English Version Of Relatio Is Finally Out - No Wonder The Heretics Tried To Delay It

I suppose they hoped that with passage of time, the interest of many Catholics might have waned.  Well, some of us do have attention spans longer than those of ants.  Recall that the synod fathers voted two weeks ago to remove particularly heretical paragraphs.  The announcement came that they would remain, with the vote counts next to each.  The votes appear at the bottom of the document.  I share Father Z's disappointment that we don't know who voted which way.  Why the big secret?

Well, that last part didn't happen on this English version from the website of the Vatican Press Office.  I see no tally; that absence gives the distinct (and I believe deliberated) impression that the heretical elements passed through the synod vote with flying colors.  You'll have to look closely, as it appears that the paragraph numbering was revamped.

One of the heretical suggestions is now paragraph 52, talking of giving divorced/remarried (e.g. adulterous) Catholics "access to the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist".  Later it goes into some blather about "penitential practice".  Here are some problems with this.  If one goes to Confession, they must confess all mortal sins; else they've just made a sacrilegious Confession, adding to their charge yet another mortal sin.  If they confess their adultery, proper contrition demands that they quit their adulterous situations, not remain in them.  Otherwise, they are not properly disposed to receive absolution.  Of course if they aren't properly absolved through a worthy Confession, they are in no way eligible to receive Holy Communion as they will still be in a state of mortal sin.  If we're going to talk about "penitential practice" there is absolutely no substitute for those that have been promulgated by the Church since her founding by Jesus Christ; anything else is an illusory pipe-dream, a false consolation that will probably lead to eternal perdition for those so duped into embracing it.

Paragraph 53 reiterates paragraph 52, with the difference being a focus on coddling the mortal sin of fornication as opposed to adultery.  Again, what's being proposed by this SinNod here is nothing short of spiritual poison inspired by the evil one.

Paragraphs 55 and 56 touch upon those who suffer from homosexual tendencies.  I am happy to see that the cr*p that extolled "sacrificial love" between two partners in sodomite sin was expunged.  Let us pray that it stays expunged. I am wary of some elements within the hierarchy.  In a saner time. that nonsense would never have been allowed to see the light of day, coming from the Vatican.

I don't know how this squares against other translations.  I do know that the Pope said, in the SinNod's closing address, that we have one year to "mature".  If that "maturation" means a return to understanding that we follow Jesus Christ and not the whims of the world, so be it.  But given the cabal that de facto wrote that interim relatio without regard for the other synod fathers, I rather doubt it.

Father Marcel Guarnizo Interviewed Regarding The Extraordinary Synod

Last week an online publication interviewed Father Marcel Guarnizo for his thoughts on the synod that had just concluded.  I have been permitted to publish it on this site.  Father Guarnizo has many excellent points to make of the synod and its ramifications for the future of the Church, drawing on Catholic theology and philosophy.

He voices many of the same concerns as do other Catholics.  Rather than try to rehash the interview here, I urge its study.  It is here in pdf format, meaning that you can download it to your own computers and perhaps circulate it electronically, either on your own blogs or Facebook, etc.

From The "Francis Effect Department" - Baltimore Catholic Review Shills For "Gay Coming Out"

Since the heresy known as the interim relatio was allowed to be published from the SinNod two weeks ago, we've been seeing increasingly blatant advocacy for dissent from supposedly Catholic institutions.

The following article is from the Catholic Review, the official publication of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.  I need to reemphasize that it comes from an official Catholic publication for one could easily be confused into thinking it's from a "New Ways" newsletter or even the Gay Blade.  It's in the October 23rd online issue and the link is http://www.catholicreview.org/article/home/st-matthew-broaches-topic-of-coming-out-for-parents-gay-catholics

We urge all to contact Archbishop William E. Lori, as well as the staff of the Review.  Point out that they offer false consolation to those struggling with same-sex attractions.  We wish to point them towards repentance, salvation and healing.  In no way do we want to affirm them as they engage in mortally sinful acts nor do we wish to approve of their family members as they misguidedly affirm such sin - such affirmation would be its own mortal sin.  With the release of this article they failed utterly in their mission as Catholic journalists to proclaim Christ to the world.

