Refuting Attempts To Discredit The Mass Of The Ages

Over a month ago, three theologians, Drs. Mary Healy and John Cavadini, with Father Thomas Weinandy, wrote a series of articles that appeared in Church Life Journal.  I haven't read all the articles, but what I read seems to be an attempt at justifying the heavy-handedness of Francis' Traditionis Custodes.  I'm not going into all the detail of the errors here.  Two other theologians, Drs Joseph Shaw and Peter Kwasniewski, have done an excellent job.  I suggest that all links be read, even the links contained in the linked articles.

I am not acquainted with Dr. Cavadini, but am with Dr. Healy and Father Weinandy, although it's been quite a few years since I've seen either of them.  That acquaintance goes back to our days in the Mother of God Community, a group that was part of the so-called "charismatic renewal" that fell under scrutiny owing to cultish behaviors on the part of the leadership in the early 1990s.  I parted ways with that group at that time.  A major reason for my departure was the overemphasis on personal experience over adherence to Catholic doctrine.  The Novus Ordo Mass is geared to personal experience whereas the Traditional Latin Mass is geared towards worship of God exclusively.  

That last word "exclusively" is key.  You'll not find sloppy dress nor conduct in a church dedicated to the Traditional Latin Mass.  Women dress decently and modestly: no exposed body parts, cloths modest and in good repair.  Similarly, men are not dressed as though they were just in a drunken brawl: no jeans, tee-shirts but lots of suits and ties.  Before and after Mass in the nave of the church, there is no chit-chat going on between adults.  One might hear the occasional cooing of babies.  Speaking of which, there are many young families with many children at at Traditional Latin Mass, more so than at a Novus Ordo.

I myself attend both.  On Sundays I will attend a Traditional Latin Mass, although I must drive some distance to do so.  That Mass isn't available other days for me so I will attend the Novus Ordo Masses.  Often at those Masses I am reminded of why I prefer the Traditional Latin Mass.  However, if I truly believed that the Novus Ordo Mass was an inherent danger to my faith, I would not attend (barring Holy Days of Obligation).  I personally don't know anyone who attends the Traditional Latin Mass who believes it would be dangerous and even sinful to attend.  The CHW series intimates, though, that this mindset is so prevalent as to justify Francis' draconian actions towards the Traditional Latin Mass.  I realize that a few attendees of the Traditional Latin Mass do hold those erroneous attitudes towards the Novus Ordo, but to attribute such mindsets towards all the attendees, including me, and to publish such attributions veers into sins of slander and libel.

Some faithful and courageous prelates are not taking this attack on the Latin Mass lying down.  Archbishop Vigano penned an open letter to another Italian bishop, taking him to task for his senseless quashing of the Latin Mass.  There have been others.  As I track them down, I will repost.

Addendum as of November 28  Mr. Kwasniewski offered more commentary exposing the errors underlying the CHW piece.

Novus Ordo Second Eucharistiic Prayer - Composed On A Restaurant Napkin

While I attend a Traditional Latin Mass on Sundays, I am constrained by availability to attend the Novus Ordo during weekdays.  Since Traitorous Custodians came out, the Second Eucharistic Prayer is by far the most frequently used at the Novus Ordo.  What is particularly troubling and peculiar is that even priests who have a relatively decent sense of the sacred are now preferring that prayer, whereas before they were using the Third and even First Eucharistic prayer.  Bear in mind that the First Eucharistic prayer is the traditional Roman Canon with a rather sloppy English translation.

Of the Eucharistic prayers in the Novus Ordo rite, the Second is the shortest, most stripped-down version.  I think that is a key reason why even the more reverent priests are being strong-armed into using that one.  Here is some background regarding the Eucharistic prayer that was hastily thrown together in a restaurant.

