Bishop Paprocki Rocks!

A local ordinary with the fortitude to do whats right and good for the souls under his care. Bravo and thank you! Let us pray to God that we will see more like him!

Bishop Paprocki authorizes St. Michael Prayer after Masses

His Excellency the Most Reverend Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of Springfield in Illinois, has authorized the public recitation of the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel - originally composed by the Holy Father Pope Leo XIII in 1886 - following the dismissal at the end of Mass and before the recession.

He announced this authorization to the priests of the Diocese at a dinner preceding the Chrism Mass Tuesday evening and to the people of the Diocese at the conclusion of the Chrism Mass.

Prayer cards with the text of the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel were distributed after every Mass with the newly blessed and consecrated oils to be place in the pews of the parish churches throughout the Diocese.

In a letter to parish leaders accompanying the cards, Bishop Paprocki explained the reason he has authorized this practice. He wrote: One of Satan’s greatest assets is his camouflage, the belief that he doesn’t exist. Disbelief in Satan and the forces of evil leave us unable to resist them. That is why it is good to remember the Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel. We need to remember that each time we pray we work to defeat our real enemies, not each other, but rather the devil and his evil spirits...

In recent years, a number of parishes have begun reciting the prayer once more, and many individual Catholics have kept up the practice. Both Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have urged the faithful to pray it daily, and especially after Mass.On the back of the prayer cards to be placed in the pews, Bishop Paprocki explains his vision for the Diocese, using some of the homily he preached at the Masses of Welcome celebrated in each of the Diocese's seven deaneries:

I envision a local Church where Catholics seek to grow in holiness, attend Mass every Sunday and participate regularly in the sacramental life of the Church. I see Catholics, who love God with all their heart, mind and soul and love their neighbors as themselves. I see the faithful who bear witness to Jesus Christ in their daily lives and promote respect for all human life from conception to natural death.

I envision an abundance of vocations with priests sufficient to staff and serve our parishes with virtuous commitment. I see dedicated deacons, nuns, brothers and lay people teaching the faith, caring for the sick, reaching out to the poor and dying. I see communities where family life is valued, homes where mothers and fathers love their children and whose children love them. In short, I envision God's kingdom already foreshadowed in the life of the Church and a foretaste of the heavenly banquet in the Eucharistic feast.

Everything that I have described is attainable. The only real obstacle in our lives is sin. Original sin is our inherited condition. The spiritual treasures of paradise were forfeited by our human ancestors. While Jesus Christ's death and resurrection have restored the gifts of heavenly treasures for us, we also have to recognize that the devil, Satan, is real, and he will do everything in his power to deflect us from our goal, which is eternal life with Christ in His kingdom. This reality should not frighten us nor lead us to despair, for Christ is more powerful than Satan.

Prayer and the sacraments are an essential part of what Saint Paul called the "armor of God" in his letter to the Ephesians. The Saint Michael prayer can help us "stand against the deceits of the devil" (Ephesians 6:11) by "taking the shield of faith" (Ephesians 6:16). God permits us to be tempted by the devil but gives us the grace to resist him through prayer in our daily lives. We can and should say the prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel at church with the assembly or on our own during the day for spiritual protection for ourselves and for others.

May God bless our diocese and our mission with every grace we need to grow in faith, hope and love. May Saint Michael the Archangel protect us from all evil, harm and temptation.

Goings On

I certainly hope that all of you have had a truly blessed and holy Easter!

So tell me about the abuses you witnessed around the Diocese. Any women getting their feet washed? Any Easter Vigils at 5pm? Keep the news flowing!

And did you all see this? The news bit about how our new Bishop has been "accessible"?

There was a great comment on the fluff piece Mark Guydish wrote. From Rebel4God: "Are you kidding me? The Wilkes-Barre area seems to be in a "no-go" zone in this diocese. There has been absolutely no apology or effort to make amends for the abuse of members of the diocese for various incursions of misabuse. This diocese is a spiritual desert unless you live in Scranton. Priests are upset with the changes soon to come in the new Roman Missal, and the Catholic poplulation has not moved (as stated in this article) but have rather chosen to either not go to mass and put up with all the negativity, or just merely scorn the Church for lack of forthrightness, compassion and concern as it regards to the issues facing the average parishioner. I love my faith, but have had to turn to on-line resources for spiritual nourishment from various Catholic websites. And forget calling any of the offices at the diocescan center as no one ever returns phone calls. I suppose that is because everyone (at the center) are busy answering to the media!"

