Catholic Street Activism

TFP Student Action is a group of young Catholic men who among other things are willing to defend the Faith in the streets and through protests.  They were with us during the two occasions when I joined pickets of pro-abortion speakers at Georgetown University.  They were with pro-life activists during the #protestpp demonstration in Washington DC (see the two linked sites at this post).   For as long as I can remember, their signature red banners and sashes and bag pipes were with us at the annual March for Life in Washington on January 22nd.

I mention them because I think we have to be willing to emulate them.  Let's face it; many in the Church hierarchy (including, sad to say, Pope Francis) are showing themselves to be indifferent if not hostile to Sacred Tradition.  No longer can we sit on our hands and suffer in silence while Our Lord is blasphemed and our children are scandalized.  For too long the malefactors have been comfortable in their mischief, assuming that we'll do and say nothing.  Well, as Dorothy Day might say, we have to afflict the comfortable.

Below I post a video of a protest that TFP Student Action did at Marquette University.  I presume that they did so in protest of the University's treatment of Dr. John McAdams, who tweeted his respect for God's plan for marriage.  Oh by the way - Marquette claims to be a Catholic institution.

As you watch this, you'll notice the horrid behavior of the campus left-wingers.  See how TFP Student Action does not back down.  While they are respectful, they make no effort to be conciliatory.  Indeed, that would be impossible without compromising truth.  We must emulate that.  As occasions arise, I'll be posting opportunities for such activism.

Does Father Spadaro Prefer Hell To Heaven?

This from Father Spadaro's twitter feed..

The welcoming of those young people who prefer to live together without getting married… https://t.co/fa7xr0TXZ4 pic.twitter.com/zYrsrfhvcl

— Antonio Spadaro (@antoniospadaro) February 26, 2017

That's tantamount to saying "the welcoming of those young people who prefer hell to heaven, and affirming their deadly decision".  To prefer the mortal sin of fornication over the Sacrament of Matrimony is the preference of damnation to salvation. We pray that all will repent, go to Confession and change their "preferences" before it is too late to do so.

One more question: after this scandalous tweet, will Father Spadaro be allowed to retain favor with Pope Francis?  The answer to that question will be very telling, and we'll see that answer in a very short time.

Dissident Sr Helen Prejean In The Catholic Standard

Sister Helen Prejean, author of "Dead Man Walking" (a tome against capital punishment) was featured in the February 23rd issue of the Catholic Standard.  This particular piece is only found in the paper edition, not online.

Apparently her book was made into an opera and she gave a presentation on it at the Washington National Cathedral.  This presentation that included a panel of leaders of various religions was sponsored by "Catholic Mobilization Network To End The Death Penalty".  Isn't that a mouthful?  While we can be grateful that this gabfest didn't occur in a Catholic facility, we can wonder why the Standard staff saw fit to devote an entire page to it.

Sister claims to be opposed to abortion, but other problems abound as evidenced here.  At the 2008 Democratic Interfaith Gathering, she said “And in the Christian tradition, there are those who say God allowed or even willed his own son, Jesus, to be sacrificed and killed on the cross in payment for our sins!  And when we kill criminals we have chaplains in death houses!  And when we kill criminals for their crimes God accepts their death in payment for their sins so they can go to heaven!  What kind of god do we believe in?!  What kind of father would demand the death of a son?  Is this a god?  Or is it an ogre, a monster, created by our own violent impulses?  We project so this is God who wants vengeance, like we want vengeance.  Truly there are contradictory images of God in the Bible.  On which one will we model our lives?"  She blasphemed against God the Father and the Crucifixion.

She "officiated" at the wedding of Susan Sarandon's daughter.  Only clergy do that.  Does this point to dissidence regarding women and the priesthood?  It would appear so.  She also seems to condone the normalization of homosexual perversions in society.  I state all of this to demonstrate that Sister Helen Prejean has not one shred of credibility whatsoever to lecture Catholics on anything, let alone moral issues.

Several years ago, Judie Brown of American Life League touched upon Sister's seeming indifference to the murders of tiny children.  There does seem to be a lack of proportion in Sister's mind when it comes to the importance of both abortion and capital punishment in comparison to each other.  I've blogged about the matter in the past and now link to those posts.  In the first post in that anthology, I highlighted some statistics showing that for every convicted criminal executed there were 42,000 babies legally murdered.  In the third post I pointed out that the effort to eliminate all capital punishment might well be an act of disobedience to God Himself for it was He who charged civil governments with that responsibility.

Some might be understandably befuddled as to why so many of those who seek to abolish capital punishment actually applaud the murders of tiny infants.  I was among that number until the answer dawned upon me almost instantaneously.  The repugnance that pro-aborts feel towards capital punishment actually stems from both guilt and fear.  In a saner time, these same pro-aborts, precisely because of their support, if not cooperation with and even commission of the crime of baby-murder, would themselves be eligible for the death penalty.  As it is, they are in grave danger of damnation unless they repent.

What I still fail to understand is how any reliable Catholic news outlet could devote an entire page of newsprint to someone who deviates from Catholc morality.  This article is just the latest example of why the Catholic Standard connot be considered a reliable Catholic news source.  Regrettably we'll see new reasons in the not-too-distant future.

If You Aren't Praying For President Trump, Start Doing So Now!

