Passionist seminarians- oh dear!

Austrian female "bishop" with two German colleagues

Seem to think they can just keep on consecrating Bishops. Four new ones here in the US.

Hate to disappoint but this is not the future for the Catholic Church.

Feast of Our Lady of Holy Hope, Patroness of this blog

And of the Passionist Order!

"Individual salvation - great Western heresy"

According to the head of the Anglicans in the US- or at least some part of the divided, disolving body.

Must be the time of year, women "bishops" on both sides of the Atlantic going off the rails simultaneously.

Pope praised by Germany's Obama, the Head of the German Greens

Imagine Cathcon's surprise when he attended the annual reception of the German think tanks in Brussels last night and heard Cem Özdemir, the Head of the German Greens, praise the Pope. Mr Özdemir as he is a proud Schwabian but with a Turkish background is known as the German Obama. Yes, we Cem is the phrase used. The charismatic figure is set to do very well in the forthcoming national elections, despite supporting Turkish teaching in German schools. He is by no means the only person with a Turkish/ Muslim background to be active in the Green Party.

The reason- the Pope has become an eco-warrier in his latest Encyclical (see end of Chapter IV below). The Pope makes it clear that the imperative to protect the environment is because it is the creation which has been given by God, a justification which one will have to wait for from Mr Özdemir. Doubtless, Mr Özdemir will also approve of the solar panels on the roof of the Vatican- the Greens have to do a lot more to redeem themselves, as they are the most anti-clerical and anti-church party in Germany.

48. Today the subject of development is also closely related to the duties arising from our relationship to the natural environment. The environment is God's gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole. When nature, including the human being, is viewed as the result of mere chance or evolutionary determinism, our sense of responsibility wanes. In nature, the believer recognizes the wonderful result of God's creative activity, which we may use responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs, material or otherwise, while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. If this vision is lost, we end up either considering nature an untouchable taboo or, on the contrary, abusing it. Neither attitude is consonant with the Christian vision of nature as the fruit of God's creation.

Nature expresses a design of love and truth. It is prior to us, and it has been given to us by God as the setting for our life. Nature speaks to us of the Creator (cf. Rom 1:20) and his love for humanity. It is destined to be “recapitulated” in Christ at the end of time (cf. Eph 1:9-10; Col 1:19-20). Thus it too is a “vocation”. Nature is at our disposal not as “a heap of scattered refuse”, but as a gift of the Creator who has given it an inbuilt order, enabling man to draw from it the principles needed in order “to till it and keep it” (Gen 2:15). But it should also be stressed that it is contrary to authentic development to view nature as something more important than the human person. This position leads to attitudes of neo-paganism or a new pantheism — human salvation cannot come from nature alone, understood in a purely naturalistic sense. This having been said, it is also necessary to reject the opposite position, which aims at total technical dominion over nature, because the natural environment is more than raw material to be manipulated at our pleasure; it is a wondrous work of the Creator containing a “grammar” which sets forth ends and criteria for its wise use, not its reckless exploitation. Today much harm is done to development precisely as a result of these distorted notions. Reducing nature merely to a collection of contingent data ends up doing violence to the environment and even encouraging activity that fails to respect human nature itself. Our nature, constituted not only by matter but also by spirit, and as such, endowed with transcendent meaning and aspirations, is also normative for culture. Human beings interpret and shape the natural environment through culture, which in turn is given direction by the responsible use of freedom, in accordance with the dictates of the moral law. Consequently, projects for integral human development cannot ignore coming generations, but need to be marked by solidarity and inter-generational justice, while taking into account a variety of contexts: ecological, juridical, economic, political and cultural.

49. Questions linked to the care and preservation of the environment today need to give due consideration to the energy problem. The fact that some States, power groups and companies hoard non-renewable energy resources represents a grave obstacle to development in poor countries. Those countries lack the economic means either to gain access to existing sources of non-renewable energy or to finance research into new alternatives. The stockpiling of natural resources, which in many cases are found in the poor countries themselves, gives rise to exploitation and frequent conflicts between and within nations. These conflicts are often fought on the soil of those same countries, with a heavy toll of death, destruction and further decay. The international community has an urgent duty to find institutional means of regulating the exploitation of non-renewable resources, involving poor countries in the process, in order to plan together for the future.

