Sunday Homily Bumped To Accomodate Money Shake-Down

This morning I didn't feel well enough to make my regular early Mass, so I went to a later Mass - the 10:45 at Mother Seton in Germantown, to be precise.  At the start of the homily, Father announced that we'd be hearing a pre-recorded message from the Archbishop.  Truth be told, I was expecting this, since this Annual Appeal thing is kicking into gear.  It was of the same syrupy genre of sales pitches that Wuerl and McCarrick have shoved down our throats for years now.  Then the priest passed out the envelopes and had people complete them right then and there.

After the ushers collected them, we could now hear the real homily, correct?  I'm talking of the actual exposition and teachings based upon the Scripture readings just heard, or some other pertinent topic from Church teaching.  Well, we heard....

NOTHING!  ZERO!  ZIP!  NADA!

After a lame one-liner about how the appeal tied into the Scriptures, Father dove right into the Creed.  Section 65 of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal states that "the homily is part of the Liturgy and is strongly recommended, for it is necessary for the nurturing of the Christian life. It should be an exposition of some aspect of the readings from Sacred Scripture or of another text from the Ordinary or from the Proper of the Mass.."  Furthermore, Section 66 tells us that "There is to be a homily on Sundays and holy days of obligation at all Masses that are celebrated with the participation of a congregation; it may not be omitted without a serious reason." (emphasis mine)  Thus the complete omission of today's homily at Mother Seton to accomodate this simpering sales pitch constitutes liturgical abuse.

Fellow DC Catholics, I'm quite certain that you too had to suffer through that recorded drivvel today.  But were your homilies also completely omitted as was the case at Seton today?  Please advise via the comment box, giving location and Mass time.  If enough homilies were likewise omitted, I must suspect that this omission - in other words, liturgical abuse - might have been ordered from "on high".  I look forward to your feedback.  Thanks.

Gay Cantor Fired From Germantown Parish

Apparently the incident happened back in November but the local church kept it quiet.  However, because WJLA reported it a few days ago, the archdiocese did announce it via Cardinal Wuerl's blog.  Read the two pieces, along with what the Washington Blade (local gay newspaper) had to say about the matter.

The man in question, Jeffrey Higgins, is 29 years old.  He was born well after Vatican II, and most likely received a Catholic education that was lackluster at best.  As you read the WJLA article, you'll notice that he is a "cradle Catholic".  He knew enough of his faith to tell his priest in the confessional about his same-sex difficulties.  He says his pastor affirmed his disordered tendencies as being loved by God the way he is.  Regrettably he's most likely rendering an accurate account of that confession, and that priest will have to answer to God for the spiritually deadly advise he gave to that young man.  That said, it seemed that Higgins still understood that there was a problem for he did not publicize his situation to the parish staff.

The parish in question is Mother Seton Church in Germantown MD, pastored by Father Lee Fangmeyer.  Progressive indignation aside, Father Fangmeyer did the only thing he could do, in light of the unrepenant attitude evinced by Higgins.  To their credit, the same can be said for Bishop Knestout and Cardinal Wuerl.  The teaching of Jesus Christ on the topic of homosexual conduct must be upheld by those in service to the Church; Higgins refused to comply so there was no choice but to fire him.  We certainly pray that Higgins repents of his perverted lifestyle before he dies, lest he consign himself to hell.

In related news, Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski reminded his employees that they could lose their jobs if they publicly support behaviors that are at odds with Church teaching, including gay #mowwidge.  This is welcome news.

Another Parochial Damage-Control Attempt??

Two weeks ago I learned of a breakfast, sponsored by Mother Seton parish to our north that is to feature a gay-sympathetic religious, Sr Anne Bryan Smollin.  I wrote to the pastor; read it here.  The very next day I received a reply from Father Fangmeyer stating that he'd "look into it".  I wonder if "look into it" is code-talk for "pitch in trash"?

In today's bulletin was the same exact announcement; that's two weeks later.  This breakfast will still occur, although there remains some time for it to be cancelled.  We can be grateful that this event is not occurring on Church property, I suppose.

Gay-Sympathetic Sister To Speak At Mother Seton Event - Please Pray And Take Action

In a comment to one of my April 6 post, an anonymous reader mentioned that Sister Anne Bryan Smollin is to be the featured speaker at a breakfast sponsored by Mother Seton Parish in Germantown MD.  He/she pointed to a number of links that demonstrate that Sister does not adhere to Church teaching on homosexual conduct.  I've no doubt that the pastor is unaware of this and perhaps the same could be said of those who are contemplating being a part of this event.  To that end, I wrote to Father Lee Fangmeyer, pastor of Mother Seton, this open letter.  Please circulate this around and encourage others to speak out (in a respectful manner) - or at least consider not attending this event.  Now the letter...

Hello, Father Fangmeyer.   I am a parishioner of St John Neumann, the parish to the southeast of your location.  In our own parish bulletin this past weekend, we saw an announcement regarding a breakfast that will be sponsored by your parish’s Sodality of Our Lady.  It is to be held Sunday May 4^th and features a speaker named Sister Anne Bryan Smollin, CSJ.   It was brought to my attention that Sister has spoken at “Catholic gay ministries” conferences; see https://www.calgm.org/calgm-national-conferences.   This is the sort of “gay ministry” that reinforces homosexual Catholics in their disordered passions as opposed to helping them live chaste lives (unlike the truly worth Courage Ministries).  You may also wish to review this http://www.natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives/101802/101802i.htm.

I am trusting that most members of the Sodality of Our Lady would be aghast at the thought of paying honorarium to someone who dissents from the Magisterium regarding homosexual conduct and lifestyle.  No doubt you are and many others would be.  To that end, I am writing this open letter to you in the hopes that this event can be stopped or at least potential attendees can be advised of this serious problem before they commit to giving Sister an undeserved audience.

Thank you for your time in reading this.  You and Mother Seton Parish are in my prayers.