No one can doubt that President Trump is acting to reverse much of the damage caused by Barack HUSSEIN Obama, aka the Messiah Most Miserable.  While some #nevertrump folks persist in their denial of that fact, be assured that progressive types aren't.  Why else would there have been riots and lootings in the streets in the wake of his election?

Now comes the news that various witches and wiccans are preparing to cast spells to curse President Trump and his allies.  This exercise will occur tonight.  Ladies and gentlemen, this is no joke.  Demons are very real.  They are being invoked tonight to harm good people in this country.  The casting of spells is a very real spiritual danger not only to those who cast them, but those whom they target.

All this highlights our solemn duty to be praying for God's protection on our leaders, fellow citizens and our nation.  Of course we also include the witches who will be flirting with eternal damnation tonight, for their repentance and salvation.

If you aren't offering daily Rosaries, please start today and include our national leaders in your intentions.  I understand that a prayer campaign is underway to pray the Rosary at 11:00 pm to counteract the spells being cast.  Whatever hour you choose to pray, please be faithful to it.

Jesuits Thumbing Their Noses At Our Lord Jesus

For quite some time now, the Society of Jesus has shown itself to be a society not of Jesus.  There have been exceptions in the form of faithful Jesuits but these are few.  Now some Jesuits - among them the new head of that order - are setting themselves above Our Lord in their own perverted estimations.

The new head is Father Arturo Sosa Abascal.  In an interview he claimed (quoting from LifeSiteNews) that "the words of Jesus against divorce are relative and must be discerned according to the conscience of each individual."  He's straight-out saying that if one's "conscience" doesn't approve of clear commands from Our Lord (such as His commands against fornication and adultery), then we are not duty-bound to obey Him.  We in essence can be our own little "gods".  This, in a nutshell, is the heresy that was once called "situation ethics".  We've heard that lots recently.  It was only last month that Cardinal Wuerl force-fed that poisonous brain-rot to young impressionable seminarians of his archdiocese.  But this is not a new problem by any stretch.  Mankind first encountered that temptation in the Garden of Eden.  Read Genesis 3:5, where the devil deceives Eve by telling her that if she sins, her "eyes will be opened and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil".

So there you have it from the head of the Jesuit order.  We know that desire to supplant God is at the basis of all the blather about "pastoral" and "discernment" and "accompanying" that pours forth from the Jesuit who is Pope Francis.  For those of you who insist on chanting the "pope can do/say no wrong" mantra, let's see if Abascal remains in his post.  If he remains, then we have yet more proof of the pope's own mindset.

Let's move on to Father James Martin, editor of America progressive rag.  He recently accepted an award from New Ways Ministry, a cabal of faux-katholycs who shill for homosexual perversion to be normalized.  After President Trump announced that he was reversing Obama's transgender bathroom order, he waxed indignant that transgender people were restricted to using bathrooms designated to their biological sex.  Normal, sane people would rejoice at this triumph of mere common sense, let alone Catholic morality.  Not so Father Martin.  From LifeSiteNews we catch a sampling of the tweets that he put out to whine about the matter.

As you read that piece, you'll notice that Father Martin, while accepting his bauble from New Ways, praised the "special gifts" of homosexuals.  Now when did we hear that sort of language in the not-too-distant past?  If you said, "from the interim relatio from the Extraordinary Synod on the Family" you are correct!  In that report we see this language: "postive aspects of homosexual relationships", "valuing homosexual orientation", etc.  Anyway, Father Martin's pro-pervert sentiments are troubling; if nothing else, they pose great scandal for those who may be wavering on the precipice of such temptations.  Along those lines, Michael Voris publicly asks Father Martin a question.  Will he answer?

Profanation Of The Chair Of Peter

This "circus" happened today, on the Feast of the Chair of Peter.  It is banal if not outright vulgar.  Someone once pointed out that people mock and poke fun at what they disdain.  Does that ring true here?



Afterwards, there were the congratulations and thanks.  Do the "eyes" have it?

Is Pope Francis The Mouthpiece And Face Of World-Wide Progressivism?

From One Peter Five we read that a few days ago, at the World Meeting Of Popular Movements in California, Pope Francis released a letter that:

• publicly praises the Alinskyite organization People Improving Communities through Organizing (PICO for short) 
• advocates open resistance to President Trump's attempts to bring order to immigration in the US
• falsely declared that "muslim terrorism does not exist"

At that same meeting, Bishop Robert McElroy of the Diocese of San Diego snarked, "President Trump was the candidate of disruption.  Well now, we must all become disrupters."  McElroy was appointed by Pope Francis to his current position.  Since then he has stated that adulterers and gays should "utilize the internal forum of conscience" when it comes to receiving Holy Communion; in other words, this errant bishop is lulling these mortal sinners into heaping more mortal sin on their souls, rendering even more distant the prospect of eternal salvation.  I've written on McElroy in the past.

I would urge careful study of the first two links to understand how this California meeting is setting the stage for "community-organizing" rackets funded by George Soros to dominate the affairs and priorities of the Church hierarchy.  Indeed, the 1P5 piece voices the opinion that since Hillary Clinton has been effectively jettisoned from prominence, that the mantle of "front-man for progressivism" has fallen on the all-too-willing shoulders of Pope Francis.  

