Report: Medjugorje Commission report due the end of this month...

UPDATE: Yesterday, Edward Pentin reported, in the National Catholic Register, that Fr. Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, stated it is not imminent and that the commission's report must spend some time at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

From Catholic Culture:

A Vatican commission studying the alleged apparitions at Medjugorje will release its findings by the end of this year, a French magazine has reported.

La Vie says that the Vatican commission, established by Pope Benedict XVI and chaired by Cardinal Camillo Ruini, will present its report to the Pontiff by the end of December. The French magazine did not cite any authority for its story, but in February an Italian publication made the same report. That earlier report quoted Cardinal Vinko Puljic of Sarajevo as saying that “we need to finish this year.”

Read the rest on Medjugorje Commission at Catholic Culture along with links.

When it says the report will be presented to the Pontiff, that doesn't necessarily mean the Holy Father will issue a statement this year.  However, if the report does go to the Holy Father by years end, it will not be long before he speaks.  The question is, would it be more like January or say, in March, or later? The date chosen by the Holy Father always has significance.  I have long suspected, as I'm sure many of you have, that it will come on a Marian feast day of some kind, be that the Mother of God or the Annunciation, or other.  I always thought it would be great to have it on the day that the Church celebrates the Blessed Virgin Mary's birthday: September 8th (but I would not want to wait that long if the Pope would reveal his thoughts publicly, sooner).  Many in the Medjugorje movement have been celebrating it on August 5th:

September 8 can be viewed as Our Lady’s ‘official’ birthday celebrated by the Church. But for followers of Our Lady’s messages from Medjugorje there is another date in the calendar put aside for celebrating the Gospa’s birthday – August 5, best considered as Our Lady’s ‘private’ birthday. This was revealed to the visionaries very early on in the history of the Medjugorje apparitions.

• Mention of this date was also made by Fr René Laurentin and published the same year in his book, Is the Virgin Mary Appearing at Medjugorje? He wrote:  

At the end of May 1984, Jelena and Mirjana, with whom I spoke on June 10, had received from the Virgin a call to celebrate August 5 as the 2,000 birthday of her birth. The feast was to be celebrated by two days of fasting and a day of celebration... The three days of fast (they added one) ended in a day of intense prayer in the Church and on the hill (of apparitions). There were many conversions and confessions. One of the priests said to me: “I will remember this day more than my 20 previous years as a confessor.” According to the young people (the visionaries), Mary had said who had heard confessions that day would have great joy... 

Some may not see the significance of such a seemingly innocent thing - that the Blessed Virgin Mary would call for her birthday to be celebrated on a day other than the one celebrated liturgically by the whole Church.  This sets up a conflict for theologians discerning the alleged apparition.  The diocese of Mostar-Duvno, when discussing Tomislav Vlasic in the context of Medjugorje said this:

On 22 August 1984, Fr. Vlašić wrote to Bishop Žanić informing him that the Madonna’s 2000th birthday was to be held that same year on 5 August! No important ecclesiastic person took this news seriously and neither did Bishop Žanić nor the Holy See. However, during 1984, on 4 and 5 August, a large group of people gathered in Medjugorje to “celebrate” the Madonna’s “birthday”.

The bottom line is that the bishop could not authorize a change in dates for something that is on the universal liturgical calendar.  It's hard to fathom that Mary would ask for such a thing.  The Church looks for harmony in Church teaching and liturgical matters out of messages from alleged apparitions. It is clearly lacking in this case. When the people follow, against the Church, in observing a day not recognized by the Church, that is all the more significant.

Regardless of what side of the issue one is on, we should all desire that truth prevail.  There is nothing wrong with hoping for a positive outcome. I personally do not feel this is likely using basic reason.  No apparition has been approved while ongoing, but many have been condemned as not supernatural while ongoing.

The Church does not approve things happening now because tomorrow something could happen that would prove the thing false and ruin her credibility on such things. The fact that a decision is coming, says something with regards to timing and the fact that the alleged apparitions continue.

There is always the chance that the Holy Father could maintain the status quo, but offer further clarification and guidelines on things like pilgrimages.  However, I am doubtful of this only because it seems unlikely to go through several years of commission work just to maintain status quo. Moreover, Pope Benedict XVI is a co-worker of truth, and a man who has proven time and again, he will not avoid doing right by truth even in the face of potential adverse consequences.  We saw this with the Maciel case.

The case of Medjugorje could have a greater impact than that of Maciel, if Pope Benedict says nothing supernatural is happening, only by the sheer volume of supporters.  I think that is why he is so careful in taking his time since the commission began and why we need to patient a little while longer.  For example, if there is no support for authenticity after a long look at details (not just good fruits, but bad fruits, and how specific events stack up against sound theology), the Pope not only needs to speak the truth, but he needs to do so in a way that will keep as many followers as possible within the fold.  For this reason, we must all be patient and pray.  I trust the Holy Father on this.