Yes indeed, a no-go zone. Take away the Old Mass, and even when one is arranged, the Diocese will not allow it. Dirty pool, Bishop Bambera.

And of course not to be outdone, the Citizens Voice had to speak with the Bishop as well, and oddly enough, as Catholic identity shrivels away, the Bishop is actually proud of the 4 "Catholic" universities in our Diocese! I kid you not!

However, I was heartened that the Bishop has called the new translation of the Novus Ordo "a beautiful translation".

Pentecost comes June 12, and with it, comes his Excellence's plan for the Diocese which has been based on your letters. I hope you are all writing in charity.

That's all for now. Enjoy your leftover kielbassi and ham this Easter week!

Good Friday

O My people, what have I done to thee? Or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer Me. Because I led thee out of the land of Egypt, thou hast prepared a Cross for thy Savior.

Because I led thee out through the desert forty years: and fed thee with manna, and brought thee into a land exceeding good, thou has prepared a Cross for thy Savior.

What more ought I to have done for thee, that I have not done? I planted thee, indeed, My most beautiful vineyard: and thou has become exceeding bitter to Me: for in My thirst thou gavest Me vinegar to drink and with a lance thou hast pierced the side of thy Savior.

O holy God!
O holy God!
O holy strong One!
O holy strong One!
O holy immortal One, have mercy on us.
O holy immortal One, have mercy on us!

For thy sake I scourged Egypt with its first-born: and thou didst deliver Me up to be scourged.

I led thee out of Egypt having drowned Pharaoh in the Red Sea: and thou to the chief priests didst deliver Me.

I opened the sea before thee: and thou with a spear didst open My side.

I went before thee in a pillar of cloud: and thou didst lead Me to the judgment hall of Pilate.

I fed thee with manna in the desert; and thou didst beat Me with blows and scourges.

I gave thee the water of salvation from the rock to drink: and thou didst give Me gall and vinegar.

For thy sake I struck the kings of the Chanaanites: and thou didst strike My head with a reed.

I gave thee a royal scepter: and thou didst give My head a crown of thorns.

I exalted thee with great strength: and thou didst hang Me on the gibbet of the Cross.

O my people, what have I done to thee? Or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me

Bambera VS Voris!

Would anyone like to see a debate between his Grace the Bishop of Scranton, and Michael Voris this weekend?

I don't know what topic they would debate, maybe ecumenism. I would pay money to see that.

Mother Angelica would take them both out though, don't you think?

Good night, dear readers! :-)

Tried and True

The Baltimore Catechism, that is. As a young lad, the Baltimore Catechism was the book that taught me my faith in a clear, concise manner. Straight forward and no beating around the bush, it is the tried and true catechism of the Catholic Church. No other catechism is needed.

In clear, no nonsense terms it tells you the truth. If you commit a mortal sin and die without confession, you go to Hell. That's pretty clear, huh?

But in modern times, clear and concise is frowned on. What if it offends someone? The book shelves are heavy with "catechisms" with inclusive language and new definitions, meant to confuse and coddle rather than teach and enlighten.

And now every year, the modernist rock concert/pentecostal service know as "World Youth Day" will soon be upon us, and with it will come yet another catechism.



But this one condones he use of contraception.

Yes, you read that correctly.

On page 420 in the Italian language version of YouCat, it clearly says:

“Q. Puo una coppia christiana fare ricorso ai metodi anticoncezionali?” (Can a Christian couple have recourse to contraceptive methods?)

“A. Si, una coppia cristiana puo e deve essere responsabile nella sua facolta di poter donare la vita.” (Yes, a Christian couple can and should be responsible in its faculty of being able to give life).

The hip, cool catechism, entitled YouCat (because it's all about YOU!) will be given to all the unfortunates attending WYD, along with a sleeping bag, map, and "other" accessories. Condoms perhaps?

When Bishops allow people with evil intentions onto church property to give talks, that is bad enough. Now we have church officials actually printing books with doctrinal error that have the approval of the Bishops! Granted, they say that it was a "translation error", but what really happened was that they got caught. Now they are trying to fix it. Supposedly the error will not appear in the English language edition.

If it was an error, great, just fix it. Or better yet, just cancel publication. We don't need another catechism. Hand out the Baltimore, because somehow a hundred years ago the church was able to write and print doctrinally sound books without "mistakes", something we can't seem to duplicate in our modern times.