I trust that they will have the good sense (unless the Francis Effect is more advanced than I suspect) to pull that article and issue a retraction.  I will reproduce it below so you can see just what was allowed to be printed in a Catholic newspaper.  You may also wish to contact this St. Matthew's parish and urge them to once again be a truly Catholic institution as opposed to a glorified dating service for gays.

And now, the article.

St. Matthew broaches topic of ‘coming out’ for parents, gay Catholics

October 24, 2014

By Maria Wiering

mwiering@CatholicReview.org

“Coming out is a journey for the whole family,” a Catholic mother of a gay son said Oct. 12.

She and her husband shared their family’s story at St. Matthew Parish in Northwood as part of a nine-person panel discussion called “When a Family Member Comes Out.”

Moderated by Father Joseph L. Muth Jr., pastor of St. Matthew and Blessed Sacrament in Baltimore, the panel included three gay Catholics, two sets of parents of gay adult children, and a pastoral counselor from Loyola University of Maryland.

Each panelist shared his or her experience, including how coming out as gay affected their relationship with family members and the Catholic Church.

About 50 people attended the two-hour event, which included a question-and-answer session. Attendees asked for advice on personal situations, including navigating conversations with family members.

“People find themselves in a confusing place because they have a faith that allows them to be strong in the face of adversity, but they sometimes have a church that’s been challenging them about how they should see their family members who are gay,” said Father Muth in an interview after the event.

The panel discussion coincided with National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11. It was an extension of LEAD, St. Matthew’s LGBT ministry. The 3-year-old organization hosts monthly meetings. Its members have marched twice in Baltimore’s Pride Parade.

Relationships vary

Panelists candidly described realizing they or their children were gay and initially fearing the judgment of others, especially people at their churches. Some panelists maintained strong family relationships. Others, such as John, felt rejected and hurt. A gay Catholic and St. Matthew parishioner who asked his last name not be printed, John shared his experience of feeling shunned by his Catholic parents, who insisted on years of therapy. He spent time in seminary, and also participated in Courage, an apostolate for gay Catholics that focuses on helping its members live celibately.

Over the years, John’s relationship with his parents has repeatedly frozen and thawed, he said. At times they refused to allow him to use “we” or “our” to refer to his then boyfriend, now legal husband; other times they met the two for dinner.

“To live with that tension, it’s incredibly difficult,” he said.

“No matter the amount of fuss you put up, it’s not going to change that they’re gay or lesbian,” John added, speaking to parents of gay children. “There’s a hyper-focus on (being) gay as the worst sin. That’s hard to shake off. For me, it’s been a process.”

A welcoming approach?

The panel was held in the middle of the 11-day Synod of Bishops on the family in Rome, where topics included pastoral responses to gay relationships. Midterm and final reports suggested disagreement among bishops over the kind of welcome gay Catholics should receive in the church.

Despite the church’s insistence that its marriage teaching will not change, several panelists stated support for church sanctioning of gay marriage. All three of the gay panelists were civilly married to same-sex partners. Several explicitly rejected Catholic teaching that marriage is reserved for a one-man-one-woman relationship, and that all non-married Catholics, including those who are gay, are “called” to celibacy.

Father Muth said that he’s spoken with people who feel positive about the synod’s potential outcomes on homosexuality.

“The church teaching may or may not change at some point down the road – that’s not something I can do anything about – but the initial step to people who have felt rejected and put aside for many years is to create an atmosphere of welcome,” he said.

That atmosphere also encourages gay Catholics to tell their stories, he said.

“I think through that storytelling, people begin to see how hurt people have been and how they’ve turned away from the church,” he said. “With the church’s whole emphasis on this new evangelization, this is a real opportunity to reverse the attitude – to have a more welcoming, compassionate, listening attitude, to tell people they can be included.”

