Coming to a cathedral near you?

WARNING: Graphic, disturbing images from Argentina, where pro-abortion lesbians and others attacked Catholics defending their cathedral. In. a. Catholic. Country.

Think again if you don't believe this could happen here. Satanic, no? And yet how many Catholics routinely vote for pro-abortion, pro-homosexual 'marriage' politicians? Have you heard a good pro-life homily lately?


Culture war and the joy of the gospel

A bishop explains minor exorcisms

Much of the western Catholic world has been lulled into the belief that the devil doesn't exist. So much more comfortable to believe we are all going to Heaven, that Hell, if it does exist, is empty (a la Fr. Barron...see here and here), and that the idea of exorcising demons is a quaint leftover from the pre-conciliar Church.

If ever there was a successful diabolical thrust, it is that the devil does not exist. For what is one result? The heresy of universal salvation, which negates the duty of evangelising one's neighbors, one's family, even one's own self. It makes sin, and therefore Hell, of no import.

Making sin of no import has allowed the following to FLOURISH in our nation, and indeed the world:

• Abortion
• Same Sex Marriage
• Pornography
• Increasing encroachment on the inherent rights of man by secular governments
• Divorce and destruction of the traditional family
• Rise in paganism, atheism, satanic worship

Now to Bishop Paprocki, a righteous man of God. His state, Illinois, approved same sex marriage. The Bishop responded with minor prayers of reparation at the moment the law was signed. Here is his homily on that occasion. It should be read in its entirety, but here are some gems:

It is not hateful to say that an immoral action is sinful. On the contrary, the most compassionate thing we can do is help people to turn away from sin. To ignore another person's wrongful actions is a sign of apathy or indifference, while fraternal correction is motivated by love for that person's well-being, as can be seen by the fact that our Lord Jesus himself urged such correction.

And this:

This is a key point which the secularists are missing: they think that stressing God's mercy means that sins are no longer sins. On the contrary, God's mercy is a great gift of grace precisely because sins are sins and they call for repentance and forgiveness. Note from the interview, when he was asked to describe himself, Pope Francis said simply, "I am a sinner." After a brief pause, he amplifies this self-identity in the understanding of a Christian who has been saved by Christ, saying, "I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon."

And this:

Our prayer service today and my words are not meant to demonize anyone, but are intended to call attention to the diabolical influences of the devil that have penetrated our culture, both in the state and in the Church. These demonic influences are not readily apparent to the undiscerning eye, which is why they are so deceptive.

And one more (but do read the entire homily):

The Prayers for "Supplication and Exorcism Which May Be Used in Particular Circumstances of the Church" are taken from the Appendices to the 2004 Latin edition of the Rite of Exorcism, the introduction to which explains, "The presence of the Devil and other demons appears and exists not only in the tempting or tormenting of persons, but also in the penetration of things and places in a certain manner by their activity, and in various forms of opposition to and persecution of the Church. If the Diocesan Bishop, in particular situations, judges it appropriate to announce gatherings of the faithful for prayer, under the leadership and direction of a Priest, elements for arranging a rite of supplication may be taken from [the texts provided in these appendices]"...Since the legal redefinition of marriage is contrary to God's plan, those who contract civil same-sex marriage are culpable of serious sin. Politicians responsible for enacting civil same-sex marriage legislation are morally complicit as co-operators in facilitating this grave sin. We must pray for forgiveness of these sins and deliverance from this evil which has penetrated our state and our Church. The Church stands ready to extend God's mercy to those who confess their sins with true repentance and a firm purpose of amendment in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Bishop Paprocki mentions the book The Devil You Don't Know: Recognizing and Resisting Evil in Everyday Life by Fr. Louis J. Cameli as a good resource for understanding how the devil operates today, as opposed to the Hollywood versions we are accustomed to seeing.

Note that the Bishop specifically mentions this "evil which has penetrated our state and our Church." If you do not hear regular homilies exposing the evil of same sex marriage, you can be assured your little corner of the Church has been penetrated.

One thing you can do is to begin saying the St. Michael Prayer again after Mass.

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.



H/t to Creative Minority Report.

The wolves within

So, I heard through the grapevine that yet another stalwart, devout, and active Catholic has left the parish. A grievous loss, because these types of individuals, those who truly live their faith, are I believe, the ones who keep spiritual watch over the parish. Their prayers keep the wolves at bay. But, it is manifestly difficult when the wolves are within the fold, instituting a new kind of 'Catholicism' that is so obvious in its rotten fruit that even the "Go Alongs to Get Along" don't deny the devastation.

Perhaps the new bishop, God willing, will see fit to restore order.

Maintenance and the Sacred

Regarding caring for our parish churches and other buildings, Deacon Dean writes in the bulletin: "While these repairs are great to do, the overall condition of our facilities remains a big challenge. The Facility Council is currently arranging for a comprehensive envelope assessment of our major buildings to accurately assess the condition and forecast maintenance and repair cost to properly care for our buildings. Additional expenses will include capital projects such as tearing down the old convent at St. Mary Church, expanding the parking lot and improvements including new heating and air conditioning system. All these costs together will most likely be in excess of $2,000,000. However, before we plan, we need an accurate assessment."

