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Post by Séamus on May 24, 2023 4:04:22 GMT
His Holiness has recently declared Venerable a surfer who in his early-30s....drowned surfing. Of course his reputation exceeds this- he was a medical doctor who worked with the underprivileged and had commenced studies for the priesthood. Belonging to a 'new movement' had obviously boosted his profile also.
Catholics seem to have a fascination with those who died at the threshold of their vocation. I was thinking on Tuesday about how different John Baptist de Rossi was. He was never on the universal calender but his liturgy was in the appendix of many early 20th century altar missals to 1962 and his mass could be said as his date was a feria anyway. What I liked,reading about him, was that he went through the unglamorous periods of vocation- his uncle/Bishop took him on as a priest personal assistant and he seemed destined to replace him in the episcopate until the Bishop's physical and mental breakdown turned him against his young relation. The saint's perseverance despite the change of fortune and the obsessive paranoia of his mentor perhaps reflects a bit more realistically what many of us go through in life- plodding along in unworkable situations which we make work. Projections coming to nothing. The bitterness of midlife and wondering what everything led or leads to.This saint knew deflating disappointment.
His feast's scripture lessons are unique, not from the Common. The Gospel of the Final Judgement ties in with deRossi's good works, especially his work among prisoners. The Epistle is, unusually for the older rite, from Job. Although a more joyful part of the book is used, the everything-to-nothing theme (having epilepsy, it became hard for him to even get a mandate to here confessions) works well. Most of us will go through the Job periods of light and darkness through years and decades.
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Post by hilary on May 24, 2023 10:45:12 GMT
A day of prayer for the Church in China
(From Pope Benedict's letter (2007) to the Church in China) 19. Dear Pastors and all the faithful, the date 24 May could in the future become an occasion for the Catholics of the whole world to be united in prayer with the Church which is in China. This day is dedicated to the liturgical memorial of Our Lady, Help of Christians, who is venerated with great devotion at the Marian Shrine of Sheshan in Shanghai. I would like that date to be kept by you as a day of prayer for the Church in China. I encourage you to celebrate it by renewing your communion of faith in Jesus our Lord and of faithfulness to the Pope, and by praying that the unity among you may become ever deeper and more visible. I remind you, moreover, of the commandment that Jesus gave us, to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us, as well as the invitation of the Apostle Saint Paul: "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way. This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim 2:1-4). On that same day, the Catholics of the whole world – in particular those who are of Chinese origin – will demonstrate their fraternal solidarity and solicitude for you, asking the Lord of history for the gift of perseverance in witness, in the certainty that your sufferings past and present for the Holy Name of Jesus and your intrepid loyalty to his Vicar on earth will be rewarded, even if at times everything can seem a failure. www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/letters/2007/documents/hf_ben-xvi_let_20070527_china.html
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Post by hilary on May 24, 2023 11:05:51 GMT
Catholics seem to have a fascination with those who died at the threshold of their vocation. I was thinking on Tuesday about how different John Baptist de Rossi was. He was never on the universal calender but his liturgy was in the appendix of many early 20th century altar missals to 1962 and his mass could be said as his date was a feria anyway. What I liked,reading about him, was that he went through the unglamorous periods of vocation- his uncle/Bishop took him on as a priest personal assistant and he seemed destined to replace him in the episcopate until the Bishop's physical and mental breakdown turned him against his young relation. The saint's perseverance despite the change of fortune and the obsessive paranoia of his mentor perhaps reflects a bit more realistically what many of us go through in life- plodding along in unworkable situations which we make work. Projections coming to nothing. The bitterness of midlife and wondering what everything led or leads to.This saint knew deflating disappointment. This reminded me of the passage in the Magnificat today, taken from the writings of Blessed Columba Marmion: "The Spirit of God, even when it reproaches us or inclines us to feel distress for our sins, always fills the soul with peace and filial confidence in our Heavenly Father". The article goes on to say about him "Born in Dublin in 1858, Joseph Aloysius Marmion was destined for the priesthood early on, even cheerfully accepting his parents' decision to dress him in all black. He combined a strong faith, pleasant temper, and lively Irish sense of humour, which occasionally got him into trouble in the seminary."