I know, personally, many followers of Medjugorje and most of them know my position which I share with the local bishop of Mostar.  I will say this much about those people: They are some of the most faithful Catholics I have met in many respects.  Most of them go to daily Mass, or when they can; they pray the Rosary daily; they spend time in Adoration (and are responsible to some extent for many Adoration chapels around the US); they value Confession and use it frequently; and, they love the Church, her teachings, and the Holy Father.  I believe most will accept the judgment of Pope Benedict XVI.  But, I am aware of some who have expressed online that their belief in the "Gospa of Medjugorje" comes before anything the Pope has to say, if it is not positive.  Sadly, if even 1% reject a possible negative decision, or a fraction of 1%, that is a big number given the millions with an attachment or following to Medjugorje.

Attachment is a key word here.  My father gave me some cogent advice as a child when he was duped by private revelations that would later prove false.  Don't become attached to any such phenomena until the Church gives a definitive judgment. It's okay to be hopeful, but very cautious. Becoming attached sets us up to reject the judgment of the Church and that is why the Angel of Darkness will tolerate people engaging in pious practices, vocations and the like.  In the end, Satan hopes people reject the Church's judgment, ultimately putting them in a position to interiorly join him in saying, "non serviam." Discernment isn't just about good fruits, it's about the full package, most especially those connected to actual events.  One can find all over the web contrasting views of events, some by well known theologians.  In the end, the Holy Father is the final arbiter and the theologian who matters most.

So, pray.  Pray that we all accept the judgment of the Holy Father.  Despite my disbelief about authenticity, I am willing to open myself to any and all new information and thoughts Pope Benedict XVI may offer on Medjugorje.

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Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

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Pope joins Twitter under @Pontifex handle

https://twitter.com/pontifex

This may be one more reason to get a free Twitter account, even if it is only to follow key Catholic sources... like the Pope!  Yes. His Holiness has officially joined Twitter under the handle, @Pontifex. He hasn't tweeted yet, as it indicates, but that is forthcoming on December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

It was just released a little under 24 hours ago and he already has over 350,000 followers and climbing fast.

With Twitter, you can do a search by keyword or even by name.  When looking at a search of tweets made with @Pontifex by anyone, you can see that the Holy Father has his share of detractors (warning: some of it is vile).  I don't see him getting worked up over it.  If anything, by these attacks he knows that the Holy Spirit has come to rest on him! (1 Peter 4:14)

Jimmy Akin has a post explaining what Pontifex means and why the Holy Father may have chosen it.  I  myself saw it as a way to allow the account to continue through multiple popes rather than making people re-follow another pope by his personal name.  It seems Jimmy is of similar mind.

About that Twitter account you haven't made but are thinking about.  It's easy.  Just go to Twitter.com and follow the prompts.  Here is a set of instructions and tips from Twitter that you might find helpful.  You don't have to tweet or re-tweet (share) anything.  You can simply follow other accounts so their tweets show up in your stream.  You can even do this privately.  There is an area where you can see what anyone says about you through your Twitter handle.  You can reply, but it's often better to just ignore them.

You can easily block someone who is not friendly, or block followers who are following just to get you, and your followers to follow them.  Got that?  People fish for gullible types on Twitter who will follow them and click their links, some of which are suspicious.  Just don't click them.   I tend to go through my follower list and if I see inappropriate content in their feed, or if it looks like they are just trying to make sales and clicks, I block them.  One way to find other accounts to follow is to look at who others are following.

I like both Facebook and Twitter for different reasons, but I do like them both.

Twitter is where you catch news before it's news along with things that never make the news.  It's where you see what is happening now at a glance.  If it's really big news you will see it being tweeted and re-tweeted so that becomes a sort of intensity barometer.  I will check my Twitter feed a few times per day and if anything big is happening, it will show up there before it hits most networks.  If you follow a lot of Catholic sources, like I do, you will find great news and articles easily just by looking at what is being tweeted and re-tweeted among those you are following.  I follow mostly faithful sources, but I also follow some that aren't so faithful, if only to keep tabs on what they are pedaling. Twitter restricts characters to 140.  It allows for links, which are shortened.

Facebook allows for dialogue in a way that Twitter doesn't, but I find it less reliable in terms of finding out what is happening now.  You can reply to someone in Twitter, but it is very cumbersome to dialogue that way, with the character limit.  Things can get misunderstood.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

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Assumption Grotto Christmas Mass Schedule

I have already had some inquiries about which Masses will be in the extraordinary form (1962 Misal). The usus antiquior, as it is often referred to, will be celebrated at the orchestral Masses noted below.  There are more questions about the full Mass and Confession schedule, and whether the orchestral Masses will be Solemn High Masses.  As soon as I have it, I will provide an update.  Watch the Assumption Grotto homepage too.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Video: Interview with Archbishop Charles Brown, Nuncio to Ireland

I have not had as much time for browsing Catholic blogs and sites so I have probably missed a number of things. I'm even behind on some of my email, so my apologies if I've neglected anyone.