Parishioners should ask who will be doing the comprehensive envelope assessment. These types of assessments (often for school buildings) are typically done by professionals along the lines described here:

“The facility assessment is a crucial part of the renovation process because it helps us understand our clients’ needs and tailor renovation recommendations to meet those needs,” said Lee Andrea, principal at SHW Group, one of the nation’s largest educational architectural and engineering firms. “Our architects and engineers work collaboratively to determine what areas of the building envelope and mechanical and electrical systems present the greatest opportunities for renovation at the highest return on investment.” 

 Prior to performing the physical evaluation, the architect and engineers work with district administrators, faculty and staff to assess how the building performs in its current state and determine what immediate changes can be made from an operations stance to improve the building’s performance. Many times, even the simplest changes can make a significant impact on energy savings. It is also important to understand how the building functions on a day-to-day basis so architects recommend changes that will provide a cohesive transition for user groups into the updated facility. 

 When the architects and engineers have a solid understanding of the building operations, they can move forward with the hands-on facility assessment to evaluate the building envelope, mechanical systems and electrical systems for both simple and large-scale upgrade opportunities. Even when focusing on building envelope upgrades, it is important that all systems are evaluated to understand how each affects another’s energy usage."

One can see that to do a thorough and proper assessment requires a great deal of forethought regarding how the particular buildings are and will be utilized going forward. It is hoped that this is clear and that parishioners as a whole and not simply the various council members are involved in the discussion and decision-making process of future usage of our churches, school, and other buildings. Additionally, the assessment should be made available in its entirety to parishioners, who will most likely be funding the cost of the assessment, as well as most of the capital expenses.

There was no mention of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, and the only mention of capital improvements was to St. Mary's. Will IHM and St. Vincent's be included in the envelope assessment?

 In the spirit of restoration, please watch this short film (28 minutes) about the spiritual and physical restoration of St. John Cantius in Chicago. The issues that have been overcome in that parish make the needs of All Saints Parish pale in comparison. Go here to watch the inspiring short film (be sure to scroll down the page).

If the parishioners in All Saints Parish do not hold fast to the Sacred, the parish will surely continue to decline. Financial health is important, but as long as a Protestant and modernist mindset dominates and suppresses its Catholic identity, the parish will not prosper.

It is high time to awaken from the soporific thinking of the last two decades. The experimentation in the liturgy, in pastoral leadership, and in parish clustering has proven to be a disaster.  The parish council has the authority to approach the bishop administrator and request a priest pastor model for the parish, which is what was agreed to many years ago when the four original parishes were clustered.

The clustering has not brought about what was promised--financial relief, and a vibrant and growing parish. Instead, the parish has lost nearly half its families, with many giving up the Faith entirely, while others attend parishes elsewhere. By every conceivable measurement, this is an epic fail.

But there is a cure. The Sacred.

St. Vincent de Paul

Today is the Feast Day of St. Vincent de Paul. He is truly a hero of the Faith. Like St. Patrick, St. Vincent was captured and sold into slavery (by the Turks). He escaped after two years and converted his master.

A champion of the poor, of convicts, of children, he was also a champion of priestly vocations.

Here's some more information on him.

Bio of St. Vincent de Paul

Patron Saint of Charitable Societies

Monsieur Vincent

Teachings of St. Vincent de Paul

Closing Churches

Abandoned church in NY

Fr. Z writes about abandoned churches. There are pictures. He says:

• When people value something, they pay for it. 
• When Catholics lose their Catholic identity, they stop valuing Catholic things. 
• When the Church’s pastors compromise Catholic identity in their preaching and, above all, liturgical are celebrandi, people lose their Catholic identity.

Original article is at HuffPo with many more haunting photos.

I wonder if anyone got any photos of St. Patrick's. They might want to get some photos of IHM before its gone, too.

What with tent meetings, healing services, Protestant-based adult catechesis between Masses on Sunday, it is probably safe to say that All Saints Parish is well on its way to losing its Catholic identity.

Save a child, save a mama

Sanctifying the Seasons -- Ember Days

Rorate-Caeli republishes an article "The Glow of the Ember Days". And yes, tomorrow, Friday, and Saturday are Ember Days.

From the article:

The Ember days, which fall on a Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday of the same week, occur in conjunction with the four natural seasons of the year. Autumn brings the September Embertide, also called the Michaelmas Embertide because of their proximity to the Feast of St. Michael on September 29.1 Winter, on the other hand, brings the December Embertide during the third week of Advent, and spring brings the Lenten Embertide after the first Sunday of Lent. Finally, summer heralds the Whitsun Embertide, which takes place within the Octave of Pentecost.

And this:

The Ember days, then, stand out as the only days in the supernatural seasons of the Church that commemorate the natural seasons of the earth. This is appropriate, for since the liturgical year annually renews our initiation into the mystery of redemption, it should have some special mention of the very thing which grace perfects.

