Slaughter Not The Sacred Liturgy

Screenshot | Charlotte Ordinations | CM

Author Sarah Cain writes at Crisis Magazine about the naughty and knotty situation in the Diocese of Charlotte. Inspired by a recent ordination Mass, the author captures the flavour of the event as well as offering a wider perspective.

Avoiding the Blackpill Temptation
by Sarah Cain

• crisismagazine.com/opinion/avoiding-the-blackpill-temptation

... Ours is a diocese that has been the subject of an abundance of articles over the past couple of years, ever since the newly-appointed Bishop Michael Martin instituted controversial changes.

The music at this weekend’s Ordination Mass was grossly inappropriate. Even that phrasing is somehow an understatement(.)

(T)he bishop held up the Host weakly with one hand, as he is now known for doing. It’s a posture that is difficult to understand as anything other than indifference. Thus, the projection of such casualness is a source of pain for many faithful Catholics.

A woman in a red choir robe sat in the sanctuary throughout the Mass, when she wasn’t singing therefrom, which she did replete with exaggerated hand signals to entice others to join in the spectacle. ...

And then, the author captures something of the irresistible power of faith overcoming silliness.

Yet despite all of this, four men became Transitional Deacons. They stepped forward on their journey toward the priesthood, even in a diocese that has appeared darker in recent years for those who wish to make an offering of their lives. Despite the acts of irreverence that should not have been, it is difficult not to be moved by the gravity of the good. In fact, the contrast becomes ever starker.

All of this occurred in the midst of challenging symbolism: Over 70 percent of the parishioners received on the tongue, from a bishop who does not understand why. Half of them knelt on the hard floor, kneelers having been banished since last year.

Even in such an imperfect situation, people can still choose, can will, only to serve God—and to do so through their grief. Just as in times of persecution, some have chosen to allow the circumstances they endure to bring them closer to Him who was so unjustly treated; we, too, can choose to be united to Him by our minor sufferings.

Watching a man say yes to the call of the priesthood is always stirring. It is all the more so in a diocese plagued by uncertainty and in which personal piety and reverence are discouraged or outright sneered at. But those men did so because God called them now, not later; and they were formed well enough to hear his voice.

It is almost countercultural even in the Catholic sphere because the undercurrent of the Catholic Internet is to identify the bad within liturgies and speak ad nauseam about them. The complaints are valid and need to be articulated, but we must not drown in them. When experiencing such a problematic liturgy in the flesh alongside something as spiritually wholesome as ordination (or four), the torrent of Internet battles becomes mere background noise. As we witness the Transcendent action through the sacrament, wherein Heaven touches Earth, despite every act that could impoverish the moment, we see just one more triumph of the Good.

Author Cain reminds us that:

As we witness the Transcendent action through the sacrament, wherein Heaven touches Earth, despite every act that could impoverish the moment, we see just one more triumph of the Good.

That’s the beauty of choosing the good in an environment of evil or even lived indifference. It means that the very contrast of our choices can provide an illumination that our world so desperately needs. We can bear witness by our rejection of “blackpilling” or despair-infused commentaries as we move to embrace good where it may always be found.

We can reject evil not only by rooting it out directly but by making the right decisions wherever we are able. If we move our eyes away from Him and the eternity of the landscape, then we allow the darkness to limit our view of the horizon.

The faithful can choose to stand for what is good and to resist evil, or step away to avoid the discomfort of liturgical wrongdoing. Confrontation is often difficult and painful. Pray for the grace to remain close to Christ. Stay near to Him, and join in confronting those who would turn the sanctuary into a spectacle.

This past week, the Holy Father reminded the clergy of the fundamentals, summed up by the oft-quoted maxim: "Say the black; do the red."

• www.cal-catholic.com/pope-leo-stick-to-the-rubrics/
• dianemontagna.substack.com/p/pope-leo-xiv-to-priests-be-faithful

It’s no shock that some clergy and bishops, when freed from the traditions and guidelines meant to ensure proper celebration and respectful conduct, can end up acting more like self-promoters or celebrities, even before the Lord. It makes you wonder if certain Catholics can stick to basic rules in everyday life—like staying in their lane or obeying traffic lights—when they treat the sacred Gift of Christ’s Body and Blood, soon to be celebrated at the Feast of Corpus Christi, as casually as tossing a tennis ball for a dog. Ignoring what’s right in small things often hints at a tendency to disregard it in bigger matters too.

Those grounded in hope should celebrate what is good and encourage others to value what is true, good, and beautiful, and to worship God in the beauty of holiness. Avoid being distracted by silly antics or empty spectacle. By praising what is beautiful, affirm that the Mass should have a certain form and purpose—one that points to the heavenly Liturgy.