Thanks to Andrew Rabel, my attention was drawn to this nearly 30 minute interview of Archbishop Charles Brown, the new Nuncio to Ireland. Archbishop Brown is American and has a rather interesting path to his current position. It included time working for then Cardinal Ratzginer at the CDF.

Fr. Rosica of Salt & Light TV in Canada did this interview, which you can see below.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

First Sunday of Advent

From today's Office of Readings is something from Saint Cyril of Jerusalem

Second reading From a catechetical instruction by Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, bishop On the twofold coming of Christ

We do not preach only one coming of Christ, but a second as well, much more glorious than the first. The first coming was marked by patience; the second will bring the crown of a divine kingdom.

In general, whatever relates to our Lord Jesus Christ has two aspects. There is a birth from God before the ages, and a birth from a virgin at the fullness of time. There is a hidden coming, like that of rain on fleece, and a coming before all eyes, still in the future. At the first coming he was wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger. At his second coming he will be clothed in light as in a garment. In the first coming he endured the cross, despising the shame; in the second coming he will be in glory, escorted by an army of angels. We look then beyond the first coming and await the second. At the first coming we said: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. At the second we shall say it again; we shall go out with the angels to meet the Lord and cry out in adoration: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

The Savior will not come to be judged again, but to judge those by whom he was judged. At his own judgment he was silent; then he will address those who committed the outrages against him when they crucified him and will remind them: You did these things, and I was silent.

His first coming was to fulfill his plan of love, to teach men by gentle persuasion. This time, whether men like it or not, they will be subjects of his kingdom by necessity. The prophet Malachi speaks of the two comings. And the Lord whom you seek will come suddenly to his temple: that is one coming.

Again he says of another coming: Look, the Lord almighty will come, and who will endure the day of his entry, or who will stand in his sight? Because he comes like a refiner’s fire, a fuller’s herb, and he will sit refining and cleansing.

These two comings are also referred to by Paul in writing to Titus: The grace of God the Savior has appeared to all men, instructing us to put aside impiety and worldly desires and live temperately, uprightly, and religiously in this present age, waiting for the joyful hope, the appearance of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Notice how he speaks of a first coming for which he gives thanks, and a second, the one we still await.

That is why the faith we profess has been handed on to you in these words: He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

Our Lord Jesus Christ will therefore come from heaven. He will come at the end of the world, in glory, at the last day. For there will be an end to this world, and the created world will be made new.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Pope Benedict on, "Blessed are those who mourn..."

If you are feeling down about evil in the world, then you are in mourning, says Pope Benedict. In his first book, Jesus of Nazareth, he explains how you should feel comforted.

I'm behind on many things.  It may come as a surprise that, despite my best intentions, I have never read Pope Benedict's first two books on Jesus of Nazareth.  Newly released now is the third book, Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives.

I have never been a big reader, but I find myself lamenting what I am losing by not reading. So, I'm reading more, especially using a Kindle which makes it easy to take many books with me everywhere I go.

The internet age made it easier for us to have access to current events faster than we could in the past.  When focus on current events is not moderated and goes to excess, it can leave us feeling depressed, down, and overwhelmed.  We are then left without tools to deal with the stress of some of those current events. One of the things sacrificed, is wholesome reading of sound classics like, The Confessions: Saint Augustine of Hippo (Ignatius Critical Editions) or, The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis.  I'm sure I'm not the only one to have neglected reading the Jesus of Nazareth series by Pope Benedict. I can give you a litany of excuses, but they remain a litany of excuses. One could read for just 15 minutes per day and make headway.

I declared war on my own pre-occupation with current events.  I started reading the first book. With that, I want to share some quotes with you, to show how we can learn to cope with current problems by reading, and reflecting on sound writing, rooted in Scripture.  Given the way immorality and greed are advancing, this section of the Pope's first book on Jesus of Nazareth gave me great comfort and I hope it will also put you at ease.