Here's the link to the news story.

What's A Traditional Catholic?

Just found this on the internets and had a good chuckle. If any of the following describes you, you might be well on your to irritating the people that work in the chancery.

A traditional Catholic is not a person who "prefers" the old Latin Mass. Neither are they people who simply passed Catechism class.

They are people who adhere to a type of spirituality that is largely lost in the 21st Century Catholic Church.

Truthfully, it's easier to describe their outward signs than their character: the old Latin Mass is the biggest identifier... though there are certainly traditional Catholics who are marooned in Novus Ordoland; there are likewise non-traditional Catholics who go to the TLM.

Trads are people who listen to Catholic Radio... skeptically. They might have a blog. They can list their "top-five" favorite Ecumenical Councils... none of which will rhyme with "Attican Shoe". Their friends think they're fuddy-duddys. They've got Holy Water fonts in all the bedrooms and by the front door.

They quote the Douay Rheims bible. They have an opinion on offering Mass in baroque vestments while in a gothic chapel. They're tired of tinfoil hat jokes. They may not like Bishop Williamson, but concede that sometimes he's right, and when he's right, he's really right. They can tell you about Assisi. When they're at a Novus Ordo Mass, they've got their hands folded like a Catholic during the Our Father.

The women have an extra mantilla in the van-- just in case. The men have an opinion on the best type of pipe tobacco for any occasion. The boys have their own cassock and surplice hanging in the closet. The girls know how to play Dies Irae on the organ. They wear a t-shirt while they go swimming so their brown scapular doesen't float away. They're willing to drive an hour to go to Mass... every Sunday.

They know the confession times of at least 4 churches. They invite priests over to play cards and smoke cigars. They pray to saints that you think may not really exist. They ask you to finish the sentence when you say "John Paul the Great"... the great what? They might own a live chicken. When they're at a Novus Ordo Mass, everyone watches them to figure out why they're hitting themselves during the "Lamb of God".

They're kneel after Mass to pray... and miss out on the fun gladhanding with Father by the parish gift shop. They scoff when they pass the Masonic Lodge. They cross themselves when they pass a Catholic church. They mutter something about the "poor souls" when they pass a cemetary. They mutter something about St. Michael when an ambulance passes them. Their girls' first names are Mary. Their boys' middle names are Mary. Cappa Magna doesn't sound like a drink at Starbucks to them. They'll tell you at length why being "charitable" isn't always being nice and friendly.

It's complicated. Trads are not easily defined. You just kind of know them when you see them.

More School Closings

Remember way back when, when Diocesan officials told us if they spent $500,000 and followed the recommendations of the "professionals" that they could save the school system?

Well, they're still closing schools. 4 more schools will close at the end of the year.

Then next year they will realize they need to close 4 more and then 4 more. Till eventually they will have two schools for the entire Diocese. And then no one will go them because they aren't close enough. They are working towards their own demise.

The Bishop said “It’s unsustainable,”

He should be upfront, just close the system down because he is right, it is unsustainable.

Read the Citizen's Voice article here

My Response

Allright, so let's have a look at this letter from this post. The letter is from Father Brian Clarke, Vicar General on behalf of Bishop Bambera to the organizers of the Michael Voris talk.

After concerns regarding Mr. Voris were brought to the Bishop’s attention, we at the Diocese were asked to look into the situation. It was expressed to us by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) that there have been a number of controversies which have occurred as a result of Mr. Voris’ presentations.

What were the specifics? If you are going to give public scandal you better back it up with exactly what the issues are, Father. This is a cowardly response and bad methodology. The USCCB has for years been taking money from faithful Catholics and giving it to pro-abortion causes through the CCHD, and let's not forget that RealCatholicTV helped to bring the USCCB and their support of this grave evil into the spotlight. So I'm guessing the USCCB would not consider themselves supporters of Mr. Voris or his work.

We next contacted Mr. Voris’ home diocese, the Archdiocese of Detroit, for their opinion. We were given a statement referring to St. Michael ’s Media and Real CatholicTV, both focusing on the opinions of Mr. Voris. Neither enterprise has been granted approval by the Archdiocese which referred to a lack of cooperation and issues of non-compliance with basic archdiocesan protocols as well as those of the USCCB.

Seriously? You contacted the Archdiocese of Detroit? The Archdiocese of Detroit has, since the beginning of St. Michael's Media been quietly, and in some cases loudly been working to discredit Mr. Voris and RealCatholicTV. If you want to read about the soap opera that is the Archdiocese of Detroit, go here. But be warned, it is a scandalous tale of heresy, homosexuality, and one of the worse cases of poor judgement by a Pope in history.