There is cause for that opinion, it seems.  Recall how wikileaks played a role in the defeat of Hillary Clinton as emails were leaked that detailed all sorts of nefarious deeds of the Democrat cabal.  From Gloria TV we now see another revelation from these emails: that Clinton, Obama and George Soros orchestrated the "resignation" of Pope Benedict XVI, using bribery and blackmail to oust him and usher in Pope Francis.  At the time I suspect that they didn't think that Pope Francis would be the front-person for anti-God progressives as they fully expected Clinton to win the White House.  But since both Clinton and Obama no longer wield official sway, the pope could be seen as someone to fill that void.  I regret that he seems to be performing aptly in that role.

Last month LifeSiteNews published a piece called, "2016: The Year That Pope Francis Finally Showed His Hand".  Several of us saw that earlier than 2016 as warning signs did abound. Even to this day, some Catholics refuse to accept that all may not be well with this papacy despite all evidence to the contrary.

Understanding that in most cases "personnel is policy", let's look at some of the seismic shifts in personnel.  We've noted the ouster of Cardinal Burke from his positions at the Vatican.  Now he's been jettisoned from the Knights of Malta while being slandered in the process.  We see Cardinals Muller, Sarah, Pell being treated as though there were targets drawn on their backs.  Meanwhile we see dissidents like McElroy, Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Cupich being elevated to roles of responsibility.  Today Judie Brown of American Life League lamented the de facto dismantling of the Pontifical Academy for Life - a council in which she was a member for fifteen years.  Most of the prominent members of that council - including Cardinal Caffarra, one of the "dubia cardinals" - took strong exception to Amoris Laetitia and the confusion caused by it.

In the past 2000+ years of Church history, the Church has had to deal with pontiffs who didn't live up to their office and who in fact were quite evil - Alexander VI comes immediately to mind.  While we cannot say for certain that such is the case now, we'd be dishonest to pretend that the same couldn't be the case now.  We need to pray for the Church and its leaders - many of whom have thrown in their lot with anti-God progressives and wreaking havoc on the faith of millions. 

Amoralis Lamentia Defenders Demonstrate The Necessity For The Dubia

Last Friday I alluded to facebook discussions in which I'm currently embroiled.  Many of the participants are of the mindset that: 1) no doing or saying of the pope can ever be subject to scrutiny and debate and (even more troubling) 2) if the current pontiff says anything then it must be blindly accepted regardless of the Teachings of the Church promulgated before the current papacy.

Such is the discussion regarding Amoris Laetitia.  On the one hand, they state that of course all must read AL in light of Church teaching.  Then in the next breath they say, "the pope is opening the doors for mercy", "the priest can act as a tribunal and proclaim a marriage dissolved", "not all situations fit into the rules", etc.  Doesn't that first one make you wonder just what "doors for mercy" have been closed these previous 2000 years of Church history?  Anyway, they are inadvertently providing clear evidence of why the dubia need to be answered.  They are infected with the very confusion that Cardinal Burke et al are trying to prevent - confusion that can actually lead to the damnation of immortal souls.  Below I post an interview given by Cardinal Arinze, during which he points out that no one may change Divine law.

Obama Et Al, Time To Say Goodbye

I just saw this.  It does seem to be appropriate since the Messiah Most Miserable and his Minions Most Mindless do seem to be hanging around like barnacles.

Arroyo, Royal, Murray Discuss The Growing Murkiness Of Amoralis Lamentia

This World Over episode was aired yesterday.  At present, I cannot find the youtube but will substitute it for this facebook feed. (UPDATE - the youtube is below in place of the facebook link)  I have some friends who seem unwilling to shed their rose-colored illusions regarding Pope Francis.  One in particular thought this World Over was horrid.  I for the life of me cannot guess why.  If anyone finds anything truly objectionable, please advise in the comments.  If you do so, please explain your reasons.  Knee-jerk reactions are not helpful.

A Humorous Summary Of Events In The Vatican

True humor always contains a bit of truth; else there would be little appeal.  There is much truth to this.  As we laugh a little, please keep praying.

Diocese Of Rome Lures Adulterers Into Mortal Sin And Sacrilege

LifeSite News reports that Cardinal Agostino Vallini, Vicar General of the Diocese of Rome, has released guidelines based on Amoralis Lamentia that lure adulterers into greater mortal sin by receiving Holy Communion while carrying on in that state.  Cardinal Villini is merely the Vicar General of that diocese.  The Chief Shepherd of that diocese is none other than Pope Francis himself.

These directives fly in the face of the Teachings of the Church.  They most certainly contradict Humanae Vitae, Familiaris Consortio and others.  Supposedly this is to be allowed for limited cases and only when the adulterers are consulting with a confessor.  But think about this for a minute.  If these adulterers are conferring with a confessor, is not that confessor explaining to them the gravity of both adultery and receiving Holy Communion while in that state?  Therefore the adulterers should know that their sins are grave.  The confessor is supplying them with knowledge of the Church's teaching.  If they continue their sin, they are thus doing so in full knowledge of the sin and in deliberate disobedience to the Church.  Therefore we see: 1) grave matter, 2) full knowledge 3) deliberate consent.  The educated Catholic will know that these three conditions determine mortal sin.  It only takes one mortal sin for a soul to be damned to hell if he/she doesn't rectify the matter within the Sacrament of Confession.  If adulterers receive Holy Communion while in a state of mortal sin, they commit yet another mortal sin, that of sacrilege against Holy Communion.  No Amoralis-Lamentia-based double-talk will erase that reality.