Pope Benedict, in Chapter 4 of his first book, Jesus of Nazareth, when discussing the Beatitudes - specifically, "Blessed are those who mourn...," opened my eyes to something.  Let's start here (emphasis mine in bold):

Let us go back to the second Beatitude: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Mt 5:4). Is it good to mourn and to declare mourning blessed? There are two kinds of mourning. The first is the kind that has lost hope, that has become mistrustful of love and of truth, and that therefore eats away and destroys man from within. But there is also the mourning occasioned by the shattering encounter with truth, which leads man to undergo conversion and to resist evil. This mourning heals, because it teaches man to hope and to love again. Judas is an example of the first kind of mourning: Struck with horror at his own fall, he no longer dares to hope and hangs himself in despair. Peter is an example of the second kind: Struck by the Lord’s gaze, he bursts into healing tears that plow up the soil of his soul. He begins anew and is himself renewed. (Ratzinger, Joseph (2007-05-15). Jesus of Nazareth (p. 86). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition. )

He doesn't stop there.  The Holy Father wants to make sure we get it, so he digs back into the Old Testament:

Ezekiel 9:4 offers us a striking testimony to how this positive kind of mourning can counteract the dominion of evil. Six men are charged with executing divine punishment on Jerusalem—on the land that is filled with bloodshed, on the city that is full of wickedness (cf. Ezek 9:9). Before they do, however, a man clothed in linen must trace the Hebrew letter tau (like the sign of the Cross) on the foreheads of all those “who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in the city” (Ezek 9:4). Those who bear this mark are exempted from the punishment. They are people who do not run with the pack, who refuse to collude with the injustice that has become endemic, but who suffer under it instead. Even though it is not in their power to change the overall situation, they still counter the dominion of evil through the passive resistance of their suffering—through the mourning that sets bounds to the power of evil (Ratzinger, Joseph (2007-05-15). Jesus of Nazareth (pp. 86-87). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.)

If you suffer today because of evil in the world, then you are in mourning.  We Christians are in many battles these days.  In some countries, it's not just a battle with immorality, but a battle that could end in the loss of life and other forms of physical suffering on top of the emotional and spiritual forms.  Here in America, we find ourselves losing liberty. This threat is rooted in the dominion of evil which wants us to go along with immorality.

You can't watch prime-time television without seeing everyone sleep with everyone else (not their spouse) and the mechanisms are in place to encourage ill-catechized Catholics to accept it all.  Then comes the abortion push (because everyone is sleeping with everyone else). Abortion is readily dismissed by many who profess to believe in God, including Catholics.   But, if you dwell in these terrible things you risk falling into hopelessness and despair. People who have faith are not disquieted by those who have no faith; they pray for them, secure in God's peace.  St. Teresa of Avila, who suffered much said, "Let nothing disturb you." This doesn't mean we should be passive and not engage others in the public square, for example.  It means if we find ourselves falling into hopelessness, it's time to pause and pray.


Pope Benedict continues to drill his point home...

Tradition has yielded another image of mourning that brings salvation: Mary standing under the Cross with her sister, the wife of Clopas, with Mary Magdalene, and with John (Jn 19:25ff.). Once again, as in the vision of Ezekiel, we encounter here the small band of people who remain true in a world full of cruelty and cynicism or else with fearful conformity. They cannot avert the disaster, but by “suffering with” the one condemned (by their com-passion in the etymological sense) they place themselves on his side, and by their “loving with” they are on the side of God, who is love. This “com-passion” reminds us of the magnificent saying in Saint Bernard of Clairvaux’s commentary on the Song of Songs (sermon 26, no. 5): “Impassibilis est Deus, sed non incompassibilis”—God cannot suffer, but he can “suffer with.” At the foot of Jesus’ Cross we understand better than anywhere else what it means to say “blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Those who do not harden their hearts to the pain and need of others, who do not give evil entry to their souls, but suffer under its power and so acknowledge the truth of God—they are the ones who open the windows of the world to let the light in. It is to those who mourn in this sense that great consolation is promised. The second Beatitude is thus intimately connected with the eighth: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:10). (Ratzinger, Joseph (2007-05-15). Jesus of Nazareth (p. 87). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.)

Pope Benedict wraps up his message quite neatly in the next paragraph:

The mourning of which the Lord speaks is nonconformity with evil; it is a way of resisting models of behavior that the individual is pressured to accept because “everyone does it.” The world cannot tolerate this kind of resistance; it demands conformity. It considers this mourning to be an accusation directed against the numbing of consciences. And so it is. That is why those who mourn suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness. Those who mourn are promised comfort; those who are persecuted are promised the Kingdom of God—the same promise that is made to the poor in spirit. The two promises are closely related. The Kingdom of God—standing under the protection of God’s power, secure in his love—that is true comfort. (Ratzinger, Joseph (2007-05-15). Jesus of Nazareth (pp. 87-88). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition. )

Wow! Just wow!  The Holy Father really knows how to package something.

If you have never read the Jesus of Nazareth series, I encourage you to start.  At times, some of it may be difficult to follow. Read through those parts slowly. Or, set it down and come back to it the next day. And, if you still don't get it, move forward.  These kinds of books are not meant to be read once. Like with Scripture, what God doesn't bless you to grasp today, He may grant you that understanding the next day or next year.