Since Mr. Voris’ own bishop has not given approval or endorsement to his opinions, allowing him to speak at a diocesan facility would imply that Bishop Bambera is endorsing his views.

These are not opinions, but Catholic teaching. If any one of you chancery guys spent 5 minutes to watch one of his episodes before you trashed his reputation you would know that. Bad form.

And my other question about this is did you chancery guys check with the USCCB about Sarah Bendoraitis? Did you check with her home diocese to find out if her work was supported by them? Are you saying then, that the Bishop supports the views of pro-abortion lesbian Sarah Bendoraitis to whom he did give permission to speak at the University of Scranton? It sounds that way to me.

...the Bishop has an obligation to safeguard Catholic teaching...

Well then he'd better get serious about it and really work to safeguard Catholic teaching, but personally I don't think he's up for the job. Or maybe he just needs a better staff making his decisions for him. Maybe if he'd watch an episode or two of RealCatholic TV he'd have a better idea of what that teaching actually is, that way he knows what he's safeguarding.

Plus there's no mention if Bishop Bambera has accepted the invitation of the organizers to come and hear Mr. Voris speak this Saturday. Maybe he can send Father Pilarz from the U, who served as the watchguard for the faith during the Sarah Bendoraitis talk, who just sat there and did nothing as she pushed her heretical views on Catholics at a Catholic University.

Maybe he'll go, since he did such a bang up job last time.

Same 'Ole

Would anyone like to join me in sending Bishop Bambera some boots? It's getting awfully deep in that Chancery office. Anyone know his shoe size?

The letter to the Bishop:

April 8, 2011
Dear Bishop Bambera,

We are writing you to request a meeting with you in order to discuss the Michael Voris talk. Out of respect for you and obedience to your office of Bishop we cancelled all of this weekend’s events. However, the official reason given for these last-minute cancellations by the Diocese was inadequate. We would like to give you the opportunity to listen to our story and understand why we are so eager to host Michael Voris and are intending to still have him speak in a secular venue. We are available to meet with you anytime this weekend.

I understand that you might not have had adequate time to properly investigate Michael Voris and therefore were only able to make a judgement based on snippets of information. I am confident that if you and your office were to speak with Michael Voris directly or view his videos and listen to his podcasts in their entirety, you would find that Michael is completely faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church. Michael has encouraged us to give his phone number (xxx-xxx-xxxx) to you so that you may speak to him directly and clarify any misconceptions you may have about his views.

We look so forward to hearing from you and meeting with you. This event has been rescheduled and Michael Voris will be speaking to the public. If you intend to truly resolve this situation and make us aware of serious errors that Mr. Voris teaches, then please contact us immediately.

Yours truly, Paul and Kristen Ciaccia

And the reply:

Sent: Sat, Apr 9, 2011 1:35 pm
Subject: Response from Bishop Bambera

Mr. and Mrs. Ciaccia,

I have been asked by Bishop Bambera to respond on his behalf regarding the cancellation of Michael Voris as a guest speaker in the Diocese of Scranton. After concerns regarding Mr. Voris were brought to the Bishop’s attention, we at the Diocese were asked to look into the situation. It was expressed to us by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) that there have been a number of controversies which have occurred as a result of Mr. Voris’ presentations.

We next contacted Mr. Voris’ home diocese, the Archdiocese of Detroit, for their opinion. We were given a statement referring to St. Michael ’s Media and Real CatholicTV, both focusing on the opinions of Mr. Voris. Neither enterprise has been granted approval by the Archdiocese which referred to a lack of cooperation and issues of non-compliance with basic archdiocesan protocols as well as those of the USCCB.

It is because of these responses in conjunction with other concerns that Bishop Bambera chose not to allow Mr. Voris to speak at any diocesan institution. Since Mr. Voris’ own bishop has not given approval or endorsement to his opinions, allowing him to speak at a diocesan facility would imply that Bishop Bambera is endorsing his views. Bishop Bambera chose to exercise the same caution shown by the Archdiocese of Detroit.

While this may be disappointing to you and others in the Diocese of Scranton, the Bishop has an obligation to safeguard Catholic teaching especially when a speaker from outside the Diocese with whom the Bishop is unfamiliar is expressing personal opinions.