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Post by cato on May 27, 2023 18:48:12 GMT
Catholics seem to have a fascination with those who died at the threshold of their vocation. I was thinking on Tuesday about how different John Baptist de Rossi was. He was never on the universal calender but his liturgy was in the appendix of many early 20th century altar missals to 1962 and his mass could be said as his date was a feria anyway. What I liked,reading about him, was that he went through the unglamorous periods of vocation- his uncle/Bishop took him on as a priest personal assistant and he seemed destined to replace him in the episcopate until the Bishop's physical and mental breakdown turned him against his young relation. The saint's perseverance despite the change of fortune and the obsessive paranoia of his mentor perhaps reflects a bit more realistically what many of us go through in life- plodding along in unworkable situations which we make work. Projections coming to nothing. The bitterness of midlife and wondering what everything led or leads to.This saint knew deflating disappointment. This reminded me of the passage in the Magnificat today, taken from the writings of Blessed Columba Marmion: "The Spirit of God, even when it reproaches us or inclines us to feel distress for our sins, always fills the soul with peace and filial confidence in our Heavenly Father". The article goes on to say about him "Born in Dublin in 1858, Joseph Aloysius Marmion was destined for the priesthood early on, even cheerfully accepting his parents' decision to dress him in all black. He combined a strong faith, pleasant temper, and lively Irish sense of humour, which occasionally got him into trouble in the seminary." Dressing your child in black nowadays would invite a visit from TUSLA social workers and the removal of your child .....
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Post by Séamus on Jun 2, 2023 8:42:57 GMT
Yesterday was the feast of Pentecost. It occurred to me, listening to the reading from the Acts of the Apostles at Mass, that the Holy Spirit inspired the disciples to speak MANY tongues, rather than one tongue, on this day. Perhaps this is encouraging to Christians who are also nationalists. Looking at two very different prayer cards today, it's harder to imagine a greater chasm between the different snapshots of the church that we encounter when considering the bewildered apostles in the cenacle surrounded by the tongues of fire and the prelates who watched a very different fire engulf Joan of Arc, who was celebrated in some place or by some people last week. I wonder what it actually meant by "surely all these are Galileans"- do you actually speak a foreign language under divine inspiration with an accent? Or were they unmistakably provincial, 'laddy', they might say in Ireland, 'bogan' in Australia, even 'yobbish' (to everyone else). Going by the post-Resurrection fishing scene, St Peter hadn't left his t-shirt and shorts stage behind- bearing in mind that he probably wasn't old to by our reckoning. If Aaron made the most bizarre statement in salvation history when he claimed that the golden calf made itself, Peter must have made the most hilarious when he decided that the disciples were never drunk before 9am. Probably comforting that he so soon became the polished leader that could defend his relationship with Cornelius. St Joan's few known quotes seem to transcend her education also
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Post by Séamus on Jun 5, 2023 9:09:55 GMT
This reminded me of the passage in the Magnificat today, taken from the writings of Blessed Columba Marmion: "The Spirit of God, even when it reproaches us or inclines us to feel distress for our sins, always fills the soul with peace and filial confidence in our Heavenly Father". The article goes on to say about him "Born in Dublin in 1858, Joseph Aloysius Marmion was destined for the priesthood early on, even cheerfully accepting his parents' decision to dress him in all black. He combined a strong faith, pleasant temper, and lively Irish sense of humour, which occasionally got him into trouble in the seminary." Dressing your child in black nowadays would invite a visit from TUSLA social workers and the removal of your child ..... The feast of the Ugandan Martyrs (last Saturday, ordinary form only) makes interesting reflection this year, as UN and USA wag fingers threateningly at Uganda for tightening anti-homosexuals laws. Not sure whether many of us wish to impose life-imprisonment- some of the ancient Celtic penitentiaries were rather stern with homosexuals also, perhaps concentrating largely on monks vowed to celibacy- certainly it counterweights current western attitudes, one example being the new proposal to add '2s' to the 'lgbq,etc,etc', purportedly required by native North Americans who feel they descend spiritually from a tradition of two-spirit clan members (who were possibly quite simply misunderstood men who liked the odd female occupation and visa versa. That's why we all like peoples to civilize- we can understand people better.) Uganda is indisputably a country run by it's native citizens, whites now having a problem with her values. How much influence might Charles Lwanga and his company have today?- millions flock to the place of martyrdom there. Homosexual sex is alleged to have reached the area as a form of torture via Ottomans and then became a form of control under their own native king. How might the whole story paint a certain psychological image of non-hetero sex? "O Jesus, by your abundant grace you strengthened the blessed martyrs Charles Lwanga, Matthias Mulumba and their companions in their glorious combat against sin and gave them to us as a shining example of charity, fortitude and fidelity to Your Church. We humbly beseech You that these same virtues may increase in us, that the members of the Church, Your mystical body, may grow both in number and generosity, and that the Church may be protected against all the dangers that beset her. Blessed Martyrs of Uganda pray for us" From a prayer book originally published by Mother Aikenhead's Sisters of Charity, Temple Street, many years ago, well before they had to evacuate their own Irish hospitals.
