement, Bishop De La Cruz was heading the Diocese of Kidapawan.

The new archbishop was born in Balasan, 24 June 1947, and received his priestly formation at the Grand Seminary in Davao City. He pursued further study at the Summer Institute on Pastoral Counseling in Quezon City, and then at the Institute on Religious Formation in St. Louis, United States.

He was ordained for the Archdiocese of Cotabato on 8 December 1972, after which he served as a pastor. From 1976 to 1983, he was rector of Notre Dame Archdiocesan Seminary in Cotabato, after which he was named vicar general.

In 1987, he was named coadjutor bishop of Isabela and ordained to the episcopate the following year, becoming the ordinary in 1989.

In 2001, he was named coadjutor at San José de Antigue, becoming the ordinary the following year. He was named bishop of the Diocese of Kidapawan in 2008.


***

The buzz I heard was that another bishop was being considered for the post but that this bishop declined, even telling the nuncio that he ain't going nowhere.

Well, thanks to Bishop Mulong, Zamboanga now is off the sede vacante list.  Zamboanga has long been without a bishop ever since Archbishop Mulong Vallez was moved to Davao.  Both archbishops are Romulo.

I expect another archbishop to be named soon and another diocese to be sede vacante.

GULP: The Chancellor

According to Pope Saint John Paul II, abuses 'contribute to the obscuring of the Catholic faith and doctrine concerning this wonderful sacrament' (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, n. 10 page 439)

Why then is the Chancellor of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila, Rev. Fr. Jun Coronel Sescon disobeying the Church he professes to love?

The Magisterium of Holy Mother Church is clear:It is not to be tolerated that some Priests take upon themselves the right to compose their own Eucharistic Prayers…

Vicesimus quintus annus n. 13

or to change the same texts approved by the Church, or to introduce others composed by private individuals

Inaestimabile donum n. 5

The reprobated practice by which Priests, Deacons or the faithful here and there alter or vary at will the texts of the Sacred Liturgy that they are charged to pronounce, must cease. For in doing thus, they render the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy unstable, and not infrequently distort the authentic meaning of the Liturgy

Redemptionis Sacramentum n. 59

I ask again, why?

*            *            *

I call on His Eminence, Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, D.D., S.Th.D. to 'root out this and other such abuses because the regulation of the Liturgy depends on the bishop..' and because 'the life in Christ of his faithful people in some sense is derived from and depends on him'. (Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium, 22, 1)

SAVE US, CARDINAL!

The Bishop who bans the Extraordinary Form abuses the Ordinary Form

Canon Law 932 § 2: The Eucharistic sacrifice must be carried out in a suitable table (if) outside a sacred place, always with a cloth and a corporal.

Canon Law 1239 § 2: A body is not to be buried beneath an altar; otherwise, it is not permitted to celebrate Mass on that altar.

People of other religions teach us where to look when worshiping the Almighty!

These are photos of the interfaith ceremony to commemorate the deadly earthquake that hit Japan.

Photos were shared by an OFW in Japan.  ;)

Take note.  This is supposed to be a Catholic Church, but you have a corpus less cross, and the tabernacle looks like it is sitting on top of a credence table.

Notice anything?

Shinto priests and Buddhist monks, adherents of a pagan religion know where to look when praying to their god, which is actually the right direction when praying to our God.

Funny how these pagans know where to look when speaking to the Almighty while liturgists of Vatican II teach you to look at each other's faces and say "We worship you O Lord."

One year hence

A year ago on this day, Cardinal Bergoglio entered the conclave.  Within 24 hours, Pope Francis emerged on the Loggia.

Before giving 'The City and the World' his blessing, the Pontiff asked the crowd to pray for him.  One year hence, let us continue to pray for our Supreme Pontiff every day.

Deacon who publicly ridiculed Pope Benedict answers to an email

Shared to me by TPC reader, Jeffrey.

***


I receive the message you sent with the respect you intend and I thank you for that.

For the record, I did not mention Pope Benedict or any pontiff, all of whom I admire and respect. I did not say the red shoes were Prada. Here is the transcript of what was said as the image in question appears:

In our Church, and in others, some clergy will dress in finery for a good reason – so that when they come before God to give worship and praise they want to bring the best So that’s a good symbol. We do that kind of thing at the Easter Vigil. We get everything out of the closet – we bring out our best. [he missed out this part: Here is how bad it gets in our Church. *cue chuckles from the pews*....But some put on the red shoes and the flowing white linen and have the lace and the gold threaded vestment, because it is an issue of self esteem.  It is an issue of looking themselves up, as well.]