Sincerely yours, Fr. Brian Clarke
Vicar General

It's 12:30 and I need to go beddy-bye. I'll comment on this later today if all goes well. Good night and God Bless Ya!

One More Try!

Michael Voris, S.T.B. will be appearing this Saturday to give his re-scheduled talk. Genetti's in Wilkes-Barre is the location, and the time is 6:30pm. The talk is free and open to the public.

The Diocese of Scranton has been notified that this talk is taking place, and the organizers have courteously invited Bishop Bambera to attend.

RealCatholicTV Response

By Their Fruits You Shall Know Them

There are two factions at odds in the Catholic Church today. The growing minority is headed by our Holy Father in Rome, Pope Benedict XVI, whose “reform of the reform” is working towards bringing the unyielding Faith of our fathers back to forefront of the Church.

Then there is the other faction. Led by tambourine players, womyn priests, faithless nuns, heretical priests, and yes, even wayward Bishops. This is the group that pushes the touch-feely “Barney Catholicism”, the “I’m ok, you’re ok” philosophy. The “…lets all revel in our relativism and be happy cuz god, she loves us” philosophy.

Michael Voris, S.T.B. can be counted among the former group, a man whose uncompromising faithfulness to the true Magisterium of the Catholic Church has made him a marked man of sorts.

I had a chance to speak to Michael Friday evening from his studios in Ferndale Michigan just as he was walking off the set of Monday’s new “The Vortex”, one of the shows Michael produces and presents on Real Catholic TV. At 48, Voris, president and founder of St. Michael’s Media, is among the scores of Catholics who simply weren’t taught the true faith growing up.

Voris graduated from Notre Dame in 1983 with a degree in Communications and concentrated studies in history and politics. Equally impressive is his theological education. He not only trained as a young man in theology at the doctrinally-sound St. Joseph’s Seminary in New York, but in April of 2009, he received his Sacred Theology Baccalaureate (STB) from Sacred Heart Major Seminary/Angelicum in Rome, graduating Magna Cum Laude.

He then spent a number of years working as a CBS affiliate anchor, producer and reporter in various markets, and won multiple Emmy Awards for his work in broadcast news. Working in the secular media provided him with not only the technical knowledge to produce excellent television programming, but a profound grasp of the need to produce programs that leave the viewer improved spiritually rather than merely entertained.

On May 8, 2006, he opened St. Michael’s Media, a new state-of-the-art digital television studio, dedicated to the archangel who Scripture promises will lead the victorious battle against Satan at the end of time (Rev 12:07). Mr. Voris was booked to speak at Marywood University this weekend but was then unceremoniously cancelled. When the organizers found another venue, St. Paul’s school in Scranton, the Diocese of Scranton intervened and released the following:

The Diocese of Scranton has determined that Mr. Voris will not be allowed to speak in a Diocesan or parish facility. After these engagements were scheduled, the Diocese became aware of concerns about this individual’s views regarding other religious groups. In videos posted on the Internet, Mr. Voris makes comments that certainly can be interpreted as being insensitive to people of other faiths. The Catholic Church teaches us to respect all people, regardless of their faith tradition.

Although the Diocese shares Mr. Voris’ support of efforts to protect human life, his extreme positions on other faiths are not appropriate and therefore the Diocese cannot host him.

Which leads us to where we currently stand today – here is my interview with Michael Voris, S.T.B.

RT Hello Mr. Voris, thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to address the people of the Diocese of Scranton.

MV Oh no problem it’s my pleasure. It’s good for everybody to have a clear understanding of everything.

RT Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. It’s been a week of ups and downs concerning your speaking engagement in the Diocese, first it was on and then off. What was your initial reaction when Marywood University decided to cancel you for good? Before the Diocese banned you, that is. How were you informed?

MV Marywood had cancelled me and then, how it was relayed to me by Paul (the organizer) was that Marywood said ok, then they cancelled it, then they said ok again, then it was permanently cancelled. If I have the structure correct there. The person who was keeping in touch with everything was Paul the organizer I haven’t received any kind of official notification or anything about anything from Marywood or the Diocese or anybody for that matter…