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Post by cato on Jun 7, 2023 10:00:42 GMT
t]The feast of the Ugandan Martyrs (last Saturday, ordinary form only) makes interesting reflection this year, as UN and USA wag fingers threateningly at Uganda for tightening anti-homosexuals laws.
Not sure whether many of us wish to impose life-imprisonment- some of the ancient Celtic penitentiaries were rather stern with homosexuals also, perhaps concentrating largely on monks vowed to celibacy- certainly it counterweights current western attitudes, one example being the new proposal to add '2s' to the 'lgbq,etc,etc', purportedly required by native North Americans who feel they descend spiritually from a tradition of two-spirit clan members (who were possibly quite simply misunderstood men who liked the odd female occupation and visa versa. That's why we all like peoples to civilize- we can understand people better.) Uganda is indisputably a country run by it's native citizens, whites now having a problem with her values.
How much influence might Charles Lwanga and his company have today?- millions flock to the place of martyrdom there. Homosexual sex is alleged to have reached the area as a form of torture via Ottomans and then became a form of control under their own native king. How might the whole story paint a certain psychological image of non-hetero sex?
"O Jesus, by your abundant grace you strengthened the blessed martyrs Charles Lwanga, Matthias Mulumba and their companions in their glorious combat against sin and gave them to us as a shining example of charity, fortitude and fidelity to Your Church. We humbly beseech You that these same virtues may increase in us, that the members of the Church, Your mystical body, may grow both in number and generosity, and that the Church may be protected against all the dangers that beset her. Blessed Martyrs of Uganda pray for us" From a prayer book originally published by Mother Aikenhead's Sisters of Charity, Temple Street, many years ago, well before they had to evacuate their own Irish hospitals. [/quote]
Last Sunday I heard a sermon on the Ugandan Martyrs denouncing unnatural vice. It was quite reasonably presented. The priest may have thought it was easier to preach about than the Triune God.
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Post by Séamus on Jun 9, 2023 8:24:08 GMT
t]The feast of the Ugandan Martyrs (last Saturday, ordinary form only) makes interesting reflection this year, as UN and USA wag fingers threateningly at Uganda for tightening anti-homosexuals laws. Not sure whether many of us wish to impose life-imprisonment- some of the ancient Celtic penitentiaries were rather stern with homosexuals also, perhaps concentrating largely on monks vowed to celibacy- certainly it counterweights current western attitudes, one example being the new proposal to add '2s' to the 'lgbq,etc,etc', purportedly required by native North Americans who feel they descend spiritually from a tradition of two-spirit clan members (who were possibly quite simply misunderstood men who liked the odd female occupation and visa versa. That's why we all like peoples to civilize- we can understand people better.) Uganda is indisputably a country run by it's native citizens, whites now having a problem with her values. How much influence might Charles Lwanga and his company have today?- millions flock to the place of martyrdom there. Homosexual sex is alleged to have reached the area as a form of torture via Ottomans and then became a form of control under their own native king. How might the whole story paint a certain psychological image of non-hetero sex? "O Jesus, by your abundant grace you strengthened the blessed martyrs Charles Lwanga, Matthias Mulumba and their companions in their glorious combat against sin and gave them to us as a shining example of charity, fortitude and fidelity to Your Church. We humbly beseech You that these same virtues may increase in us, that the members of the Church, Your mystical body, may grow both in number and generosity, and that the Church may be protected against all the dangers that beset her. Blessed Martyrs of Uganda pray for us" From a prayer book originally published by Mother Aikenhead's Sisters of Charity, Temple Street, many years ago, well before they had to evacuate their own Irish hospitals. Last Sunday I heard a sermon on the Ugandan Martyrs denouncing unnatural vice. It was quite reasonably presented. The priest may have thought it was easier to preach about than the Triune God. [/quote] Good-for-him all the same. Has he been arrested yet?
