Properly clothed nuns, singing like Angels, facing God.

Pope Francis will not call Vatican III this Sunday

But if he does, and he is a Pope of surprises, you heard about it here first. What is much more likely is that he will set out his ecumenical vision and give an indication of whether he intends to visit Germany to celebrate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation.

On Sunday, April 14, Pope Francis will take possession of the Papal Basilica of St. Paul's outside the Walls in Rome. The Pope will celebrate Mass at the Basilica together with the Benedictine Monks to whom the Basilica and the adjoining Monastery are entrusted. Benedictine Abbott Edmund Power says the link between St. Ignatius - the founder of the Society of Jesus to which Pope Francis belongs - and the Basilica of St. Paul's Outside the Walls is a strong one. Speaking to Vatican Radio's Linda Bordoni, Abbott Power says the affinities between Benedictines and Jesuits are in fact many... 

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Cathcon- again- St Paul's outside the Walls is known by those of satirical inclination to be St Paul's without the Faith given its ecumenical significance and a few years ago it also almost became St Paul's without the Benedictines.   The article refers to Abbot Franzoni who was  one of the most radical of clerics after Vatican II.   His life has ended in theological disappointment as he believes that Vatican II has not been implemented (note-ultra-dissenting site of the Irish priests who support a radical interpretation of Vatican II)-   unlike this blog as all can see the memorials of Vatican II that are all around.  The Pope will be endangering the Church if he even takes one step in Franzoni's direction, as a Pandora's box of demands would be opened up.

Much more spiritual joy can be found in the writings of a predecessor of Franzoni's the great Benedictine liturgist, Blessed Idelfonso Schuster. He died in 1954- the liturgical reforms after the Council would have broken his heart.

If you don't like the result of the Conclave, don't blame the Benedictine beer

On Monday, March 11, Br. John and Br. Francis delivered several cases of our beer to the Cardinal electors who are staying at the Domus Sancta Martha. Its Director, Msgr. Battista Ricca, receives the cases of beer, since the cardinals were busy preparing for the start of the conclave.


Source

Catastrophic emptying of seminaries

Number of seminarians in training (USA) - these figures are an example for Europe
Jesuit	3559	(1965)	389	(2000)	= Decrease	89.1%
Franciscan	2251	(1965)	60	(2000)	= Decrease	97.3%
Benedictine	1541	(1965)	109	(2000)	= Decrease	92.9%
Redemptorist	1128	(1965)	24	(2000)	= Decrease	97.9%
Dominican	343	(1965)	38	(2000)	= Decrease	88.9%
Passionists	574	(1965)	5	(2000)	= Decrease	99.1%
Augustinian	483	(1965)	14	(2000)	= Decrease	97.1%
Capuchin	440	(1965)	39	(2000)	= Decrease	91.1%
Source: Index of Leading Catholic Indicators, The Church Since Vatican II, Kenneth C. Jones, 2003

Cathcon-  if the new Papacy means fresh denial of the catastrophe after the Council, no progress will be made and we will all be left watching and praying.

Feast of the Dedication of St Mary ad Martyres in Rome

Better known as the Pantheon, the ancient temple to the gods,  was purged by Pope St Boniface IV and consecrated in honour of Our Lady and all Holy Martyrs in the reign of the Emperor Phocas.

The Benedictines keep this Feast as the Commemoration of All Holy Martyrs and other Saints whose relics are conserved in their Churches. The Feast of All Saints became eventually to be celebrated on November 1st.

The story of the building

The Mass of the Ages being celebrated in the oldest Church building

Abbot Primate of the Benedictines in Concert- I love rock n'roll

My best friend!


And with Deep Purple

Sister Joan Chittister, OSB

takes a representative sample of Australian Catholicism and hears what she wants to hear.

"Forget it. The answer was direct: "Nothing will happen," most of them said. "We won't pay any attention to it," some said. "If anybody wants it, let them take it," a few said. "But not me," many said. End of discussion."

Just you wait, Sister.

Dance now part of pilgrimage

in modern German church. Huysburg used to be a seminary, and is now a Benedictine monastery.

This post originally appeared on October 18 last year. The photograph has been changed at the insistence of St Benno Verlag, but it can still be seen here on their website which I also provided a link to.

Liturgical dancing has been consistently condemned by Popes throughout the ages. However in our modern days, it is easier to find these performances than a Latin Mass.

The colour of Lent changes from purple to red

As leading Socialist, Franz Müntefering preaches Lent Sermon in a Catholic Church. His daughter has just left the Catholic Church because of the teaching on homosexuality.

Coming next week, Anselm Bilgri, priest and corporate advisor. He is a Benedictine!!!


His Abbey, St Boniface, Munich where he was cellarer for almost twenty years.


He has now branched out on his own (his Abbey and another has shares!) and set up Anselm Bilgri- Centre for Corporate Culture.

The opening of Pope St Gregory the Great's Life of St Benedict
There was a man of venerable life, blessed by grace, and blessed in name, for he was called "Benedictus" or Bennet: who, from his younger years, carried always the mind of an old man; for his age was inferior to his virtue: all vain pleasure he contemned, and though he were in the world, and might freely have enjoyed such commodities as it yieldeth, yet did he nothing esteem it, nor the vanities thereof.

Benedictine nuns although you would never know

Yankton Benedictines

Watertown Benedictines

More nightmare than expression of Catholic truth

Paradise- a creative pause. Part of a modern art exhibition in the Benedictine Monastery of Admont, Austria.

Linz liturgical desert

Brings the first sighting at the Church of St Francis, Braunau of a stealth priestess. She is the parish assistent. She, among many important tasks, runs the parish youth group called "the Crazies" where young people are not ministered to but are allowed to be themselves.

