A Treasure To Be Shared

Prayer Imploring God To Grant Us Holy Popes Kyrie Eleison! Christe Eleison! Kyrie Eleison! Lord Jesus Christ, Thou art the Good Shepherd! With Thy almighty hand Thou guidest Thy pilgrim Church through the storms of each age. O merciful and gracious Lord, adorn the Holy See with holy popes who neither fear the powerful of this world nor compromise with the spirit of the age, but preserve, strengthen, and defend the Catholic Faith to the shedding of their blood, as well as observe, protect, and faithfully hand on the venerable liturgy of the Roman Church. O Lord, return to us through holy popes who, inflamed with the zeal of the Apostles, proclaim to the whole world: "Salvation is found in no other than in Jesus Christ. For there is no other name under heaven given to men by which they should be saved." Through an era of holy popes, may the Holy See—which is home to all who promote the Catholic and Apostolic Faith—ever shineth as the cathedra of truth for the whole world. Hear ...

[ Estimated read time: 9 minutes ] A familiar quote for witnesses to the dirge of lukewarm religion. The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting.  It has been found difficult; and left untried. ― G.K. Chesterton, What's Wrong with the World According to the enlightened, it is essential that we Catholics update our thinking so that we can live without guilt or shame or any of those nasty habits of mind that non-Catholics think we like to punish others with.  After all, God accepts us just as we are—right?  Despite the biblical record and apostolic teaching, the "progressive" way asserts that there is little or no need to change or grow in holiness or to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). Holiness, for some, is a bad word, an outmoded concept. For the progressive religionist, spiritual success is measured by involvement in social justice projects that make one feel good about oneself. In contrast to heterodox ways of thinking, th...

Is it even possible to issue a charge against anyone for violence against the Sacred Liturgy?  Why issue a charge of abuse?  To identify the abuse of the Holy Eucharist, which is at the core of our faith as Catholics, is a step toward identifying reasons for a loss of faith among Catholics, a drop in Mass attendance and a rise in other forms of abuse. As a concept, liturgical abuse barely appears on the radar screens or in the vocabularies of many - most? - Latin Rite Catholics because of poor formation in the ritual languages and practices of the Church.  An Eastern Catholic tends to have a much clearer understanding of that which constitutes fitting liturgical worship.  Why is that? Like our Eastern brethren, Ordinariate Catholics share a strong sense of liturgical propriety. Liturgical action must comport with the Church's theology of the Holy Eucharist. The Holy Eucharist is defined as the Sacrament that contains the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Chr...

[Read time: 4 minutes] Eucharistic evangelization is based on the understanding that the Eucharist is the centre of Christian life.  Jesus is Present to us in His Eucharist.  The Eucharist is referred to as "the source and summit of the whole Christian life," highlighting its crucial function in the lives of Catholics. In the Eucharist, the faithful experience communion with Christ and the Church, which is essential for evangelization. It is through the celebration of the Eucharist that Christians are nourished and transformed into the Body of Christ, enabling them to participate actively in the mission of the Church.  The Eucharist not only strengthens the bonds of charity among believers but also empowers them to live out their faith in various aspects of life, including their social and communal responsibilities. Moreover, the Eucharist serves as a foretaste of the heavenly banquet, which inspires believers to share the message of salvation with others.  The act o...

The ingrate is always lacking hope. Hope is the currency that the grateful man freely offers to others. The selfish man takes more than he has earned; the generous man prospers in giving. A stranger is a man whose heart is not yet known. Holiness ( sanctitas ) - God's gift of purity, illumination and unity with Him - and godliness ( pietas ) - man's practice of religion (1 Timothy 4:7) - that, aided by God's grace, disposes the soul to God's truth, love and mercy. These are the roads the saints walk that lead to the palace of God and everlasting joy. One's persecutors exist to be corrected or to prune others to become better Christians. True authority is given and received not taken, usually earned due to faithfulness to truth and goodness, and not traded as nor reduced to a commodity. The man without awe and wonder has lost his innocence. He is a man of lust and subject to perversion. A gossip is a thief and a coward. He steals goodness and mercy from the vulnerabl...

people spoke their minds in a civil manner, and those who were rude or crude were politely put in their place? people said what they meant and meant what they said? cussing was shameful? people were not afraid to greet one another by shaking hands? children were required to do daily chores? parents disciplined their children because they loved them and weren't afraid of being arrested for common sense actions like taking away the privileges of a child because of his or her disrespectful behaviour? children respected their elders by not talking back and by contributing to the support of the household by willingly doing their chores? grandchildren sat with their grandparents and learned from their stories? boys carried a pocketknife for no other purpose than for whittling a stick or carving his name in a log, or for sharpening a pencil, or for slicing up an apple for lunch? a tomboy was just an energetic and perhaps outdoorsy kind of girl that could hold her own with the boys? famili...

Been there heard that? Next to the music of the Mass, the homily or sermon suffers the most and, like the music of the liturgy, it is still in need of improvement in many parishes. There have been repeated official attempts to inspire positive change. There is no shortage of gifted orators. Sadly, sermons are too often filled with banal wanderings and cheap references. A younger generation of priests is stepping up to the challenge by following clear guidance that - if unimpeded by leaden thinking that traps clergy in the mess of an older generation's rebellion - can lead to profound positive renewal. Certain older prelates - not all, mind you - have little formation, or have abandoned what formation they were given, to celebrate Mass in a way that acknowledges the sublime character of the Sacred Liturgy. They seem to demonstrate antipathy toward anyone or anything that promotes beautiful - artful, good, traditional - liturgy. A younger generation is reclaiming authenticity. Those ...