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Showing posts from February, 2024

Saint Patrick's New York: Defining Desecration

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Gencraft Generated Image In an era when individuals constantly seek to reinvent themselves in ways that defy common sense and decency, which is to say in ways that degrade psychological health and physical well being, few approaches seem available that will successfully persuade activists and enablers that the course they are pursuing and/or promoting doesn't merely lead to an individual destruction but to one that is contributing to the quickening disintegration of culture and civilisation. The Idea of Man Iconoclasm, the destruction of images, is a symptom of a larger infection that inevitably leads to the destruction of culture and civilization. The ultimate iconoclasm is the attempted destruction of the image of God in man. No amount of money, no physical barricades, nor any woke political inventions, can fix a society that enables and celebrates the abandonment of reason and the adoption of the absurd to a degree that every institution is saturated with caricatures of man that

At Mass With Father Whatshisname

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There have likely been times when one has liked or loathed the behaviour of pastors. These days, it seems, there is a widening gap between priests one could described as by-the-book and reverent, and those who, for whatever reason, enjoy acting in a manner that is practically comedic and strange. Strange, as in: 1) habitually oriented to serving someone and something other than Jesus Christ and His Sacred Liturgy; and 2) liturgically inappropriate. The following list might contain content that is familiar to you, dear Reader. Depending on your own experience(s), you might wince or wink. Father Morpheus... whose monotone voice could put even a college student jacked up on energy drinks into a coma for a week. Father Bakkenforth... who often brings his dog to Mass and wanders about the nave during the sermon so he can play fetch with his dog... for reasons known only to dog lovers. Father Juan A.B. Celebrity... sees himself as the centre of the universe, the Mass, the parish, the city, p

The Eviction of Reason: A Rhapsody On Loss & Reclamation

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And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.” - St Matthew 8:20 Senior Citizen Evicted By Senior Senior Citizen The eviction of the sedate and erudite Cardinal Burke, a faithful son of the Church, from his Vatican apartment by Pope Francis, is a reminder of how quickly one's living arrangements can change and how dependent upon others one can be. Granted, Cardinal Burke has likely landed on his feet just fine, but his eviction echoes what many people would consider at the very least, and even in the best of times, an annoying and unsettling and stressful adjustment. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/housing-crisis-seniors-renovictions-1.7048464 And, The apostolic nuncio in Brazil, Archbishop Giambattista Diquattro, has asked Bishop Emeritus José Luis Azcona Hermoso to no longer live in the territory of the Prelature of Marajó, where he served for almost 30 years . Azcona relayed the news to Father Kaz

Liturgical Man, Identity In Christ

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Holy Communion | Photo by D. Duchesne [ 7 minute read ] Who or what is Liturgical Man? Man's soul is fashioned in the image of God. The angels who love God love us, too! Baltimore Catechism  Q. Why did God make us? A. God made us to show forth His goodness and to share with us His everlasting happiness in heaven. Eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, what things God has prepared for those who love him. 1 Corinthians 2:9 The angels desire our good, our well being, because God loves us. The angels love God and love all that God loves. What about evil spirits? Do they will our good? No, not at all. Liturgical Man, i.e., male and female, in the Age of the Holy Spirit, prays for and lives by the grace that God offers to live according to the New Commandment in the furtherance of the Kingdom of God: St John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will

Fiducia Supplicans In 58 Words & The Follow Up

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Artist DonkeyHotey FS in 58 Words Bless that which cannot be blessed. 'Couple' does not mean 'couple' unless you want it to. If you do not accept FS , that's ok. Just know that you're probably a bigot or a hypocrite or a member of a backward society that is not ready for the Pope’s teaching. FS changes nothing, except that it changes everything. /58 For the Record We Catholics take papal teaching seriously, which may mean we that rely on minds docile to the Holy Spirit and that are greater than our own to help us: acknowledge teaching which is magisterial and therefore binding on consciences; identify teaching which is serious or important but not binding; reject teaching that is inconsistent with the Apostolic Faith. It is highly unfortunate that the Holy Father has relied on a theologian who, by the accounts of serious academics, is of questionable theological skill to oversee the DDF and its publications. That many faithful erudite Catholics have weighed in a

Conquering Evil Works

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Evil works... . to create familiarity, and by subtly exploiting weaknesses  stirs up temptations ( see below ), raises doubts and undermines trust in others and in oneself, then capitalizes on confusion by offering a cheap sympathy through false allies to coax dependence,  fueling crisis and chaos, meanwhile feeding despair and fomenting self destruction and death. Before the start of His mission, the Lord Jesus faced the devil in the wilderness. The devil, i.e., Satan, sought to appropriate the very identity, power, and mission of Jesus by assaulting Him with three temptations. Satan challenged Jesus to: turn stones into bread to satisfy his hunger jump from the temple and misuse his power seize the kingdoms of the world by force The devil's temptations follow three approaches: The first temptation of Jesus is the lust of the flesh (St Matthew 4:3–4). Our Lord is hungry, and the devil tempts Him to turn stones into bread, but Jesus responds with Scripture from Deuteronomy 8:3.  An

Eleven Ways You Can Know That You Are A Faithful Catholic

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What is the mark of a Christian? It is to watch daily and hourly and to stand prepared in that state of total responsiveness pleasing to God, knowing that the Lord will come at an hour that he does not expect. -  St. Basil A true Christian is vigilant, meaning he is ready to hear God’s word and to respond accordingly. - Carl E. Olson (CWR) You are a faithful Catholic when... . You can recognize truth and live by the truth . You are capable of discerning between fact and fiction by constantly relying on Church teaching to inform your thinking (Zechariah 8:16) and to form your conscience. Furthermore, you know that the phrase 'my truth' is a mental evasion and a lie. You know that love is defined by the example of Jesus , not by the strange words and actions of an errant teacher or some misguided social media influencer (St John 13:34-35; 2 Timothy 4:3). You pray often - every day, morning, noon and night - and pray with a sincere heart to intercede for others, and to dispose yo
The opinions expressed herein are largely those of the blog author. Every effort is made to conform to Church teaching. Comments are welcome.