Now in order for a valid Confession to occur, the penitent must have the firm purpose of amending their sinful ways.  That means they must actually quit the sin, not merely give lip service to it.  If they approach the Confessional while having no intention of correcting their fault, they commit a sacrilege against the Sacrament of Confession.

Again, this is the Diocese of Rome.  Does anyone really believe that this guideline, which is in reality an outright temptation to mortal sin, would ever have been promulgated without the permission - if not instigation - of its bishop Pope Francis?  We see more seduction to mortal sin coming from Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio, president of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts.  This is the Vatican office charged with interpreting Church law.  He stated that adulterers who "want to change their situation but cannot" can receive Holy Communion.  He gave an example of a woman shacking up with a man and his children.  He states that she may be unable to leave lest she neglect her duties to the children.  But what "duties" are discharged by flaunting adultery before the children's eyes?  See this post from Toronto Catholic Witness for some analysis of Coccopalmerio's heresy.

We also see the following developments:

• The news of Cardinal Burke's being dispatched to Guam
• The long knives coming out for Cardinal Muller after he declared that sanctifying grace and mortal sin cannot coexist in a soul.
• The persecution of Father Peter West

These developments seem to be the attempts to silence those clergy who hold fast to Christ's words to us through Tradition.  I suspect we'll see more such persecutions and more blatant moral heresies.  Pray that either the dubia are answered or that the four cardinals take their next steps with all alacrity.

Media Lapdogs Take Swipes At Cardinal Burke

If ever we wanted prima facie evidence that the leftwing media is in cahoots with the pope and others who want to dismantle Sacred Tradition, we need look no further than two recent hit pieces aimed at Cardinal Burke.

A few days ago, the Washington Compost, through its "correspondent" Emma-Kate Symons, put forth a piece of editorial excrement.  Symons condescended to offer some precious pearls of wisdom to tell "How Pope Francis Can Cleanse The Far-Right Rot From The Catholic Church".  I'm suspecting that Symons herself isn't Catholic so I fail to see how she has a dog in this fight - except to quell a possible nagging conscience by attempting to silence the voice of God as it sounds forth from the Church's timeless teachings.  She refers to Burke as "renegade cleric", "rebel prince", "unrepentant and defiant", etc.  Dare I speculate that Symons doesn't know diddly-squat about real repentance?  But I digress.  We get hints of her biases and mindsets as we see telltale catch phrases such as "Francis' reformist compassionate papacy", "conservative wing that wants to reassert white Christian dominence", etc.

Symons is great at contradicting herself.  She suggests that the pope rebuke Burke for "his unacceptable political interventions" while in the next paragraph she defends the pope for "daring to suggest that building a wall on the United States’ southern border was un-Christian."  Boys and girls, can we say "double standard"?  Or is acceptability of "political interventions" dependent on their leftward tilt?

Symons' suggestions to the pope only serve to illustrate her complete ignorance of what constitutes Church teaching by saying, "Francis could seize the agenda. In time-honored papal tradition, he could write an encyclical on the burning questions of populism and nationalism, with specific reference to migrants, Muslims and Jews, so priests including Burke know they are in breach of church teaching when they try to act as power brokers for the international extreme right."  Reminder - the Church can only teach authoritatively on Faith and Morals in keeping with Tradition.  Anything else, including this "encyclical" that Symons suggests would simply be outside the proper competence of the Magisterium.  Oh, they might try such a stunt but such pronouncements would not bind on pain of sin.

Now that we see why subscription numbers at the Compost are plummeting, let's take a look at the Guardian from "across the pond".  They seem to have received the same progressive Vatican talking points.  They tell us that "US Cardinal Raymond Burke Stokes Papal Tensions By Meeting Nationalist In Rome".   This drivel was spewed forth by Stephanie Kirchgaessner.  What seems to have her undies bunched is that the Cardinal met with Matteo Salvini, a supporter of President Trump.  We gather that Kirchgaessner herself has a visceral animosity towards Trump, as do many of the pope's lackeys in the Vatican.   As Kirchgaessner states, Cardinal Joseph Tobin opined that Trump's travel ban was "opposite of what it means to be an American".  I might point out that Tobin's indifference to lesbians using a KofC hall in his diocese to celebrate their perversion was "opposite of what it means to be a bishop".

Did Kirchgaessner issue rebukes to the Vatican for inviting anti-life and anti-God persons to speak to them?  If so, I'd be grateful if links to those articles would be directed to me.  I speak of:

• Paul Ehrlich's scheduled appearance at a Vatican conference in a few weeks.
• Jeffrey Sachs
• John Schnellnhuber
• Jerry Brown (yes, Moonbeam himself)
• Naomi Klein

I'm sure I could drudge up others, but these make the case that progressives such as Symons and Kirchgaessner are acting like good little lapdogs for their Vatican counterparts, waxing indignant about Cardinal Burke while turning willfully blind eyes to true slime oozing forth from the Vatican.

Defund Planned Parenthood Rally - Feb 11 2017

Yesterday across the country, pro-life activists held rallies at hundreds of Planned Parenthood baby-murder centers to demand that the flow of our tax dollars to this blood-thirsty cabal cease.  At the Planned Parenthood in Silver Spring, MD, we held such a rally.