Meanwhile the cult of the twig spreads in Linz, this time to the Solar City Pastoral Centre. Yes, that's right, a new Diocesan centre opened in an environmental centre. Not too surprising, St Conrad's Church has a roof full of EU-funded solar panels. The cult has developed. The twig is now scary and in alien form.

And, needless to say that's the new Bishop of Linz.

And spot the Benedictine nun (!) that he is here commissioning to work as another pastoral assistent.


This is the priest of her new parish. The poster says "Share". One wonders how they will share responsibility. Who will be the boss?


Worst of all, he is now employing an "Expert in Pastoral Counselling". Doesn't the Diocese have any priests left?

She is stylish and elegant


and a financial supporter of the arch-heretical new German translation of the Bible.

This pastoral assistant in the Peace Church of Linz, Rebecca Mair, dressed in pseudo-liturgical dress read the Gospel and preached on December 3rd. The priest was too lazy and claimed that it was the will of the Bishop. Either he is being presumptious or I fear that he is speaking the truth.



Two years ago, in the same Church, the homosexual artist Keith Haring displayed his work, the Marriage of Heaven and Hell. What a title for a work of "art" in a Catholic Church. For his pains, the parish priest got a verbal handbagging from my wife, which he richly deserved. He clearly no longer knows the difference between good and evil. Strange in a town that produced Adolf Hitler.



And what a performance in Linz Cathedral! Modern art meets religion. An attempted synthesis. As if modern art can contribute anything to the divine.

Alien image of Christ

Spotted in the Benedictine Monastery of Engelberg in Switzerland.

The nun and the heretic

A picture of Joan Chittister (correction the Prior of Sister Chittister's covent- see comments) - with a German Benedictine nun summing up all that has gone wrong with religious life in the last forty years.

Sister Chittister runs around from conference to conference trading on the name of the Benedictine order. She fancies herself as a prophetess. St Benedict had harsh words for religious who wandered from monastery to monastery seeking food and board. One prefers not to think how angry he would be with one of his religious who was a habitual presenter at conferences.

The animals, the nuns and the wardrobe

Scenes from Benedictine life in America. Benedictines brought civilisation to the whole world, not look at their sorry state, exemplified by these Sisters of St Scholastica.

Nuns to a woman

Even though the clock is ticking on these children of 1968.

They just love dressing up

Nuns are meant to take leave of the world, not leave of their senses. The one in green is not of this world, but not in the classical sense, rather in science fiction.

You are my sunshine. Shades of the Wizard of Oz.

The elephant never forgets. But they all have forgotten the Faith.

They chickened out of real religious life years ago.

This is no Noah's Ark. There will be no dove, no rainbow, no falling back of the waters for this sorry crew.

My comments are strong but I suspect St Scholastica would have some even more direct comments for them.

As would St Benedict, seen here instructing his beloved Sister Scholastica.

Not least, the Founders would wonder what need they had of a Labyrinth when they followed the Rule written by St Benedict. Seen here the Labyrinth under construction.

Cathcon has already covered a similar outfit, The Doom (sorry that should be the Dome).

How seminarians pray

in the Diocese of Linz.There was one ordination this year, that of the notorious Father Golatz. The ordination advertised above was postponed after he called for a "massive resistance to Rome". He promised silence in order to obtain Holy Orders but how long he remains silent is anyone's guess. The scandal of the affair was covered by a deal to ordain a priest in the old Latin rite to prove just how inclusive the new Bishop is.

The problem is that the old Bishop who being a Benedictine should have retired back to his monastery didn't and uses the influence of the radical Catholics in the Diocese to pressure the new Bishop. It is very revealing that in the seminary that the portrait of the old Bishop still hasn't been engraved with the year of his retirement.


Situation which is taken as normal in Linz. See also "How Jesuits pray"

Illustrated here

Since 1997

The Benedictine Monastery of Admont in Austria has been busily building up a modern art collection.

One wonders what prayerful activities have been pushed aside by this collosal waste of time.

English Benedictine History

glorious beyond measure

Food and culinary centre

The former Royal Benedictine Abbey of the Forest near Brussels, which was established for widows of crusaders to pursue the religious life, destroyed by fire in 1764, never revived because of the French Revolution, now a location for sculptural metaphors.


Like Mickey Mouse. A metaphor but not in the sense that the artist intends.

Dimmid

The International Committees of Benedictine and Cistercian monks and nuns for promoting dialogue between monks of different religions and, more specifically, on the level of spiritual experience. And closely related: the state of dhimmitude.

More pagan visits here.

So much for the Monastery living by the spirit of their Founder (as recommended at the time of the Second Vatican Council).
"In 527, therefore, St Benedict travelled to Monte Cassino, 85 miles southeast of Rome, on the summit of which stood an altar to Apollo; there he tore down the pagan shrine and established the greatest and most famous of all monasteries, which became the home of the Benedictine Order. The place itself was symbolic, for as on the massive rock he built a temple to God, so also upon enduring foundatiuons he built a temple of the Spirit. When he died there were 14 Benedictine communities, and by the 14th century there were over 30,000.

At Monte Cassino he established his famous Rule which changed and renewed the monastic life of Europe. He provided against vagabondage, immorality, and other evils then prevalent in religious houses. A monk was to be a soldier of God, "a member of a spiritual garrison holding duty for Christ in a hostile world"; and to be always on duty. It was a great and happy brotherhood with a strong family unity, so that wherever its members went they felt a common bond, and drew their strength from their home at Cassino, built upon the rock."