Evolution, Deism And Disregard Of God

Yesterday Pope Francis spoke to the Pontifical Academy of the Sciences and made some rather startling statement regarding evolution, the big bang theory and how mankind came into being.  To put a little perspective on things, Venerable Pope Pius XII stated that the Catholic faith was not necessarily incompatible with the big bang theory and evolution as far as the human body originated.  (See Humani Generis, paragraph 36).

Please note the emphasis on "body", recalling that we are constituted both body and soul.  I'm not a theologian, but I think it stands to reason that there were two parents, endowed by God with immortal souls, from which we all descended, called Adam and Eve.  It is through them that we, their descendants, bear the image and likeness of God and the scars of original sin.  Many who hold to an exaggerated adherence to evolution do so to minimize original sin and even make a mockery regarding our need for the redemption promised in Genesis.

Leaving that aside for the moment, let's look at other disconcerting words uttered by the Holy Father.  He said, "when we read about Creation in Genesis, we run the risk of imagining God was a magician, with a magic wand able to do everything — but that is not so."  It is not so that God is able to do everything?  Yes He is!  He's omnipotent!

What I also find troubling is that the Holy Father seems to touting evolution in an almost doctrinaire fashion as opposed to any belief in a literal interpretation of Genesis.  This does appear to run counter with Pope Pius' encyclical cited above.  There also seem to be strong undercurrents of deism in the Pope's address (whether or not he realized it), with the picture of God holding Himself aloof after the initial work of creation.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

Many of those touting evolution today do so with the intention of shoving God to the sidelines of our lives, and eventually out of our lives altogether.  I pray we're not going to see these ends furthered by this address.

When We Must Respectfully Resist Vatican Progressives

Over the past year I have written many posts that express my concerns with this papacy.  Here is an archives of them; they do not appear in chronological order.  These concern are shared by many faithful Catholics, as evidenced on my right side-bar.

During the course of the Extraordinary Synod on the Family - which I dubbed the SinNod for the obvious attempts to normalize sodomy and adultery - we have seen the cause for our concerns multiplied exponentially.  I can think of no time in Church history when such a piece of heretical horse manure known as the interim relatio would ever have escaped the scrutiny of the sitting pontiff.  It did this time, and seems to have been engineered by the extra facilitators hand-picked by the Pope.  We stand in faith that the sitting pontiff will never solemnly proclaim error.  But in his lower-level statements and deeds, he would be well-positioned to wreck havoc upon the souls of millions nonetheless.

Some fellow bloggers brought to my attention an op-ed piece written by Ross Douthat called "The Pope And The Precipice".  I'd suggest a close reading and consideration.  He appears to be a faithful Catholic who is likewise concerned in the aftermath of this disastrous SinNod.   At the bottom, he suggests that the laity have a critical role to play in protecting the Pope from error and that will happen by resisting him in his errors.  I might prefer to state it as "resisting his errors" as opposed to resisting him as a person.

My friend at Tenth Crusade has written some excellent pieces in these past few days as another friend at Les Femmes and another blogger from Sensible Bond.  We are all sensing something horribly amiss about this papacy and its current trajectory.  If the degradation continues, we'll have to take steps to protect children and people we love from a garbled mess that can lead them to hell.

And now a word to those who persist in pretending that all is well with this papacy.  I love and respect you too much not to challenge you as you wear your rose-colored glasses and pretend that the pope walks on water in everything he says and does simply because he was elected pope.  I know there are those who think "the Holy Spirit chooses the pope".  That's not necessarily so, and that comes from none other than Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI; read from Father James Martin this quote from the Pope Emeritus along with a treatise on the process of papal election.  Some of you have taken exception to me and others as we've tried to sound the alarm.  Despite your tut-tutting, we will raise our voices for the sake of our loved ones and yes, for Holy Mother Church.  We truly hope you will open your eyes; else we will have to contradict you roundly.  We hope that won't be necessary, but that will be entirely up to you.  Let's stop the denial regarding this worsening train-wreck of a papacy.  Pray for Pope Francis, the clergy and all Christians.