On this front too, there is a pressing moral need for renewed solidarity, especially in relationships between developing countries and those that are highly industrialized. The technologically advanced societies can and must lower their domestic energy consumption, either through an evolution in manufacturing methods or through greater ecological sensitivity among their citizens. It should be added that at present it is possible to achieve improved energy efficiency while at the same time encouraging research into alternative forms of energy. What is also needed, though, is a worldwide redistribution of energy resources, so that countries lacking those resources can have access to them. The fate of those countries cannot be left in the hands of whoever is first to claim the spoils, or whoever is able to prevail over the rest. Here we are dealing with major issues; if they are to be faced adequately, then everyone must responsibly recognize the impact they will have on future generations, particularly on the many young people in the poorer nations, who “ask to assume their active part in the construction of a better world”.

50. This responsibility is a global one, for it is concerned not just with energy but with the whole of creation, which must not be bequeathed to future generations depleted of its resources. Human beings legitimately exercise a responsible stewardship over nature, in order to protect it, to enjoy its fruits and to cultivate it in new ways, with the assistance of advanced technologies, so that it can worthily accommodate and feed the world's population. On this earth there is room for everyone: here the entire human family must find the resources to live with dignity, through the help of nature itself — God's gift to his children — and through hard work and creativity. At the same time we must recognize our grave duty to hand the earth on to future generations in such a condition that they too can worthily inhabit it and continue to cultivate it. This means being committed to making joint decisions “after pondering responsibly the road to be taken, decisions aimed at strengthening that covenant between human beings and the environment, which should mirror the creative love of God, from whom we come and towards whom we are journeying.” Let us hope that the international community and individual governments will succeed in countering harmful ways of treating the environment. It is likewise incumbent upon the competent authorities to make every effort to ensure that the economic and social costs of using up shared environmental resources are recognized with transparency and fully borne by those who incur them, not by other peoples or future generations: the protection of the environment, of resources and of the climate obliges all international leaders to act jointly and to show a readiness to work in good faith, respecting the law and promoting solidarity with the weakest regions of the planet. One of the greatest challenges facing the economy is to achieve the most efficient use — not abuse — of natural resources, based on a realization that the notion of “efficiency” is not value-free.

51. The way humanity treats the environment influences the way it treats itself, and vice versa. This invites contemporary society to a serious review of its life-style, which, in many parts of the world, is prone to hedonism and consumerism, regardless of their harmful consequences. What is needed is an effective shift in mentality which can lead to the adoption of new life-styles “in which the quest for truth, beauty, goodness and communion with others for the sake of common growth are the factors which determine consumer choices, savings and investments.” Every violation of solidarity and civic friendship harms the environment, just as environmental deterioration in turn upsets relations in society. Nature, especially in our time, is so integrated into the dynamics of society and culture that by now it hardly constitutes an independent variable. Desertification and the decline in productivity in some agricultural areas are also the result of impoverishment and underdevelopment among their inhabitants. When incentives are offered for their economic and cultural development, nature itself is protected. Moreover, how many natural resources are squandered by wars! Peace in and among peoples would also provide greater protection for nature. The hoarding of resources, especially water, can generate serious conflicts among the peoples involved. Peaceful agreement about the use of resources can protect nature and, at the same time, the well-being of the societies concerned.

The Church has a responsibility towards creation and she must assert this responsibility in the public sphere. In so doing, she must defend not only earth, water and air as gifts of creation that belong to everyone. She must above all protect mankind from self-destruction. There is need for what might be called a human ecology, correctly understood. The deterioration of nature is in fact closely connected to the culture that shapes human coexistence: when “human ecology” is respected within society, environmental ecology also benefits. Just as human virtues are interrelated, such that the weakening of one places others at risk, so the ecological system is based on respect for a plan that affects both the health of society and its good relationship with nature.

In order to protect nature, it is not enough to intervene with economic incentives or deterrents; not even an apposite education is sufficient. These are important steps, but the decisive issue is the overall moral tenor of society. If there is a lack of respect for the right to life and to a natural death, if human conception, gestation and birth are made artificial, if human embryos are sacrificed to research, the conscience of society ends up losing the concept of human ecology and, along with it, that of environmental ecology. It is contradictory to insist that future generations respect the natural environment when our educational systems and laws do not help them to respect themselves. The book of nature is one and indivisible: it takes in not only the environment but also life, sexuality, marriage, the family, social relations: in a word, integral human development. Our duties towards the environment are linked to our duties towards the human person, considered in himself and in relation to others. It would be wrong to uphold one set of duties while trampling on the other. Herein lies a grave contradiction in our mentality and practice today: one which demeans the person, disrupts the environment and damages society.