A Rosary for Syrian Christians

You may not have heard about the live dismemberments of young Christians in Syria, the rapes, beatings, murders, but rest assured it is a living Hell for them right now. Won't you take a few moments from your day and pray the Rosary for our brethren?

And pray that our elected representatives stop funding the rebels, who are engaged in this wickedness against Christians.

Come, Pray the Rosary

"In the presence of the sacred"

When you have 20 minutes, listen to Dr. Thomas Woods' convocation address to students at Benedictine College. It will make you proud to be Catholic. And he's got some really good advice about the liturgy, too. (H/t Rorate-Caeli) Here's a link to his website and the book he references, "How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization."

The Boatlift of 9/11

H/t to iOwnTheWorld.com

Have we forgotten Beauty?

I've been made aware that the All Saints Parish Chant Schola has been temporarily moved to the Saturday of the first Sunday of the Month, for September (yesterday), October and November, hence: October 5 (Vigil, 27th Sun in Ordinary Time), and November 2 (Vigil, 31st Sun in Ordinary Time).

Apparently, the Chant Schola will be evaluated (via a survey) to see if they will be allowed to continue to serve the parish. Imagine that.

If you don't already know, this dedicated group of volunteer parishioners has been quietly singing and working for some time bring the beauty and reverence of Gregorian Chant to ASP. Recently, a Latin Mass Society was formed to bring the beauty and richness of our liturgical heritage to the parish on a regular basis.

Just for good measure, here is a first-installment article about the Traditional Latin Mass (sometimes called the Old Mass or the Vetus Ordo or the Extraordinary Form) from the folks at the New Liturgical Movement website. Whatever it is called, it is the Mass that is/was said for centuries by priests in the Roman Rite. From the article:

"But most memorable for me, though, were the times when someone would sort of stumble into our little chapel by accident, when Mass was going on, and I would hear weeping behind me.  Oft-times, I would have no server, and sometimes no congregation when I started the Mass, so I would simply be unaware that anyone had come in to the chapel. Until I turned around for the “Ecce Agnus Dei” at the people’s Communion, I did not know whose sobs I had been hearing.  After Mass, the explanation of these impromptu visitors was almost always the same:  “Father, I haven’t seen this Mass in thirty (or forty) years.  I have forgotten how beautiful it is.”  This was a Low Mass, without any of the grandeur of the Sung Mass or the Solemn High Mass.  But people remembered how intensely God-centered it was, how awesome it presented the Mercy of God and the call to holiness---how it invited one to such humility before the omnipotence of God...I heard the same thing from visitors to our Sunday liturgies, but over the years something dramatic has begun to happen.

One now hears these things from people who have no experience of the old liturgy at all from their earlier years. (Emphasis mine)

The same thing is at work:  The beauty of the chant, the lingering odor of incense, which permeates one’s clothing and reminds one that they’ve been to Mass, the dignity and beauty and the color of vestments and altar furnishings, the “littleness” of kneeling to receive the Lord on one’s knees at Communion time---all these things tell of something great.

The Old Mass changes hearts."

Beer...the New Evangelization

H/t to Rorate Caeli

What's old is new again

If you have never attended a Vetus Ordo Mass, one according to the older Roman Rite, you might be pleasantly surprised at the deep Catholicity expressed in it. As Cardinal Ranjith has said, "Liturgy for this reason can never be what man creates. For if we worship the way we want and fix the rules ourselves, then we run the risk of recreating Aaron's golden calf. We ought to constantly insist on worship as participation in what God Himself does, else we run the risk of engaging in idolatry. Liturgical symbolism helps us to rise above what is human to what is divine. In this, it is my firm conviction that the Vetus Ordo represents to a great extent and in the most fulfilling way that mystical and transcendent call to an encounter with God in the liturgy. Hence the time has come for us to not only renew through radical changes the content of the new Liturgy, but also to encourage more and more a return of the Vetus Ordo, as a way for a true renewal of the Church, which was what the Fathers of the Church seated in the Second Vatican Council so desired."

And here is a local priest's take on the Vetus Ordo: The Renewed Appeal of the Latin Mass

Fr. Mottola says about the Latin Mass, "The ceremonies, the chants, and the trappings of the ancient liturgical rites of Western culture are beautiful. And in a generation unsure if there really are such things as “right” and “wrong,” it is not the truth of the Church’s teachings but the beauty of her worship that will stir their hearts. The converts of the next decade will not say “You have convinced us,” but rather they will say—breathlessly and with tears in their eyes—“We did not know whether we were in heaven or on earth!”

And do keep up with Corning's Latin Mass Society here for information on upcoming Latin Masses.

(Forgot to tip Cleansing Fire)

Looking for the angel priest--UPDATE

Gotta read this!

The riddle of the 'angel priest'

Angel priest visits Missouri accident scene

UPDATE: The priest has been identified here. Lovely story. A good ending all around.