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Post by cato on Jun 9, 2023 8:31:31 GMT
]Last Sunday I heard a sermon on the Ugandan Martyrs denouncing unnatural vice. It was quite reasonably presented. The priest may have thought it was easier to preach about than the Triune God. [/quote]
Good-for-him all the same. Has he been arrested yet?[/quote]
As far as I know he is still at large and unrepentant. He simply told the story of the persecution and was very fair to the Anglican Ugandans who were tortured to death too. Referred also to the love of Christ expressed through the Sacred Heart devotion. Needless to say he was offering the TLM.
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Post by Séamus on Jun 10, 2023 12:14:55 GMT
]Last Sunday I heard a sermon on the Ugandan Martyrs denouncing unnatural vice. It was quite reasonably presented. The priest may have thought it was easier to preach about than the Triune God. Good-for-him all the same. Has he been arrested yet?[/quote] As far as I know he is still at large and unrepentant. He simply told the story of the persecution and was very fair to the Anglican Ugandans who were tortured to death too. Referred also to the love of Christ expressed through the Sacred Heart devotion. Needless to say he was offering the TLM.[/quote] * * * * * * * * * * St Paul VI did give them (the Anglicans) a good mention in his canonization sermon, now the Second Reading in the Saints' office. That's about as close as we can get to public honour for a non-Roman Catholic martyr, even if some Anglican conferences around the world have added commemorations of Mother Teresa and others- oddly, Cardinal Newman, in Australia at least, before his being officially honoured by the Catholic Church. By coincidence, I'm hearing quite a few mentions lately of Pope Paul's more orthodox side- his reticence in one document in declaring even natural family planning to be more than exceptional; Bishop Athanasius Schneider in The Catholic Mass (2021) outlines the many concerns that the pontiff had about Communion on the hand, which was being greatly forced onto him by local churches of Western Europe.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Jun 12, 2023 11:06:34 GMT
By coincidence, I'm hearing quite a few mentions lately of Pope Paul's more orthodox side- his reticence in one document in declaring even natural family planning to be more than exceptional; Bishop Athanasius Schneider in The Catholic Mass (2021) outlines the many concerns that the pontiff had about Communion on the hand, which was being greatly forced onto him by local churches of Western Europe. I'm very relieved to hear that a canonized Pope had a "more orthodox side"!
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Post by Séamus on Jun 14, 2023 0:06:00 GMT
By coincidence, I'm hearing quite a few mentions lately of Pope Paul's more orthodox side- his reticence in one document in declaring even natural family planning to be more than exceptional; Bishop Athanasius Schneider in The Catholic Mass (2021) outlines the many concerns that the pontiff had about Communion on the hand, which was being greatly forced onto him by local churches of Western Europe. I'm very relieved to hear that a canonized Pope had a "more orthodox side"! There always has to be distinction made between the Pope and the saint; in some cases between the politician,or monarch, and the saint, theoretically it's never a canonization of every policy, even if in reality they try to make it a canonization OF policy.
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Post by cato on Jun 17, 2023 8:28:02 GMT
[There always has to be distinctionb made between the Pope and the saint; in some cases between the politician,or monarch, and the saint, theoretically it's never a canonization of every policy, even if in reality they try to make it a canonization OF policy.[/quote]
A good point Seamus. St Pius V ordered a major crackdown on moral depravity and ran Rome like a Trappist monastery. He ordered the burning alive of people including clergy convicted of sodomy. He wasn't a great believer in walking in welcoming discernment with the other....