52. Truth, and the love which it reveals, cannot be produced: they can only be received as a gift. Their ultimate source is not, and cannot be, mankind, but only God, who is himself Truth and Love. This principle is extremely important for society and for development, since neither can be a purely human product; the vocation to development on the part of individuals and peoples is not based simply on human choice, but is an intrinsic part of a plan that is prior to us and constitutes for all of us a duty to be freely accepted. That which is prior to us and constitutes us — subsistent Love and Truth — shows us what goodness is, and in what our true happiness consists. It shows us the road to true development.

Interview with female bishop who stole Communion

When she was made a priestess she also received allegedly and secret episcopal orders. She claims apostolic succession! Won't give the name of the consecrating bishop (just one). She admits to breaching canon law. A process for more justice for women.

She does funerals and weddings and other sacraments.

Have you contact with other priests in Upper Austria- a good basis for discussion with colleagues and work constructively together.

She does not want to say more about the problems Bishop Schwarz had with the incident.

With Bishop Schwarz she has a good relationship!

Part of "Roman Catholic Women Priests Worldwide"

I speak only for women.

Different churches should go hand and hand in the 21st century. Diverse churches meet the different paths that human beings take to God.

Notes and quick paraphrasing of the interview!

The Canadian PM has also taken to stealing hosts.

Msgr Perl and Ecclesia Dei

From Inside the Vatican

Excommunicated Female "Bishop" seizes Communion

In haste, late at night from the Upper Austrian News.

The Sunday worship celebration in the Parish of St. Peter in Linz did not make the excommunicated "Bishop" Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger as happy as she would have wished. Bishop Ludwig Schwarz refused her communion with the Host. Then she took the wafer herself.

400 people joined the celebration of Mass in the Parish of St. Peter on 28June.. It was held in honour of the church's patron, St. Peter. Among them, high-ranking politicians. But few noticed what happened during the Communion.

Christine Mayr-Lumetzberger was dressed as a Bishop when she appeared at the Mass in official dress with a large pectoral Cross. During the Communion she chose, consciously or unconsciously, the row in which the Diocesan Bishop Ludwig Schwarz distributed communion. The bishop suggested to her that she should not come, because he could not give her Communion. But Mayr-Lumetzberger would not stop. When it came to her, she was not given the Host. According to ecclesiastical law,someone excommunicated may not receive communion.

Mayr-Lumetzberger took the host herself from the ciborium. "I was there for all men and women in a similar situation in life," she says in discussion with OÖN. Is it normal to receive the Host like this? "There are different models of the Communion," she says. What did she feel? "In the first moment, nothing. But now I feel hurt and angry, like a woman who has been beaten for the first time by a man, "says Mayr-Lumetzberger.

Had she expected to receive Communion?" Yes. The Gospel is a higher authority than canon law. "Mayr-Lumetzberger is excommunicated since according to Canon Law ordination of priestesses is prohibited. It had however never happened that she did not receive the Host. The Church of St. Peter is her home parish. "I know Christine a long time. For me, she has never come for Communion. She knows what situation this would put me in "says Parish Priest Franz Zeiger. This Sunday, she came dressed as a Bishop to the Mass.

Do she wish to provoke and did she want to attract attention? "I cannot judge. But dress codes, I cannot enforce on anybody, "says Pastor Zeiger. Did he understand the attitude of Bishop Ludwig Schwarz? "Yes. in canon law he cannot. " Observers had the impression that the situation during the Mass was painful for Bishop Ludwig Schwarz.

Ecclesia Dei changes

German press is portraying them as the Pope putting more pressure on the SSPX, but they would.

Headlines now appearing "Pope looses patience" "Pope strengthens control over SSPX".

Head of Austrian Catholic women movement slammed in letter to the press

From the Upper Austrian News- Ordination for women

The news that KFB-chair the Margit Hauft calls for the admission of women to the priesthood was described by your newspaper at the same time as "not new" --yet was reproduced in three prominently placed articles (June 30, 2009). Was it just a journalistic error, to bore readers by the defrosting of a frozen posthorn or does the newspaper want to get involved in church politics (as in other cases the recent past)?