Please know that I did not in fact know that the image used was Pope Benedict. I am still not sure it is – I am curious – how do you know it is? [Seriously?!] I got the image from an image library as a result of searching for “fine vestments”. I chose the image because it was cropped and did not reveal who was wearing them.

I pray that one day Jeffrey situations like this can lead to dignified and respectful dialogue. [Dignified?  You publicly humiliated THE POPE!] I pray for unity in Church. [Duh!  Look who's talking!] I ask your prayers for me and our parish. I will pray for you as well.


Respectfully -

__________________

Deacon Sandy Sites

***

Here is the image:

Is the deacon trying to make a fool out of Jeffrey or out of us who can clearly see the stemma or coat of arms in the sash?  Can you not clearly see that the papal coat of arms has a pallium with it?  Which pontiff has used the pallium in his coat of arms?

Deacon Sandy might have the best intentions but he is proudly foolish and ignorant to brandish his ignorance and well, foolishness by looking at the red papal shoes and liturgical finery as an issue of self-esteem. The red shoes are historical.  Tradition has it that these were an homage to the slippers given by Emperor Constantine to Pope Sylvester and were one of the oldest traditions of the Latin Church once the persecution ended. And it is red because the original papal color is RED, in honor of St. Peter the first pope who died a martyr. Similarly, he's completely oblivious that St. Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas (in Summa 83) to reserve the very best for the Mass since it's sharing in the Supreme Sacrifice of Calvary.  Even Sacrosanctum Concilium says it.

He is so foolishly proud of what he does not realizing that he is not in his right attire for the Mass!

He is not wearing a dalmatic, the proper vestment for a deacon who assists at Mass.

Even without the flimsy excuse, this deacon is obviously LYING about his intent and purpose in using that image for his homily.

Are external appearances indicative of a person's humility?

Does this deacon think that he can draw people back to the Church with that kind of public bashing during the Mass, the source and summit of Christian Life, of the former holders of the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven?

Word of advice.  SHUT UP!

You would do less harm to Catholics by keeping your mouth shut!

Want to know why?

Look how joyfully full your seats in your church is!

The fruits of Vatican II or the fruits of ill-informed, pope-bashing deacons?

Or both?

I wish I had a time machine...

Yes, liturgical abuses happened even before Vatican II.

I remember serving at the 15 minute Low Mass.  And that priest was very holy, very good man.

But my!  That priest went through the Missal like he was flipping it using an IPad...  and it was the 1960s!

Sadly, liturgical abuses today a more like of a train wreck, while those before Vatican II are more like a fender bender.

Do you agree that there is more liturgical abuse today than it was before the liturgical revolution?

Deacon publicly insults the Holy Father

No. It's not Pope Francis.  It's the pope emeritus.

And the deacon, a married deacon thinks that the pope wears Prada or that the former pope wears it because of self-esteem issues.

Oh..............yes.............

The guy just resigned and now obeys his successor.

And he thinks the old man has self-esteem issues.

Go to the 10:25 mark to see how he insulted the pope.

If we can have clerics like this insulting the former pope in a Mass, who needs the INC and Eli Soriano???

And in case the deacon doesn't know, those are not Prada shoes.

Next, the former pope is not wearing them anymore because, unless this deacon knocked his head on the cupboard, Benedict is not pope anymore.

Next, it is red because the color of the popes was red.  I guess he missed that one out in Church history.

Next, the finery was for good reason.  If he can see the former pope still wearing them, let us all wait in bathed breath.

Next, we all appreciate the beauty in art and in vestments because *drum roll* WE ARE FAITHFUL TO VATICAN II!

Don't ask the Chupungcan liturgist.  All they care about is you listen to them and buy their books, and that old washed out phrase "noble simplicity".  It is too simple to be simple.  It is drab.  And it is definitely not noble.

Write to the deacon and also write to his archbishop.  Show them the video and let them know that you are "scandalized".  It is in your right to call their attention.