Holy Communion At St Silly's

Let me preface this video by stating that this is not intended as judgment on those who have received Holy Communion in the hand.  I too was taught that in the hand was the proper way to receive Our Lord in Holy Communion.  Not until I was exposed to the truth and did some research on my own did I realize that I was unwittingly committing sacrilege with my unconsecrated hands.  By the way - this was quite some time before I started attending the Traditional Latin Mass on Sundays.

Anyway, here's another "tongue-in-cheek lesson" from "Father Timmy at St Silly" on how they think Holy Communion is to be received.  Of course we lay folks are not to touch Our Lord - not even during "pandemics".  

Young People Return To Tradition, Whereupon The Progressives Scold

It is no secret to any Catholic with at least one functioning eyeball that young Catholics are rediscovering traditional Catholicism, the patrimony that the now-aging hippies tried to trash.  Funny thing, though.  When something truly is of Divine origin, it simply won't stay under wrap.

A few weeks ago we saw Father Reese of Jesuit magazine wail and gnash his teeth.  He actually had the hubris to declare that "children and young people should not be allowed to attend such Masses".  Rather imperious and arrogant, don't you think?  I attend a traditional Mass myself and I rejoice at the number of young families (with several children each) in attendance.

Father Reese is not alone in bewailing the demise of the clown-rock-hippy-clappy masses.  A few days ago, we saw in US Catholic an article entitled "Parish Differences Pont To Divisions In The Church" by Peter Feuerherd.  I wonder if he is related to the late Joseph Feuerherd of the Not-At-All Catholic Reporter?  That certainly would explain some of his progressive bent.  Anyway, the thrust of his screed is that the mean old rad-trads (never mind that many of them are young people) are making others feel bad and driving them away from the Church.  Truth be told, those others probably never had actual faith in Our Lord and love for His Church, for if they did, the presence of differing people would never cause them to leave.  We didn't leave the Church when the hippy Jesuits were in ascendency.  I think they are looking for an excuse to undermine those who are living the true faith and to excuse their own disdain for the Mass.

Speaking of Not-At-All Catholic Reporter, we have Michael Sean Winters chiming in with his "Catholics Behaving Badly" nonsense.  In this installment he belittles Father David Nix, Bishop Thomas Paprocki, Michael Warsaw, and Sohrab Ahmari.  My!  It gives us bloggers something to which to aspire - to be listed by Winters as "Catholics behaving badly"!

As the liberal hysteria grows, I'm sure we can expect more snit-fits to be published.

The Unhinged Father Reese Tips His Progressive And Tyrannical Hand

The above title is an apt summary for the latest rantings by Father Thomas Reese.  He is a Jesuit purveyor of dissidence and general hatred of the One True Faith.  I suppose that last statement contains some redundancies but it still bears saying.

We find his latest piece of manure at Religion News Service, entitled "The Future Of Catholic Liturgical Reform".  In truth, he is simply engaging in a death throe of the glory days of hippie priests and pant-suit nuns.  It is a hodge-podge collection of anti-Catholic and anti-God slogans, all disjointed from each other.  There is so much error in it, one scarcely knows where to begin to unpack the mess.

You'll notice that he has an axe to grind with Pope Benedict XVI.  No doubt this grudge is a result of Pope Benedict's removal of Reese from his editor position at America rag-mag.  One of the more outlandish statements he made was that "children and young people should not be allowed to attend such Masses (meaning the Traditional Latin Mass)."  One of the commenters in the article rightly pointed out that any such prohibition is a usurpation of parental authority.  Please do read the comments for that article; by and large, the readers see through the farce that pours forth from Reese.  

He no doubt notices that the abandonment of tradition is itself passing away with each aging hippy that goes to his or her eternal reward.  The young people who stay with the Church understand, even if only instinctively, that progressive wreckovators like Reese have done nothing but mock our Lord and leave many of their contemporaries rudderless and without knowledge of eternal matters.  They understand that tradition is the guardian of timeless truth and are flocking to it.  Some of us older folks get it, too.  I go to Traditional Latin Masses on Sundays these days.  A goodly percentage of those attending these Masses are young couples with their children - and often quite a few children at that.  Now we see why Reese wants them banned from the Mass.  Reese seems to have jettisoned his faith and replaced it with both ignorance and arrogance.