It is significant that in the interview with Margit Hauft the central question remains unanswered: how can someone be Chairman of a Catholic organization, while rejecting the goodness of the Catholic faith (see the Apostolic letter "Ordinatio sacerdotalis")?
 
It is to be hoped that – unlike what was asserted in the interview -- that Bishop Ludwig will fulfil his leadership and teaching leadership responsibilities towards the KFB and not let himself to be reduced by her to the level of a messenger boy.

That in the same interview, the requests of dying people allegedly unprovided with sacraments were instrumentalised for her own purposes by Margit Hauft makes the story even more problematic, as the Viaticum into new life is the Eucharist (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 1524), which, of course, can also today be brought by women to dying people. 

Rosa Waibel

Ecclesia Dei becomes part of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

Papal letter here.

Cardinal Hoyos retires, Cardinal Levada takes the helm.

St Peter's Seminary, Cardross- unspeakable sadness of wasted post-Conciliar years

A Catholic Altar in a Catholic Diocese?

Two years of the Motu Proprio

Archbishop Zollitsch "We are all guilty for the financial crisis"

And there was me thinking it was Gordon Brown's tripartite regulation of the City of London and the EU Financial Package that was pushed through when the UK had Presidency of the EU when Gordon Brown was Chancellor.

Cardinal Newman's miracle

Feast of Sts Cyril and Methodius

Feast of Blessed Pope Benedict XI, Domincan

More here on his life and work

Federal Justice Minister Zypries compares SSPX with extreme right-wing

Federal Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries has raised the extremist tendencies of the traditionalist SSPX before. "In dealing with such religious extremists, the same things must apply as when dealing with the extreme right," urged Zypries.

Utterances of the SSPX have made it clear that democracy and freedom are not just threatened by Islamic fundamentalists.

The Minister described as unbearable the appeal of the SSPX on the eve of the Christopher Street Day (CSD) in Stuttgart. At the end of July, the SSPX has called people to a vigil in the Baden-Württemberg state capital. At the CSD " wild and obscenely dressed " people parade through the streets "happy in their own perversion."

And further: "How proud we are when we read in a history book that there were courageous Catholics in the Third Reich who said: 'We do not go along with this madness!".Likewise, it is again daring to be Catholic! "

Appeal to the Catholic Church

The printed text of the latest newsletter of the SSPX is an "intolerable insult to the victims of National Socialism and a defamation of homosexuals," said Zypries. She called on the Catholic Church to draw a clear dividing line.

The church should not tolerate under their roof, or even only in their shade, such fanatics who produce such outrages" the Minister said on Monday evening at a book presentation on "Strategies of the extreme right." Politicians of the Green Party had already urged that the SSPX should be monitored by the authorities charged with the defence of the German Constitution.

SSPX reject criticism

The SSPX rejected the criticism in reply. The reference to Nazi injustice was "completely misunderstood". The SSPX had "neither in intention nor in reality wrongly equated the CSD with the Nazi regime," insisted the German District Superior Franz Schmidberger at the weekend.

However, according to Christian moral standards, the norms of the CSD are "immoral". This should be made known to the public according to Schmidberger.

Cathcon sees tendencies to stupidity in Ms Zypries

Browser what's a browser??!!!!

Out of the mouths of government ministers and fools.

SSPX developments sooner than expected?

From Golias the "more Tablet than the Tablet" French left-wing Catholic journal.

Lefebvrists: Canonical support for fool's bargain

Before writing a Motu proprio on the Lefebvrists, the Curia are now in the process of thinking about an immediate solution with a view to the final reintegration of the fundamentalists.

According to information, or our informants, Rome would, following the controversy about the ordinations celebrated recently by the SSPX, like to find a compromise solution, even before the completion of theological discussions.

This would clear the ground and initiate things faster. It is quite likely that the Curia had planned, under the good care of Monsignor Mario Marini, secretary of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, now deceased, a document, additional to the lifting of the excommunication of the four holy bishops consecrated by Archbishop Lefebvre, lifting the suspension imposed a divinis on the priests and brothers of the SSPX.    Bishop Bernard Fellay, the superior of the Fraternity of Saint Pius X, showed such reluctance (because this form also showed a commitment to respect the authority of local bishops) that Rome then gave up on a similar project of transitional canonical regularisation. Now it is exhumed from oblivion.