Ours went smoothly and peacefully.  Such was not the case at the Two Rivers Planned Parenthood in Northeast DC, just a few miles away.  Rabidly angry pro-aborts tried repeatedly to block the pro-lifers' march.  So much for the free speech of pro-life people, but when someone will go so far as to advocate the murder of tiny babies, it's no big deal for them to deny rights to others who oppose their murderous designs.  The Washington DC police did yeoman's work in protecting the pro-lifers who marched; we thank them for that.  Two of the DC marchers posted live feeds to their facebook walls; see here and here.

Here is our rally.

When Faithful Catholic Youth Challenge Vatican Disdain For Truth

The Pope has confided to the world that he is worried.  We faithful Catholics agree that there are indeed many pressing concerns:

• the persecution of Christians increasing throughout the world
• the numbers of Catholics practicing their faith decreasing and churches shuttering
• Christian marriage and family life being discarded for the hook-up culture
• the whole-scale murders of millions of babies

That list could go on and on - but none of these amounts to a hill of beans in comparison with this matter that weighs heavily on Pope Francis' mind.  What might be this pressing concern?  In his own words, "When they tell me that there is a congregation that draws so many vocations, I must confess that I worry."  He shared this heavy burden at a meeting with 140 superiors general of various religious orders.  He went on by saying that young people in traditional orders are "soldiers who seem ready to do anything for the defense of faith and morality, and then some scandal emerges involving the founder".  Frankly that seems rather cynical, doesn't it?

No one can help but notice that "modern" progressive orders are literally dying of old age.  They've stripped themselves so much of any real remembrance of their original charisms that they aren't attracting any young people to their ranks anymore.  The orders who do embrace the Faith of Our Fathers, that is, who wear the traditional habits, who devote themselves to the Divine Office and prayer, who practice penance and the evangelical counsels and have eschewed new-age modernism/progressivism are the ones who are attracting young people.  Why?  Because in devotion to prayer, sacraments, teachings, etc, they open themselves to God's grace and that is what young people find attractive.  They find meaning in this life by working to secure their eternal salvation and that of the world.

That kind of devotion flies in the face of the modernistic bile that the pope seems intent on cramming down our throats.  Hence the charge of "pelagianism", etc.  It seems that the pope has animosity towards these orders.  "Scandal involving the founder"?  Well, if one can't be found regarding a particular founder, sometimes they can be contrived out of thin air.  Look at the abuse that Father Manelli, founder of the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate is still undergoing as the friars are now scattered hither and yon.  There was an order chock full of young men who love Jesus and Holy Mother Church.  But they didn't embrace modernism with all its attendant nonsense.  For that, the pope continues to grind his axe at Father Manelli.  But I don't think any fear of "scandals" is what is driving the Vatican's animosity towards young people who love the Church.

Recall that last month, the pope, at a meeting for the World Day of Communications told those in attendance that "reality in and of itself has no one clear meaning".  Is that not, in and of itself, a ridiculous (and even self-contradicting) statement?  He is the Vicar of Christ, the same Christ who declared that "I am the way, the truth and the life".  Reality and truth are essentially the same, are they not?  Now, if we take the pope's statement to be accurate, does it logically follow that Jesus Himself has no meaning?  The pope's error leads to that conclusion.

These young people, of whom the pope takes a condescending view, understand that reality stands on its own, for it originates from God and certainly from the Second Person of the Trinity.  In addition to holding these faithful Catholic youth in disdain, he also sounded his alarm about "rigid thinking" to a group of Jesuit editors.  The two of these considerations make sense.  Truth by definition cannot change.  Therefore, to adhere to immutable truth would amount to consistent thinking - or as the pope puts it, "rigid thinking".  His rationale?  As he put it, "Rigid thinking is not divine because Jesus assumed our flesh, which is not rigid except at the time of death."  I really don't know how to make sense out of that gobblygoop

So there we have it.  We have a pope who thinks that truth and reality changes with the wind.  Now we can see how he justifies his attempts to warp the timeless teachings of Jesus Christ as He communicated them to the Church with the most recent manifestation of the mischief being seen in the mess called Amoris Laetitia - or Amoralis Lamentia as I've dubbed it.  When faithful Catholic youth flock to traditional orders and faithful Catholic cardinals seek clarification (or rigidity as he might call it) when they issue dubia, he sees it as a threat to his wish to have truth devoid of real meaning.  Now we see why the young people are derided, why other faithful Catholics are slandered with the epithet "pelagian" or when faithful prelates such as Cardinals Burke or Muller are maltreated.

Freemasonry's Role In Knights Of Malta Scandals

One Peter Five has published parts of a letter issued by Pope Francis to Cardinal Burke, asserting that "manifestations of a worldly spirit..must be prevented from being introduced into the order, including affiliations and associations, movements and organizations".  It would seem that Cardinal Burke, with the assistance of Fra Matthew Festing, was doing precisely that when they ousted Albrecht von Boeselager, who allowed Maltaser to distribute condoms.