I like to highlight and send select, short quotes up to Twitter and Facebook when reading from my Kindle Fire.  If you are following there, you might find these in my feeds, but it is often later at night that I read.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

December 9 at Grotto: Advent Day of Recollection

Despite the fact that the secular world is trying to force us into Christmas, we have not yet entered Advent. Advent is a period of waiting and anticipating. It is a "mini-Lent" so to speak. It is a time to prepare ourselves for the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

If you are local, take a few hours out of a Sunday afternoon in December and attend this Advent Day of Recollection.  See the full PDF flyer here.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Photos from October 28 Mass of Thanksgiving of Fr. Robert Slaton

On September 29th, when the Church celebrates the feast of St. Michael, St. Gabriel and St. Raphael, Fr. Robert Slaton was ordained for the Archdiocese of Detroit (see slides and story of ordination at the Michigan Catholic and the pre-ordination story with more background here).  Nota bene: There were three ordinations on May 26th, as well.

On October 28th, Fr. Slaton celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving at Assumption Grotto, using the 1962 Missal.  Fr. Slaton was baptized at Assumption Grotto.

I've been very behind on photo processing, so without further delay, here are those pictures.
Fr. Aidan Logan, O.C.s.o., a visiting Cistercian, served as the assistant priest.

The Asperges

The Confiteor

Fr. John Bustamante delivers the sermon

Fr. Slaton and Fr. Logan during the sermon

The Elevation of the Consecrated Host

Fr. Slaton gives post-Mass thanksgiving at the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary

See the full gallery of photos for Fr. Robert Slaton's Mass of Thanksgiving at Assumption Grotto.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Benedictines of Mary release music CD: Advent at Ephesus

I just ordered two copies of this CD, one for myself and one for my pastor.  I also sent a digital download of the album to someone. Order now before Advent starts and you can actually listen to... Advent music!

Starting at the homepage, there is much to click through on the site of the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles about this CD.  They are trying to get as many sales for this week as possible, so order now.  You can do so through their website, or through Amazon, and you can order it via snail mail.  Check the various price options.

On the page for the CD itself, they explain:

We never cease to marvel at the wonderful, unexpected blessings which Divine Providence prepares for our community. The story of this Advent recording is another striking example. Truly our Divine Spouse orders all things “mightily and sweetly,” as we chant just days before Christmas in one of the beautiful “O” Antiphons of the Church’s Advent liturgy.  [continue reading at Benedictines of Mary...]

If you want to help get the word out at your parish, print out this promotional flyer.

Here is video with a taste of the music...

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Awesome Photos from Solemn High Mass on Veteran's Day

From the blog of, "A Priest's Life," come these photos of a beautiful Solemn High Mass on Veteran's Day (my comments bracketed in red).

A Solemn High Mass in the extraordinary form of the Roman rite was celebrated at Saint Benedict Church in Chesapeake, Virginia, on November 12 for all of our veterans on the occasion of Veterans' Day. 

The Reverend Kevin M. Cusick, LCDR, CHC, USN (R) served as celebrant, the Reverend Neal Nichols, FSSP, as deacon and seminarian Philip Gerard Johnson, LTJG, USN (Ret.) as subdeacon. [And, just instituted as Lector in the Diocese of Raleigh - Congrats, Philip!!!]

Go read the rest of the post and see more great pictures. 

Philip also blogged on the event and explains what is happening in some of the photos.  

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Commentary on the new office at CDW for music, art, and architecture

Michelangelo's masterpiece in the Vatican inspires us to contemplate the mysteries of our faith

It has been my belief for some years now, that in many quarters of the church, the mystery being celebrated has been hidden behind "noise" - both audible and visual.  What has been lost is the contemplative dimension of worship, which is hindered by such noise.  God cannot be heard in the soul above this noise.  We should be able to step out of our noisy world into a place that stills the restless soul enough to hear God.

Mass is suppose to lift us in ways the secular world cannot.  Music, art, and architecture should drive us to ponder the mysteries of our faith.  What we experience when we step into a church should not be self-seeking, but should lead us to seek the Face of God.  In this way, we say to Him: This is your hour and I a giving myself to You, unconditionally. When we let go of the world, it becomes easier to hear the voice of God above all others.

The Holy See has come to the same conclusion, probably long before me, but now it is doing something about it.  Deo gratias!



From Vatican Insider...