Dignitatus Humanae Institute Clarifies Buzz Feed Interview With Cardinal Burke

From Aleteia we read that Dignitatus Humanae Institute, the organization that arranged Cardinal Burke's interview with Buzzfeed took the latter to task for rearrangement of words - a rearrangement that misquoted Cdl Burke as saying the "pope was harming the Church".

Rather, what Cardinal Burke said was "that in his opinion a general lack of clarity regarding the Pope’s position had caused harm to the Church."  In brief, he did not fault the Pope, but the "general lack of clarity" for harming the Church.  Buzz Feed has reprinted the entire text of the interview.  I appreciate Cardinal Burke's statement to set things right and to get his exact wording out there.  But now new questions are raised.

• Why, oh why, would there be any lack of clarity about the Pope's positions regarding divorced/remarried/adulterous relationships and sodomite situations?  The Magisterium has spoken on these things for 1000+ years.  Somehow I think that Pope Benedict XVI would have made his own positions crystal clear.
• Cardinal Burke asked the Pope to issue defense of the Church's teachings in light of the flim-flam that was called the interim relatio.  I do not believe that defense ever came.
• Let me elaborate on my previous sentence.  Here is the Pope's closing address.  In it, he states 
 "And this always – we have said it here, in the Hall – without ever putting into question the fundamental truths of the Sacrament of marriage: the indissolubility, the unity, the faithfulness, the fruitfulness, that openness to life."  That is not a definitive defense of the Church's teachings.  All he claimed here is that these teachings were not called into question during the SinNod; the interim relatio contradicts the Holy Father here.

So that little bit was cleared up.  Cardinal Burke did not attack the pope - as if I ever believed he did.  Will these other questions be answered?

Election Time Means Wisdom On Windshields

In less than two weeks the polls will open as many elected offices are up for grabs.  In Maryland, for example, every local office from the governor on down to the county clerks will be filled based on the people voting.

Many people will be sporting on their cars the names of their favorite candidates.  Unfortunately that means you may well see, in a Catholic parking lot, a car touting the candidacy of someone promoting abortion, gay lifestyles, etc.  Obviously they are either dissident from the Church in matters of public morals OR they are victims of lousy catechesis.

Either way, they can benefit from Wisdom on Windshields.  It is an educational flyer that can be placed on the car of the obviously oblivious fellow Catholic.  You can download it here and have it handy on your own computer.  Print it out and always carry a supply with you to Church, as you'll never know when an opportunity will arise to educate an ignorant fellow Catholic.

This flyer is a tool that can be used to "rebuke the sinner" or "instruct the ignorant" as the case may be with the individual recipient.  Wisdom on Windshields.  Never go to church without it!

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI - Dialogue Is No Substitute For Mission

On October 21, Archbishop Georg Ganswein, personal secretary to the Pope Emeritus, read aloud remarks written by the latter.  He reminded the people of Christ's direction to His apostles to "go make disciples of all nations".  He quite openly exposed the errors behind the phony concept of "dialogue", pointing out that "dialogue" is predicated on a fallacious assumption that "different religions are variants of one and the same reality".  "Dialogue" assumes that the "authentic truth about God is in the last analysis unreachable".

The Pope Emeritus emphasizes that "dialogue" is "lethal to faith".  Of course we can then conclude that it is inimical to the soul and will facilitate eternal damnation as opposed to the salvation that Jesus Christ wants for all souls.

I urge close reading of this address.  I particularly encourage our own local "emeritus", that is, Cardinal McCarrick to read this address; by repeated actions of his, especially in favor of islam, he may well be placing himself in a perilous place.