But as we've seen, Festing was coerced into retiring and Cardinal Burke has been further marginalized by the appointment of Archbishop Becciu as "Special Delegate to the Knights of Malta".     Boeselager has been reinstated as Grand Chancellor.  Dare we speculate that he is free to resume his distribution of condoms vis-a-vis Maltaser?  But the article quoted by 1P5 highlights another detail, one that might otherwise have escaped notice.  The pope nullified all actions taken by Festing, going back to December 6.  One of those actions was the establishment of a commission to investigate a strange inheritance received by the Knights of Malta: 120 million (currency denomination not stated) into a Swiss bank account.  There is some speculation that it came from Boeselager himself; now that question is far from being investigated, let alone answered.  Do recall that Albrecht's brother, Georg Von Boeselager, was appointed as a director of the Vatican Bank during this time.  Ladies and gentlemen, this is NOT a coincidence!

The Lepanto Institute published a bit of history of the Knights of Malta, focusing on their centuries-old contentions with Freemasonry.  I agree that there is much more to this situation than meets the eye.

Cardinal Joseph Tobin Targets Pro-Life Priest - Time For Us To Act

Father Peter West is a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark NJ.  He has been outspoken in his defense of both the pre-born babies as well as God's timeless teachings on marriage, sexuality and family.  In the past, he was affiliated with both Human Life International and Priests for Life before being called back to his home diocese.  From there he has continued to preach against the intrinsic evils of abortion, "gay-marriage", contraception, etc.

He has voiced his opinions regarding politics as they impact public morality and the ability of Christians to practice freely their faith in the public square.  In doing so, he has spoken in his capacity as a private individual, not as a representative of the Archdiocese of Newark.  I can attest to this, being one of Father's facebook friends.

A few months ago, Archbishop Joseph Tobin, formerly the ordinary of Indianapolis, was transferred to Newark by Pope Francis and named a cardinal.  I have written about Cardinal Tobin (not to be confused with Bishop Thomas Tobin of Rhode Island).  He has shown himself to be quite the progressive lap-dog,  While in Indianapolis, he worked to undermine then-governor Mike Pence as the latter went about enforcing immigration laws.  Not only did he object to Pence, but he called the four dubia cardinals "troublesome".  Then of course there was the debacle of two years ago, when he looked the other way while a Knights of Columbus hall in his diocese was used by two lesbians to celebrate their #mowwidge.

I am not at all surprised that Cardinal Tobin's minions have the long knives out for Father West.  Christian Review has an excellent analysis of the situation, as well as a link to the liberal trash-article that seems to have called the Newark progressives into action.

But perhaps there's another cause to the roughshod treatment that may be meted out to Father West.  In September of 2003, a consortium of Catholic schools in the DC area held a fund-raising dinner downtown.  Pro-abortion Ted Kennedy was one of the two co-chairs of the event.  Seeing the disgrace that would have resulted in a pro-abortion proponent being honored at a Catholic event, I and a number of others tried to at least have Kennedy disassociated from that event.  Cardinal McCarrick was archbishop of Washington at that time.  Of course he turned a deaf ear to us.  So about 25 of us picketed that event.  Father West joined us.  Lo and behold, who pulls up but Cardinal McCarrick!  We both greeted and rebuked him.  The Cardinal was none too pleased, and none too pleased to see Father West - whom he ordained while archbishop of Newark.  I'm an eye-witness to that exchange.  I don't know if there's a connection or not, but that possibility cannot be discounted.

Anyway, it does appear that the Newark archdiocese has found an excuse to quell its stung conscience by clamping down on a faithful priest.  I echo the Christian Review's call for all of us to pray and make our voices heard at the Archdiocese of Newark in support of Father West.  Please act now.  In addition to the contacts suggested by the Christian Review, you may wish to contact other offices.  The archdiocesan website is www.rcan.org.  Please pass this to others.  Thank you.

#IStandWithFatherPeterWest

The Butchery Continues In Germantown

In November, the prolonged absence of Leroy Carhart from Germantown caused us to hope that he had quit Germantown (or maybe had been evicted).  He and the Germantown Reproductive Health Services are being sued for a botched abortion that left a woman disabled and possibly unable to bear other children.  We had hoped that this was the straw that broke the camel's back and sent him packing.

Alas, we were disappointed when he was seen at Germantown this past December.  Once again there would be massive amounts of innocent blood shed there.  Moreover, with Carhart returned the ambulances.  Today happens to be the fourth anniversary of the deaths of both Jennifer and Madison Morbelli.  Madison is the baby who was the intended murder victim but her mother died in addition to her, a direct result of Carhart's incompetence and callousness.  Today also saw Carhart's 10th Germantown victim being taken away in an ambulance.  The site prayforgermantown.com has more details of that, as well as some other suspected botched abortions that happened this past December.

Of course Carhart is a menace to the unborn children.  He is showing himself to be equally dangerous to the mothers.  Not only are pro-aborts disdainful of the babies, but of the mothers too - when they can get away with it.  Sadly, in Maryland they can.  We hope and pray this suit moves forward and that this puts a much-needed crimp into the operations of that hell-hole known as Germantown Reproductive Health Services.

When Good And Evil Are Confused..

These two incidents occurred in England, which is probably just a little further down the moral decline than are we.  However, the United States isn't that far behind.

A woman had a baby out of wedlock.  She gave birth at home and immediately strangled the poor baby girl.  Rather than jail the woman for murder, the judge lets loose with a bunch of psychobabble, literally excusing the murder of a defenseless baby.  I remember when Roe v Wade occurred.  Pro-lifers were mocked by pro-aborts when we voiced apprehension about infanticide.  Our fears have come to pass and the pro-baby murder people could not care less.