The Vatican Secretariat of State has approved the reorganization of the Congregation for Divine Worship. A new office for liturgical music,art and architecture has been established

ANDREA TORNIELLI  

VATICAN CITY

Congregation of Divine Worship undergoes reform

The Secretariat of State agreed on the Congregation's restructuring last 3 September with Benedict XVI's approval: the reorganization of the Congregation of Divine Worship involved the creation of new offices that will  become operational as of next year. The main change is the establishment of an office, specifically dedicated to liturgical art and music (which Vatican Insider predicted in a previous article), which will provide guidelines to ensure that hymns sung during mass and the structure of new churches are adequate and correspond to the mystery being celebrated.

Continue reading at Vatican Insider... 


The Mass is not about what we get, but about what we give to God.  When we do this right, we do get something - graces and a closer relationship with Christ; when we do this wrong, we get self-entertainment and a distancing from Christ. This, in my opinion, has led to people believing they don't need Mass because their focus is not on giving, but on getting. If the only time someone goes to Mass is when they feel like there is something for them to get, Mass becomes self-serving.  What they don't understand is that worship should be unconditional and God-centered. We give glory to God with no strings attached.   Music, art and architecture all contribute to our right, or wrong, understanding about worship.

There is also the problem of sterile parish environments.  You walk into a parish and find it devoid of anything remotely Catholic.  They are sterile in that they do not lend themselves to meditation.  Is it any wonder why so many people talk in church, so much so, that the decibels rival those found at an indoor mall on a Saturday afternoon? These environments don't distract us from the secular and lift us into the spiritual. Some parishes are so sterile the soul reads them like a business environment.  The only thing missing are the cubicles.

I've witnessed a number of parishes undergoing transformations, so some pastors get it.   A few years ago, my geographical parish lost it's unrecognizable green, blob-like representation of the Blessed Virgin Mary that had been there for about 35 years.  Gone, around the same time, was the olive-green, Borg spaceship-style tabernacle. The current pastor rescued truly beautiful replacements from inner city parishes that had closed. I think we will see more of this, going forward.

As the 70's ushered in "folk Masses" the great parish choirs were lost.  My childhood parish had one of the finest choirs in town. Like in most parishes, it no longer exists.  Dozens of volunteers who participated in this great art form were left out in the cold as music directors, with no ability to direct them, took over and left us a few vocalists and a piano or guitar.  Chant, which was to be retained, was rendered to the monasteries. Even in many of them, it was set aside.  In the meanwhile, the secular world has discovered chant and has made it popular... except in most Catholic parishes.  Go figure.

Truth be told,  I do enjoy some good acoustic guitar music with nice vocals;  I just prefer them outside of Mass. I've heard some very talented players and gifted singers at Masses through the years.  I think our many talented musicians who play these instruments could give us wholesome music to which we can listen outside of Mass, with secular and spiritual lyrics.  It would fill a void left for people like me who have difficulty listening to music with lyrics that lift vice and shun virtue.

I look forward to what we will learn in the years to come through this new office at the Congregation for Divine Worship.

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Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Cardinal Dolan: Vatican II called for it's renewal, then we got near disappearance of Sacrament of Penance

I am grateful that I was able to listen to much of the USCCB Fall General Assembly today via EWTN.mobi. The USCCB site also has options, and you can get archived video there.

I just want to pass along to you how heart-warming it was to hear Cardinal Dolan's humble admission that it is time to start taking Sacramental Confession more seriously. He also noted that we should bring back meatless Fridays (as someone noted on Twitter, it's time to buy stock in Arthur Treachers!)

I'm going to provide some excerpts, but I encourage you not only to read the whole thing for context (which shouldn't take more than 10 minutes), but to consider watching him deliver the opening address. Click here for full text and here for video-on-demand (you want the November 2012, Monday Morning Session and it might be about 20 minutes in, just fast-forward and keep checking).  Father Z has audio in his post: USCCB meeting: Card. Dolan hits it out of the park!

Here are some of my favorite parts of the Presidential Address.  I'll offer some thoughts another time.  This is rich content and he is on the right track. I think we will have many opportunities to explore the subject deeper.

I would suggest this morning that this reservoir of our lives and ministry, when it comes especially to the New Evangelization, must first be filled with the spirit of interior conversion born of our own renewal. That's the way we become channels of a truly effective transformation of the world, through our own witness of a penitential heart, and our own full embrace of the Sacrament of Penance.

[...]

"To believers also the Church must ever preach faith and penance," declared the council fathers in the very first of the documents to appear, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. (SC, n. 9) ​To be sure, the sacraments of initiation - - Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist - - charge, challenge, and equip the agents of evangelization. Without those sacraments, we remain isolated, unredeemed, timid and unfed. ​ 

But, the Sacrament of Reconciliation evangelizes the evangelizers, as it brings us sacramentally into contact with Jesus, who calls us to conversion of heart, and allows us to answer his invitation to repentance -- a repentance from within that can then transform the world without. ​ 

What an irony that despite the call of the Second Vatican Council for a renewal of the Sacrament of Penance, what we got instead was its near disappearance. ​We became very good in the years following the Council in calling for the reform of structures, systems, institutions, and people other than ourselves.That, too, is important; it can transform our society and world. But did we fail along the way to realize that in no way can the New Evangelization be reduced to a program, a process, or a call to structural reform; that it is first and foremost a deeply personal conversion within? "The Kingdom of God is within," as Jesus taught.