Deacon Sandy Sites
Parish Director / Good Shepherd Parish / www.mygoodshepherd.org / +1.262.255.2035 Land / sitess@archmil.org

Most Reverend Jerome E. Listecki
Archbishop of Milwaukee
archbishoplistecki@archmil.org

When too much piety leads to a Facepalm

Why?  Isn't he sooo cute?

But wait a minute?

How can Jesus serve at the Mass where He is the priest and sacrifice?

Now you know why this is a facepalm moment.

Not just because we have a devotion to the Child Jesus, we make Him into our own personal Ken doll!

Look who celebrated Mass ad orientem

This is Most Reverend Colin Bagaforo, auxiliary bishop of Cotabato, celebrating the Mass ad orientem / ad Deum at the Santa Maria della Grazie in San Giovanni Rotondo.

Sense of the Sacred.

Jesuits not really as simple?

We have heard how Jesuits live their live simply with the poor especially here in the capital where they are known to spend their ministry at the Payatas dumpsite community.  In fact, students of that suspected modernist, liberal university in Katipunan spend their outreach at Payatas all to become "a man for others".  If you are a mad feminist ok, "a woman for others".

Isn't a wonder why a DPA  - GULP from Cgayan de Oro City saw not one but TWO Jesuits from that university spending their mornings at a brand new and luxurious hotel.

This DPA was there fora business meeting and when he was having his breakfast, these two celebrity Jesuits came walking in, with their friends, and had breakfast.

From how it looks, they weren't just having breakfast according to the GULP.  They were almost in their pajamas!  They were billeted at the hotel.

Why would they be billeted at this hotel when their own Jesuit university in the city is just a few kilometers away.  In fact, you can even take a nice stroll to the university and back to the hotel.

Imagine what the Jesus Nazareno who is just located in a nearby shrine would say to these two "fine" Jesuits.

Imagine what Pope Francis would tell these two young TV Jesuits?

Well, I am sure they wouldn't even care what we think.  Anyway, we all know that they would reason that their friends "paid" for the hotel, that they cannot say "No" to a simple request to stay with them at the hotel.

Let us ask another Jesuit, Pope Francis for his reaction.

Want to know who those Jesuits are?

One is a friend of TPC.  He threw a nutty fit when his adventures at an exclusive club resort were exposed here at the blog.  Did you hear that he went there and had a really good time welcoming the New Year while the entire country was calling for help for Yolanda victims?  And he has a ridiculously obnoxious smile.

And the other Jesuit?

Look for Kape't Pandasal at YouTube.  He is not there anymore though but in the past he used to be part of that program.

HAW is that possible?!?!?

GULP Alert: There are a lot of wrong things here

When priests treat the Holy Mass like this, how would you expect the ordinary layman, the ordinary guy in the pew who has had no education or catechism at all, to respect the Mass?

Is this your perfect way of promoting the sense of holiness dear Reverend Fathers?

The Academy Awards have more formalities than the Mass which is the "source and summit" of Christian Life.

Whenever you have priests acting this way, don't expect people to know the word "holy", "respect", "formal".

What sacrificing is.

Sacrifice came from two Latin words "sacra" "facere".  To make holy.

The aim of fasting and abstinence, especially in the period of Lent, is to make us holy.

John the Baptist fasted.

Christ fasted.

Because they know that there is something more important than what the body wants, craves and seeks for.

It is s a hunger and thirst that only God can quench and satisfy.

When we give up something of value to us, like food or that favorite "sin", we tell God that we give that up, we sacrifice, because we want to be holy.

Isn't it the best sacrifice?  Don't we see it every Mass?

What are you giving up?

Is it something easy to give up?

That aint sacrificing.  That is giving up loose change.

For this Lent, always remember this parable.

GULP Alert: Priest wannabes

Here is what you get when women start dreaming that they are part of the "royal priesthood" by virtue of their baptism which makes them sharers of Christ's threefold mission of being a "King, PRIEST and Prophet".

The one who posted the photos said that this is not a blessing but a "pre-blessing".  You know like when you prepare beef?  You need to tenderize the meat before you cook it?

That's how you prepare the house.  You need women acting like priests to prepare the house before the MALE priest comes in.

Yes.  You need to balance the forces of the WOMAN's energy, prayer and blessing to come to the house before the MALE prayer and blessing comes in.

Just like this you know...

Continue getting girls to serve at the altar and you get more of these!