Elsewhere a gay teenager asked a Christian preacher what he believed about homosexuality.  For the high crime and misdemeanor of giving an honest response to a question, he was arrested on charge of a hate crime.  Fortunately the judge threw out the case; it was an obvious example of entrapment.

I cite these to demonstrate that on the one hand a woman who admitted to murdering her own newborn is let go, while a Christian who preaches the truth is jailed for so doing.  This is happening in England; it could soon happen here.  Had Clinton won in November, I think we'd be racing towards that state of affairs.  We dodged a bullet in November and were granted a little bit more time to turn things around.  While there are good signs from Washington, the bulk of the work in that regards will be the responsibility of each and every one of us.  Ora et labora.

Guidelines For Receiving Communion - What's Going On?

For as long as I can remember, whenever there was a Catholic Mass at which large numbers of non-Catholics or lapsed Catholics might be in attendance (such as weddings and funerals), within the programs for such events were published "Guidelines for Receiving Communion".  They clearly and politely pointed out that in order to receive Holy Communion, one must be a practicing Catholic, not conscious of mortal sin and have fasted for one hour.  The guidelines were reiterated from the pulpit.

Such was the case at my mother's funeral last June.  I cannot recall if they were mentioned from the pulpit but they were there in unmistakeable print in the funeral program.  Did something happen in the eight months between then and now?

Yesterday and the week before, I attended the 11:00 am Mass at Blessed Sacrament that sits just south of the MD-DC line east of Chevy Chase Circle.  Although I didn't know the deceased, I picked up the programs.  Neither one had the Guidelines for Receiving Communion.  Moreover, Father never mentioned them from the pulpit.  He seemed cognizant of the presence of non-Catholics for he was careful to guide them in standinng, sitting, kneeling, and he briefly explained parts of the Mass.

Non-Catholics who didn't know better might well have received Holy Communion.  I hardly think they can be faulted for such a gaffe.  However, we know better.  It could easily have been foreseen that non-Catholics might attempt to receive, yet nothing was done to prevent that.

Now I have a number of questions, and I invite responses from readers.

• Both my mother's funeral and these two memorial services occurred within the Archdiocese of Washington.  Is anyone aware of any related policy that would have occurred within the past few months?
• If anyone else recently attended a funeral, memorial or wedding within the ADW recently, what did you notice in the program?
• If there was a policy change, what was the given reason for such change?
• Have similar things been observed in other areas of the country?
• Is anyone aware of any pertinent language on the USCCB site regarding this matter?

Thanks for any input.  Frankly, I am smelling the stench of Amoralis Lamentia all over this.

Modern Liberalism Is A Social Sin

For the first eight years of my school life, I attended parochial schools, then a private girls' high school - all Catholic.  The first five years of my religious education were unscathed by the so-called "spirit of Vatican II".  That all changed when I reached the sixth grade in fall of 1967.  I sensed the seismic shift as solid doctrine was exchanged for, well, I'm not sure what.  One of my more memorable "lessons" was when we were "learning" (?) about "freedom"; it started by us listening to a recording of Andy Williams singing "Born Free".  In lessons teaching about being "salt of the earth" we were "taught" that "Martin Luther King is salt of the earth".  At the time, Dr King was alive yet he was being de facto "canonized" by my classroom teachers.

We were also introduced to a term called "social sin".  Hitherto, we never heard of it, but we were hearing of it non-stop, to the exclusion of the doctrines of the Faith.  "Social sins" included the usual progressive bugaboos: racism, poverty and war.  The latter was quite politically charged, as the Vietnamese conflict was in full swing.  At any rate, "social sin" was the topic du jour, and being a faithful Catholic was equated to "working for social justice".

However, as anyone with working eyes and ears knows, "social justice" had really nothing to do with the individual Catholic donating any of his time or resources to combat problems.  No!  The main thrust of "Catholic social justice" was meant to lobby government to redistribute wealth to people deemed disadvantaged.  We were in fact demanding that the government act as our surrogates in terms of administering charity.  What we failed - or refused - to acknowledge is that in doing so, our charity ceased to be true charity, as the government taxed its citizenry to fund these efforts while mutating into an onerous behemoth

Pope St John Paul II, in his encyclical Solicitudo Rei Socialis, said that "social sin" proceeds from the accumulation of personal sins.  In other words, our violations of the Ten Commandments, Precepts of the Church, etc are at the root of social ills of the world.

Ironically, in its reckless haste to take up the "social justice" mantra while neglecting its true God-given mission to save souls, the Church hierarchy in this country unleashed a number of serious problems that themselves would accurately be termed "social sin", for they institutionalize a number of violations of God's commands and even elevate them to the level of "civic virtue".