[...]

The premier answer to the question "What's wrong with the world?" "what's wrong with the church?" is not politics, the economy, secularism, sectarianism, globalization or global warming . . .none of these, as significant as they are. As Chesterton wrote, "The answer to the question 'What's wrong with the world?' is just two words:'I am,'"

​I am! Admitting that leads to conversion of heart and repentance, the marrow of the Gospel-invitation. I remember the insightful words of a holy priest well known to many of us from his long apostolate to priests and seminarians in Rome, Monsignor Charles Elmer, wondering aloud from time to time if, following the close of the Council, we had sadly become a Church that forgot how to kneel.If we want the New Evangelization to work, it starts on our knees.

[...]

The work of our Conference during the coming year includes reflections on re-embracing Friday as a particular day of penance, including the possible re-institution of abstinence on all Fridays of the year, not just during Lent. Our pastoral plan offers numerous resources for catechesis on the Sacrament of Penance, and the manifold graces that come to us from the frequent use of confession. Next June we will gather in a special assembly as brother bishops to pray and reflect on the mission entrusted to us by the Church, including our witness to personal conversion in Jesus Christ, and so to the New Evangelization.  

 We work at giving our people good examples of humble, repentant pastors, aware of our own personal and corporate sins, constantly responding to the call of Jesus to interior conversion. Remember the Curé of Ars? When a concerned group of his worried supporters came to him with a stinging protest letter from a number of parishioners, demanding the bishop to remove John Vianney as their curé, claiming he was a sinner, ignorant, and awkward, St. John Vianney took the letter, read it carefully ... and signed the petition!

[...]

And, I have suggested today, that as we "come and go" in response to the invitation of Jesus, we begin with the Sacrament of Penance.This is the sacrament of the New Evangelization, for as Pope Benedict reminds us, "We cannot speak about the new evangelization without a sincere desire to conversion." (Homily for the Opening of the XIII Ordinary General Synod of Bishops).

With this as my presidential address, I know I risk the criticism. I can hear it now: "With all the controversies and urgent matters for the Church, Dolan spoke of conversion of heart through the Sacrament of Penance. Can you believe it?"

To which I reply, "You better believe it!"

First things first!

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Tweeting Bishops; USCCB Fall General Assembly

The bishops are in Baltimore for the 2012 Fall General Assembly. Something unusual happened this year. The USCCB hosted a meeting between bishops and Catholic bloggers. Yesterday, during the meeting, there was live tweeting under the hashtag #bpsblog.  Follow that hashtag and you will find info and links.  I'll touch on this more later when there are blogposts.

Some were asking on Twitter if there was a list of bishops for subscribing.  It just so happens that I made several Catholic lists on Twitter for myself over a year ago, then learned others could subscribe to them.  Any time I found a bishop using Twitter, I added him to the list.  It includes US bishops and bishops from abroad, mostly those who put out English language tweets.


I really think the USCCB Twitter account should make a list of bishops on Twitter and people can subscribe through them.  As more bishops join, the list can be updated and anyone following would see, in a single click, what the bishops are tweeting on a given day.  It is often one of the first things I check each morning.  While the parish should be the first place people get their information, this doesn't happen at all parishes. It's improving, but it will take time.   Bishops using social media is one more way for people to get info.  It could be that parishioners on social media encourage their pastors to pass things along.

Just click a list in the link below, then hit Subscribe (I think it's in the left sidebar).  Here again, I think the USCCB should maintain some of these lists.  Primarily, they should own the list of Tweeting US bishops, list of US Dioceses on Twitter, and state bishop's conferences using the tool.

• https://twitter.com/TeDeumBlog/lists

If anyone knows of other bishops, not in my list, please drop a link to their feed or drop their name into my combox.

Someone at the meeting please let Archbishop Vigneron know I'd love to add him to the list and that my offer to serve as a voluntary consultant here in the AoD on social media is open.

Tips to Bishops: On the diocesan site, on the home page, and on the bishop's page, make sure social media follow buttons are visible.  Subscribe to a list and see what other bishops are tweeting to get ideas.  Bishops can tweet in mere minutes per day and people following from around the world will amplify those things.  Some tweet Scripture or quotes from saints.  Others use it to pass along diocesan communications.  The easiest thing to do is to retweet other bishops, the Holy Father, Vatican communications, etc. 

