An Open Letter to New Priests

liturgy guy

The season of priestly ordinations is currently underway. Having just completed years in seminary, this years class of 590 ordinands are now receiving the Sacrament of Holy Orders. It is with humility and charity that I pen this open letter to our newest priests.

Living With the Smell of the Sheep (and Proclaiming the Truth)

I ask you to reflect back on something the Holy Father said early in his papacy. He reminded all priests that they must be “shepherds living with the smell of the sheep.”

Some took this admonition to mean that priests need to get out into the world to make a difference. However, this was the same misguided assessment that resulted in the emptying of rectories, monasteries and convents in the 1970’s as many priests and religious abandoned their vocation to become social workers.

Please understand that we do not need you to be social workers. We…

View original post 1,022 more words

Be Devoted to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Catholicism Pure & Simple

From her ‘Memoirs’ (of Fatima) visionary Sister Lucia writes:

Our Lady:

“Jesus wishes to make use of you to make Me known and loved. He wants to establish in the world devotion to My Immaculate Heart. To whoever embraces this devotion I promise salvation; these souls shall be dear to God, as flowers placed by Me to adorn His throne.” […] Don’t lose heart. I will never forsake you. My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God.””

As Our Lady spoke these last words, She opened Her hands for the second time. In front of the palm of Our Lady’s right hand was a heart encircled by thorns which pierced it. We understood that this was the Immaculate Heart of Mary, outraged by the sins of humanity, and seeking reparation.”

*****

The First Five Saturdays devotion*, that Our Lady asked for…

View original post 88 more words

Church Militant

†The Ecu-Men†

Fellow Christians: Be well on this day. And do not relent in your fight for your salvation against the forces of evil! #Christian#Catholicpic.twitter.com/xYkzJFdjqS

— PseudoClasm (@thePseudoClasm) May 26, 2017

View original post

Full text: Cardinal Burke’s historic call for consecration of Russia

Catholicism Pure & Simple

The following address was given by His Eminence Raymond Cardinal Burke on 19 May 2017 at the fourth annual Rome Life Forum, which is organised by Voice of the Family.

The Secret of Fatima and a New Evangelization

The final words of the Virgin Mother of the Redeemer recorded in the Gospels are the words she spoke to the wine stewards at the Wedding Feast of Cana who came to her in anguish over the lack of sufficient wine for the guests of the newlyweds. She responded to them and their situation of great distress by leading them to her Divine Son, also a guest at the Wedding Feast, and instructing them: “Do whatever he tells you.”[1] These simple words express the mystery of the Divine Maternity by which the Virgin Mary became the Mother of God, bringing God the Son Incarnate into the world. By the same mystery…

View original post 8,292 more words

Nihilism: The Essence of the New Left — An Interview with Roberto de Mattei

http://wp.me/pYA4j-aYk

Is Pleasure Supreme?

http://wp.me/pYA4j-aYp

Bishop Schneider on Receiving Holy Communion

liturgy guy

Nearly ten years ago an unknown auxiliary bishop from Karaganda, Kazakhstan, the Most Reverend Athanasius Schneider, wrote a brief treatise on the reception of Holy Communion, Dominus Est-It is the Lord!  In the years since, there has been no greater defender of the Eucharist than Bishop Schneider. The below argument in favor of the traditional discipline of receiving Holy Communion on the tongue while kneeling comes at the conclusion of Bishop Schneider’s book.

Dominus Est should be read by bishops, priests, and laity alike; it is that important. The below excerpt is reprinted here with the permission of the publisher.

Against the background of the two-millennia-long history of piety and liturgical tradition of the universal Church, East and West alike, especially regarding the organic development of the patristic patrimony, we can offer the following summary:

1. The organic development of Eucharistic piety as a fruit of the piety of the…

View original post 515 more words

Sign of the Cross

†The Ecu-Men†

Let us continue to make the sign of the cross every day. As we fight the devil, this symbol of God is essential. #Christian#Catholic#ccotpic.twitter.com/IiwZmXIV17

— PseudoClasm (@thePseudoClasm) May 17, 2017

To read more on the sign of the cross: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13785a.htm

God bless!

View original post

Altar Serving and the Ordination Class of 2017

liturgy guy

Every year Georgetown’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) conducts a survey of ordinands for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This year 590 ordinands to the priesthood were sent the survey; of these, 444 (or 75 percent) responded.

While this annual survey once again provides us a fascinating glimpse into the make up of this year’s class -such as parents religious affiliation, number of siblings, educational background, and ethnic make-up- it is interesting to see those common factors which contributed to these men’s discernment.

As I have chronicled in past years, altar serving is a common experience shared by the majority of our ordained. The class of 2017 is no exception.

CARA’s surveys shows that 77 percent of diocesan ordinands listed Altar Serving as a parish ministry in which they had participated. Compare that to Lector (51 percent), Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion (42 percent), and Youth…

View original post 354 more words

Fatima at 100: Can a scientist take the Miracle of the Sun seriously?

Catholicism Pure & Simple

This excellent article first appeared in yesterday’s on-line edition of the Catholic Herald, and the Catholic Herald Magazine today.

By Fr Andrew Pinsent

The crowd looking at ‘the Miracle of the Sun’, which happened during the Our Lady of Fatima apparitions (Wikimedia Commons)

A scientific perspective does not rule out miracles. We must remain open to exploring the unexplained

The question in the headline implies that the expected answer is “no”, but as a former particle physicist, my response is “Why not?” Contrary to a common prejudice, a scientific perspective does not rule out miracles, and the event at Fatima is, in the view of many, particularly credible.

As regards miracles in general, the usual prejudice against them takes one of two forms. The first is to claim that a scientific worldview excludes miracles, wrongly defined as breaking the laws of nature or, specifically, physics. This prejudice rests on…

View original post 725 more words