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Post by Séamus on Jun 28, 2023 12:06:07 GMT
[There always has to be distinctionb made between the Pope and the saint; in some cases between the politician,or monarch, and the saint, theoretically it's never a canonization of every policy, even if in reality they try to make it a canonization OF policy. A good point Seamus. St Pius V ordered a major crackdown on moral depravity and ran Rome like a Trappist monastery. He ordered the burning alive of people including clergy convicted of sodomy. He wasn't a great believer in walking in welcoming discernment with the other....[/quote] *********************************************** There can probably be tendencies to overreact when one begins to see the world as a cesspool,examples of this can be seen in the many good people who welcomed the Mussolini and Franco regimes. For his part, Pius allegedly refused to have his arm showing on his deathbed- contrast with some saints who wanted to die naked (by their terminology at least) as a sign of poverty Other cases in point( sort of)looking more at the inspired-pope/politically-motivated-pope dichotomy, rather than canonized persons so much: " One of William(of Orange)'s key allies was Pope Alexander VIII (r 1689-1692) whose enemy,the Catholic James II,had the support of France's Louis XIV who in turn was in conflict with the Pope and Catholic Spain.... James also had the support of a small number of English and Scottish protestants who believed in the monarchy above religion and felt that James had been illegally dethroned. " The Priest Hunters Colin C Murphy 2013 "Recently discovered documents have revealed that prior to William's Boyne victory, Pope Innocent XI secretly paid him the equivalent of about four million euro in today's terms to help William's war effort. Researchers Rita Mondali and Francesco Sorti uncovered documents from a papal envoy discussing large sums that William apparently owed Innocent,and also papers from Innocent's family records that reveal that the Holy See sent 150,000 scudi to William via a secret intermediary.... Innocent XI had good reason to support William,as his enemy Louis XIV had been restricting papal authority in France for almost a decade" (ibid) Although the writer doesn't have an historian background it had been said before. Might have been worth letting France keep it's half dozen extra prefaces and putting it's shhhh into Pacem? "Just two short years after the end of the war the then Pope, Innocent XII decided it would now serve the Vatican's interests to switch allegiance from William and Mary to Louis XIV,and when the Pope decided to recognise James II and subsequently his son James Francis Edward as legitimate heirs to the English throne, William's and Mary's attitude to all Catholics hardened" (ibid) Makes current papal pussyfooting around EU, UN and American Democrats seem as innocent as the name they took.
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Post by Séamus on Aug 10, 2023 4:28:19 GMT
By coincidence, I'm hearing quite a few mentions lately of Pope Paul's more orthodox side- his reticence in one document in declaring even natural family planning to be more than exceptional; Bishop Athanasius Schneider in The Catholic Mass (2021) outlines the many concerns that the pontiff had about Communion on the hand, which was being greatly forced onto him by local churches of Western Europe. I'm very relieved to hear that a canonized Pope had a "more orthodox side"! St Lawrence today-a feast that somehow keeps it's liturgical superiority through the ages, even the ordinary form keeping him at the same rank as the apostles; in the 1962 missal his vigil was kept intact after most of the apostles and evangelists list theirs- other martyrs seem to have had vigils further back in history: an English poet named a work after St Agnes';an Irish visual artist did a work inspired by this. Speculating about the mindset of Pope Paul's Church and the social justice mentality emerging, no doubt the saint's status as a permanent Deacon and his famous option for the poor had more, or as much, to do with his status in the 1970s reform than his previous claim to importance as patron of Rome. I only read yesterday, preparing for a relic of the Claretian martyrs visiting our chapel on Saturday, that Paul VI imitated a moratorium on causes of anyone killed during the Spanish Civil War; this was quickly overturned by John Paul II- I never read this in a Catholic publication, but the seminary staff and students shot in Barbastro have a good energy in on-demand Encyclopaedia Britannica. All a further indication of the different policy that can often be stamped by different regimes, even in a institution both mystical and, to some degree, changeless.
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