There will probably be some people live tweeting from the open sessions, in addition to some of the bishops.  I won't be able to participate, because I will be at work, though I may look in at lunch time.




WATCH/LISTEN TO THE USCCB FALL MEETING LIVE

Each year I try to listen to the USCCB's public sessions. The first one is at 10:00 AM ET.  There are some interesting things and you can hear the bishops in some of their discussions on the agenda items, and interventions.  The USCCB has a page dedicated to this and there are options to follow live (click here).  That link also includes info on times of public sessions.

If anyone is aware of the hashtag being used for the USCCB meeting on Twitter, please drop it into my combox.  It's probably a good idea for the USCCB to choose a hashtag in advance, if it hasn't done so already, and it will eliminate multiple hashtags for the same event.

I have also listened live using EWTN.mobi where there are options for Apple and Android devices.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Dawn Eden on the Journey Home Tonight - EWTN

Dawn Eden, who was in Detroit this past spring to discuss her new book, My Peace I Give You: Healing Sexual Wounds with the Help of the Saints , will be on The Journey Home with Marcus Grodi. Marcus interviews converts to Catholicism and Dawn converted from Judaism.  She will be discussing her interesting trek home,  as well as her book.

Dawn has been blogging at Patheos in her new blog, Feast of Eden.  See her latest post, which discusses her interview with Marcus.

You can watch it on EWTN at 8:00 ET, or online by clicking the WATCH tab on the left at EWTN.com.

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.

Forty Hours Devotion Begins at Assumption Grotto

Forty Hours Devotion Begins today.  The exact hours of Exposition over the next three days have not be stated, but I am presuming they are the same as last year.  One thing I do know is that the 9:30 will not be in the Extraordinary Form because the Traditional Latin Mass moves to the Noon timeslot for the closing ceremony.  Also interesting to note is that Mass will be celebrated at the side altar on Friday and Saturday mornings, during Exposition.  This is one of a few times when it is permitted.  No mention this year of any kind of meal.  I would  imagine bewteen the 9:30 and Noon there will be the usual - hamburgers, hot dogs, and donuts.  I'm not sure about after the Noon Mass. 

Here is part of what Fr. Perrone wrote last November in his Sunday column:

Next weekend is that period of parochial grace known as The Forty Hours, the observance of which has passed into near oblivion in post-conciliar (i.e., Vatican II) days. The proffered reason for this falling off of Eucharistic piety, unexpected and unintended, was to allow for a greater flexibility for parishes in choosing the manner, time and frequency of Eucharistic adoration. The result of the change was disastrous, at least in so far as its said purpose was a failure. But there was something positive that emerged from those dark days, from the grass roots up, and that was the opening of Eucharistic chapels for adoration, and even for perpetual adoration in various places. This was a popular effort, not having been initiated by the higher ups of the Church and yet it was highly commended by the Church officially when it did begin to flourish.

Every parish is, even now, supposed to set aside a time each year for Eucharistic adoration. We have elected to retain the practice of the Forty Hours because of its longer extension than the Eucharistic day and because of its time-honored usage.

Accordingly, we will open the devotion this coming Friday morning at the 7:30 a.m. Mass with the Eucharistic procession and litany following the Mass. Saturday will open with Exposition at 6:30 a.m. and the 7:30 a.m. Tridentine Mass will take place at the side altar. Friday and Saturday adoration will end at 9:00 p.m. Sunday morning begins with adoration at 6:00 a.m. The Sunday Masses are held at their usual times with moments of adoration in between. Note that the 9:30 Mass next week will be a simple Latin Mass in the new rite; the solemn closing Mass will be in the Tridentine form at noon with the closing procession and prayers following it. Booklets for this will be provided. Thus the Forty Hours Devotion will end Sunday afternoon, around 2:00 p.m. There will not be, as there was in recent years, a later afternoon closing ceremony. Take note!

My annual exhortation is to urge your participation in the prayers and a personal time of adoration in the period of these three days. You owe it–literally–to your Lord to give Him adoration and praise, let alone to make time for presenting your needs material and spiritual in His presence.

What is Forty Hours Devotion?  I can find no better write-up than the one done by Fr. William Saunders.  It is broken up into two parts at the Catholic Education Resource Center (CERC). 

• Forty Hours with Jesus Christ (Part 1)
• Forty Hours with Jesus Christ (Part 2)

The closing of Forty Hours Devotion is quite ceremonial.  In fact, in an old moral theology book I recently purchased, I found this tucked inside:

I wrote more on the invite here: Dear Father: You are cordially invited...

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For interesting news items I don't have time to blog on, check out my Twitter Feed: @TeDeumBlog

Te Deum Laudamus! Home

The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski

Note: The recommended links below are automatically generated by the tool, so they are not necessarily related content.