At least he understands, from a perverse perspective, the principle of "lex orandi, lex credendi, lex vivandi".  This is why he states quite plainly that he wants the Latin Mass to disappear.  That Mass is the most sublime prayer of the Church.  He and his buddies understand that if the Latin Mass is jettisoned, then both faith and morals will likewise be lost.  We've seen it happen on a large scale now for at least 50 years.  Reese wants it to continue unchallenged.

Below I post an analysis of Reese's screed by Taylor Marshall.  Please take the time to listen to this.  I echo his suggestion that all attend the Traditional Latin Mass. 

SSPX And Austrilian Bishops - Two Different Errors

A few days ago, while writing about some curmudgeonly "rad-trads", I forgot to mention one of the most egregious - and sinful - things that have spewed out of the mouths of some of them.  As a rule, they attend Mass in the Extraordinary Form, often making great sacrifices to do so.  I too will attend those Masses, but not exclusively.  I understand the impetus, for often at the NO masses, there are attitudes that are way too casual; sometimes it gets worse than that.

However, some take it to sinful extremes.  I was in another facebook discussion with some of them.  They stated that because the NO mass was so bastardized by Vatican II, it cannot be considered a valid Mass.  Therefore, according to them, if one cannot attend an EF mass, one no longer has the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation.  For their "authority", they cite this from the SSPX website.  I've often wondered how SSPX could be considered at variance from the Magisterium.  My question has been answered.

Ladies and gentlemen, what the SSPX, or at least its website editor, is advocating is a mortal sin against the Third Commandment.  Unless the priest deviates from the language of the Sacramentary, the consecration, and thus the rest of Mass is to be considered valid.  No one may elect not to attend Mass simply because abuses are occurring therein.  Might I suggest that such absenteeism is its own abuse?  The Third Commandment binds under mortal sin.  Father So-And-So from the SSPX has no authority whatsoever to excuse attendance at Mass, be that Mass ever so unpalatable.

The word "excuse" brings me to another point.  Excuse, or defense of evil done, is one of the nine ways of cooperating with mortal sin.  So is "counsel", such as that evidenced in the SSPX screed.  On the face of things, it seems that this SSPX priest needs to recant and get to confession asap.

Now let's look at what some Austrilian bishops are doing.  They have in fact advocated sin against the First Commandment by falsely stating that Catholics can also be Freemasons.  Besides the fact that Freemasonry is a major player in the desconstruction of our Church, they advocate false beliefs that are antithetical to Christianity.  In that last link is a video going into more detail about Freemasonry.  These bishops are also cooperating with mortal sin, thus incurring guilt attached to that sin.

So what might be the difference between the SSPX and these Austrilian bishops?  Probably not that much.  One the one hand, mortal sin against the Third Commandment is being touted; on the other hand, it's mortal sin against the First Commandment.  Both have the potential of damning a soul to hell.  Both agencies are being duped by the devil into doing his work.  Satan wants Catholics to leave the Church, and he doesn't care whether they exit "stage left" or "stage right".  Let's be wary of either tendency.

Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi, Lex Vivendi

The English meaning behind the title is "How you pray impacts how you believe which impacts how you live".  In this special segment produced by Real Catholic TV, Michael Voris examines the history of how the Mass and its theology was undermined by certain key players in the Second Vatican Council.  I do urge you to invest the two hours that it will take to watch it, and to review the supplemental materials supplied on the web page.  Due to its length, embedding is impossible.  However, please follow this link.  It is a two-part seriies.  Spread word of this.

The Latin Mass

(Click here if you can't see embedded videos)

A Little Something to Warm the Heart!

After enduring the photos from the post below, watch this one for uplifting hope.