The idea is obviously clever, even if from a canon law, and especially theological point of view, it is not without posing formidable problems. Indeed, it puts in a certain fashion, if only precariously, the cart before the horse in assuming things are resolved when they are not.

In the spirit of Pope Benedict and Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, for very short time again in charge of the case, it would be well to take account of multiple oppositions which would become less easy if the SSPX was in canonical good standing (albeit for a time) and not, in the words of Abbé Claude Barthe, in a state of " canonical weightlessness." This initiative would establish Roman legitimacy (and the undeniable validity of SSPX confessions and marriage services) of the sacraments celebrated by priests of the SSPX.

In addition, it is a clear encouragement to reluctant bishops, like those of Germany. This idea could revitalise even in Rome herself very strong opposition, for example from Cardinals Levada (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith) and Re (bishops) and Bishop Francesco Coccopalmerio, President of the Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts due to the violation of the law and its spirit that it entails, ultimately not affecting the subject (the SSPX can stick to its position) and would be an expedient, an artifice that is temporary solution and ad hoc on a weak basis. Its only advantage is the benefit of the SSPX because it would be a way to support the Fraternity.

If the Pope were to adopt such a solution, which is possible, it could create an uproar which would be proof of an unbelievable complacency.

Carnival Catholic Sisters

New altar in Linz- says it all really

Anyone who prefers the one in front to the one behind has lost all aesthetic sense, never mind any residual religious sense.

Cathcon has gone officially ballistic- we were married at this altar

The guy is dancing on the very place where we exchanged vows.


It is a triple insult, he is a Indian Jesuit (five Jesuit Father Gillibrands who certainly did not go in for this sort of thing) dancing in a Benedictine Abbey Church (I am a Benedictine Oblate).

If NASA wants to get to Mars, they could be there by tomorrow if they want to employ me as a rocket.

Dr Saju George SJ tries to justify the unjustifiable. Dance is a priestly activity! Inner God!


And groomed under a "galaxy of gurus"!!

Female Protestant Minister leads Corpus Christi procession and turns it into feminist propaganda for priestesses

From the Archconservative Blog

Triple top hat tip

Linz also happens apparently in Germany: In a letter in the "Tagespost" the Right Revd Prof. Dr. Giovanni Sala SJ from Munich describes the following experience in the context of the difficult situation of the SSPX in Germany:

"Mrs Magdalena Helfer has described in a letter dated 16 June another case of the real situation of the Church in Germany which will not encourage the members of the SSPX, in trust of Christ who directs his Church and his Vicar on earth, to take the step for which the Pope has selflessly worked and for the many people who pray in unity with him.

At the last Corpus Christi, she took part in the procession in the Parish of Meersburg, Archdiocese of Freiburg. The female Protestant pastor took part in her official dress, who took over after the first station, and at two altars took the lead in the reading, the Gospel and the intercessions with the male words (brother, son, father, Lord) changed into female from. That is, the Catholic belief in the Real Presence of Christ and the adoration from the Church were turned by her (with the consent of the competent Catholic priest?) into a feminist demonstration and propaganda for female priesthood. But this is not quite out of the frame of Catholic Church in Germany, when you consider that for example the so-called "Eucharistic hospitality" is offered to Protestant Christians in more than a few parishes, the responsible bishops remaining silent. In the case of the procession in Meersburg, the competent bishop is the Chairman of the German Bishops' Conference. Is he going to intervene in this serious case? Are there in any case, instances when it suitable for the "Romanus Pontifex" (cf. DS 3065) to blow up the battered bridges. "

Cathcon has photos!

Cardinal goes mad

Praising Obama's measured approach to abortion.

Measured is hardly the term if you are a child who never lived.Measured is hardly the term if you are a child who never lived.

There is a cartoon with one baby in a cradle talking to another baby in a dustbin.

"Were you born in or out of wedlock?"

"I don't know, because I wasn't even born".

Cardinal Schönborn in the preface to a book, "Thomistes" to which Cardinal Cottier writes the postface, witheringly criticises "Thomists of the Strict Observance" - now the world knows what "Thomists of the Less than Strict Observance" are made of. Cardinal Schönborn himself is all over the shop when it comes to moral issues and a primary cause of this is that he buys into Cardinal Cottier's errors on the state.

More great analysis here.

The great Sandro Magister also thinks so, but does not say so.