Of Rock-Star Religious And The Follyhood Of Hollywood

Lately two "acts" have been winding their way through Catholic circles: one is some Italian nun who apparently can sing (choices of material leave something to be desired).  Another is that of a pair of priests who can tap-dance.  There are videos of both - and I refuse to post them.  In this post, I won't say too much of these entities.  Rather, what piques my curiosity is why so many good Catholics seem to be in awe of them.  I had a discussion on facebook about the priests and some of the comments are downright troubling.

I started off the discussion by asking "Why are people so fascinated by priests and religious who engage in "dancing with the stars" antics that are, at best, ancillary to their sacred vocations? Just asking..."  I heard a number of responses.

• "Their joyful witness is something that the world is incredibly hungry for".  No.  A tap-dance routine, no matter how happily done, will not satisfy the world's hunger.  They need to hear the truths of our faith preached to them in a straight-forward fashion.  They need the Holy Mass.  They need the Sacrament of Penance.  "Joyful witness" to what?  Jesus Christ, or their dancing talents?
• "So many don't think of them (priests) as normal human beings".  That begs the question of what we consider a "normal human being" to be.  The way I've understood it is that a human being is created in the image and likeness of God and that image and likeness is manifested through man's intellect and will.  Period.  I suspect that our concept of "being human" has been dumbed down by the secular culture - and deliberately so over these past few decades.  Our de facto belief (as a superficial culture) seems to equate "human" as "clown".  Unfortunately faithful Catholics are acquiescing to this degradation in attempts to "win people over".  In reality, we bow to lies and that will only lead to ultimate futility.  Should we not be teaching our young and those with whom we come in contact the real dignity that comes with being human?

No one begrudges these priests of their hobbies.  The problem is that we now know them not because they're exemplary teachers of the faith or stellar confessors, but because they can do tap-dance routines.  In our minds we have replaced the essential with the superficial, the primary with the ancillary.

Last year I had occasion to write about this false-joy mindset that is in actuality a focus on silliness.  I and some others had spoken out against it and were lambasted by those who wanted to remain in la-la land.  Here it is, for what it's worth.

Let's pray for these two priests, that their ministries (meaning at the altar, in the pulpits and confessionals, etc) be fruitful and that they continue to draw closer to Our Lord.

Pope's Erroneous Call For End To Death Penalty AND Life Imprisonment

As most Marylanders know, the State of Maryland last year abolished capital punishment of deadly criminals (the execution of innocent babies goes unabated, however).  I wrote two pieces that both excoriated the Maryland Catholic Conference and demonstrated why they actually violated Church teaching in their effort to abolish capital punishment.

In their efforts to abolish capital punishment, both on their website and during testimonies in Annapolis, the MCC stated that Maryland would be able to protect its citizens through the use of life imprisonment without parole in lieu of the death penalty.  I've saved screen shots of two of these and will post them after the jump break so as not to take up too much space in the main screen.

However, Pope Francis today made clear his opposition not only to the death penalty, but to life imprisonment.  He said "life imprisonment is a hidden death penalty".  So he just contradicted Archbishop Lori and the Maryland Catholic Conference.  He made the latter appear to be a bastion of conservative common sense - that's quite an accomplishment!

More seriously, though, he spoke in disregard to Evangelium Vitae and the hundreds of years of Church teaching.  He seems to impute motives of "violence and revenge" to governments who employ these means.  I've no doubt that some corrupt regimes do precisely that; however, to issue a blanket denouncement of life imprisonment - and the death penalty for that matter - is simply irresponsible.

What also seems to be disregarded is that governments have a solemn duty to protect their citizens from unjust aggression - including that which arises from other citizens.  That is an overriding concern, and in fact one that must rise above the "redemption" of one criminal.  So without at least life imprisonment, just what does His Holiness think should be done with those violent criminals who simply won't be "redeemed"?  Do I hear crickets?

Ladies and gentlemen, sometimes we must disagree vociferously with our Church leaders in matters of "prudential judgment".  Clearly this is one of them.  I link now to excellent points by Vox Cantoris.

Again, the MCC writings are below this jump break.