• In its call for government to take on roles for which it never was designed, these early progressives paved the way for the principle of subsidiarity to be disdained.  Local charities waned in importance while both church and the poor looked to governments to solve their problems.
• In tasking government with charitable duties, the church gave its nod of approval to ever-increasing taxation to fund these undertakings.  Calling it "wealth redistribution" or "distributive justice", the church hierarchy gave tacit approval to rank violations of the Seventh Commandment.
• The Church continues to look the other way as welfare is now a way of life for too many.  One of the early requirements for being a welfare recipient was the absence of a bread-winner in the family.  Thus black fathers left their homes, having devastating consequences:
• Large number of children out of wedlock
• Absence of fathers in the homes having devastating effects effects on children, leading to drug abuse, sexual promiscuity, criminalization (especially boys)

Now, in these days following the inauguration of President Trump's administration, the altruistic facade of liberalism is crumbling.  Its adherents, perhaps idealistic if naive in their early allegiance to liberalism, have been corrupted over the years by the de facto idolatry that has ascribed to government the status and honor due to God alone.  Some examples include:

• The riots following Trump's victory in various cities.  While carrying placards declaring that Trump is "not my president", liberal hellions have set fire to cars, smashed shop windows and attacked others who dared so much as to wear pro-Trump clothing.
• The "march for women" that featured Madonna threatening to blow up the White House, Ashly Judd ranting about her "nastiness" and hundreds of attendees dressed in "vagina" costumes
• Highly-placed Democrats (such as Tim Kaine) issuing calls for continued street violence
• Environmentalists openly calling for abortion to "protect the environment".
• The "spontaneous" anti-Trump airport protests engineered by George Soros
• The planned protest in Chicago to get Trump to release tax records - by mooning Trump Towers (How they think that will work is anyone's guess)
• Global-warming alarmists admitting that their real goal is the destruction of capitalism
• Increasing violence aimed at pro-lifers at baby-killing centers
• The violent riots at Berkeley (again!)

These are recent occurrences.  There remains, on the part of the progressive bishops embroiled in the social sin of modern liberalism, the deafening silence regarding baby-murder and sins of the flesh, the non-stop kiss-ups to prominent pro-abortion personalities, the elevation of "global warming" to the de facto status of dogma, etc.

One tiny silver lining in the dark clouds of all the violence and mayhem committed by liberals is that their oh-so-sanctimonious veneer is crumbling from their collective face so that all who have eyes can see the vile evil underneath.  Of course the mainstream media (including "official" Catholic outlets) will, like the good little lap dogs that they are, do their damndest to sweep it under the rug.  If you're reading this, you've already discovered how to bypass the leftist media to get to some real information.  Please pass this along to your friends who may not be aware.

Planned Parenthood = Pimp Protectors

Over three years ago, at the Spring Street Planned Parenthood we were confronted with what appeared to be a pimp bringing a prostitute for an abortion.  I posted it in the hopes of perhaps identifying and apprehending the guy.  As I suspected, Planned Parenthood has been aiding pimps with some regularity - as evidenced by these Live Action videos.

I'll have some more news about Planned Parenthood in a day or two.

Cockroaches Do Hate The Light

I wrote last week about the horrid "guidance" that Cardinal Wuerl gave to his priests and seminarians regarding Amoralis Lamentia - see here and here.  As you can see from the links, Church Militant picked up on it, too.  Usually the chancery ignores what we write, although I know for a fact that my postings are monitored.

In his own blog, Cardinal Wuerl doubled down on the errors of Amoralis Lamentia.  I cannot say the errors belong to Wuerl alone, for those errors are promulgated by many - including Pope Francis himself.  He speaks of "a small number of clergy and media supporters"..."challenging the integrity of..Amoris Laetitia".  I've no doubt that with this "small number of clergy" crack, that he's taking a swipe at Cardinal Burke and the other three cardinals for issuing their dubia.  Reminder - in issuing their dubia, the four cardinals seek not to undermine any papal teaching but to clarify it.  There are a number of bishops who now claim that those in adulterous situations can receive Holy Communion without bringing their lives into conformity with the clear, timeless teachings of Jesus Christ.

Notice how he speaks of "the determining role of individual conscience when assessing personal culpability before God and therefore before his Church."  Wrong.  An individual's conscience never trumps God's Holy Will as revealed through His Teachings in the Catholic Church.  If an individual commits sin while being aware that Jesus Christs forbids such actions, he/she is culpable, personal proclivities and inclinations notwithstanding.  He/she is bound by Canon 916 not to approach the Communion rail.  If the sin is manifest and grave, the minister of Holy Communion is bound by Canon 915 to deny that person Holy Communion, lest he be party to sacrilege.

Regrettably, the Vicar of Christ has advocated for such sacrilege to occur.  Recall the instruction that he gave to priests from his native Argentina.  A few days ago the pope joined the bandwagon, accusing us of (wait for it!)  "obeying all the commandments, all of them..this paralyzes you too".  Hmm.. I seem to recall in the Gospel of John where Jesus says, "he who loves me will obey my commandments".  But according to the pope, obedience will make us "forget so many graces received..it doesn't allow you to go forward".  Go forward?  Forward - to where?  Reminder - disobedience to God's commands - any of them - will cause the sinner to lose grace.

Cardinal Muller has rebuked such confusion.  He railed against those who use AL to "justify situations against the will of God".   He added, "adultery is always a mortal sin and the bishops who create confusion about this must study the doctrine of the Church".  He didn't mention the pope by name, but his meaning is clear.  I suspect there may soon be some personnel shake-ups at the CDF very soon.

We faithful Catholics need to pray and to educate ourselves regarding our Faith.  We certainly will get no solid education from too many of our chanceries.