My initial reaction to the Marywood thing is that I went to Notre Dame and of course during the whole Obama fiasco appearing every time or people with an anti-catholic agenda or bad Catholics are invited to the Catholic Universities to speak we keep hearing “well what they say isn’t necessarily something we endorse, but in the name of academic freedom, we need to hear all sides of this, that and the other.” And I’ve always kind of thought that was a joke, that they don’t really mean. I don’t mean just Marywood, I mean anybody who subscribes to propping up someone who doesn’t believe in the faith or who will tear down the faith either directly or by their presence. I’ve never believed that this whole academic freedom thing was anything more than a smokescreen to get people up on a Catholic stage, in varying degrees of nuance, to try to destroy the faith. Weaken the faith, destroy it, present alternative views to it that are not Catholic in any sense. And I’ve seen with my own eyes, now this is the first time I’ve personally run into this kind of animus. It’s amazing to me that the same people who continually preach “no hate” and “tolerance” and all this are the very people who exercise this kind of thing.
I also find it kind of puzzling on the Marywood side of things, I’d like to ask somebody, what is it exactly that you’ve heard me say or anything on Real Catholic TV that would cause such a hate filled response on your part? For an academic community to refuse to let somebody speak is…if you’re going to play that game of academic freedom and let the whole spectrum of views be heard, it strikes me as extraordinarily hypocritical to say “…we want all views to be heard except this one over here because we don’t agree with it”. I guess my question would be how can they possibly call it anything other than hypocritical? And two, what exactly is it that you’ve heard me say that was so intolerable that you have to break your own code of academic freedom?

RT How did you react after the Diocesan statement banning you from speaking in any Diocesan or parish facility?

MV Well I think that’s extremely unfortunate that a Bishop of the Church would give the impression, whether it was him or his staff, that what I repeat of church teaching is somehow unfit for a Catholic to hear. There is an implication there that is very disturbing. VERY disturbing. Especially in light of the fact of this Sarah person (Benoraitis) that he gave permission to. You have to see everything in the big picture. If somebody is determined by the Bishop to be fit to talk to a Catholic group with all of this woman’s track record, and her clearly obvious Catholic animus and then to say that what she says is ok for a Catholic audience but what I say or what someone like me would say is not fit, then that’s very troubling in the soul to hear something like that.

RT What would you say to Bishop Bambera? Now I know that the actual Diocesan statement is very vague, it says “The Diocese of Scranton has determined” Who’s the “diocese” in this case? I made phone calls today to the Bishop’s office, to the communications office, and no one wants to talk about it. No one wants to take responsibility for it. Maybe you share my view, that whether he wrote it or not, that the buck stops with the Bishop. So what would you say to Bishop Bambera?

MV I’m not so sure it’s what I would say, it’s what I would ask. I would ask a series of questions, because the Bishop, or the Bishop’s staff, in the name of the Bishop, the Bishops staff undertook a number of steps which has lead to this series of events. I would say “Your Excellency, I am confused and I have a good number of questions for you. Because I and so many people in the Scranton area, from what I’m hearing, are very confused and a few answers would be helpful.”

The first question I would ask and would like an answer to is “Do you stand by the statement that was released by the Diocese in your name?”

Two is “If you stand by that statement, could you please explain it? Because it is so vague as to have no real meaning to it. It sounds personally demeaning to me. Coupled with the action of letting a pro abort lesbian talk on another campus but denying me to talk at this one, that seems to heighten the level of demeaning against me. So could you clear up in my mind why this is the case?

Number three, “What is it exactly that I’ve said, and when I say exactly, I mean EXACTLY what is it I have said that is so problematic that a pro abort lesbian gets to speak but I don’t?” I’m guessing it would be probably, we have, I don’t know, 300 hundreds hours maybe, that’s a relatively good guess, we have around 300 hours of recorded video of programs and talks and retreats and that sort of thing on our website that I have delivered the lions share of. How much of this 300 hours has whoever made this determination, actually watched? If there was something problematic in that, another question is, why didn’t someone from the Diocese simply pick up the phone and call me? We get emails and phone calls from people everyday. We get dozens and dozens and dozens of people, everything we say is out there in the world for anyone to see and watch. And they hear it and if they have a question they call us. Why can’t someone on your staff do that? Particularly in light of the fact that a decision has been made against the context of letting a pro abortion lesbian speak when I was being refused. Her whole body of work was known to the public, known to the Bishop, he wrote a document, saying he had expressed concerns, so her body of work was known to him personally. Was my body of work known to him personally? And if it is, how much of it is? If there is a question that arose, what was the question?

Why didn’t someone call? Why wouldn’t someone call and say ‘…hey, what’s going on here’? That’s troubling to me and it seems that a lot of people, at least from what I understand are running into this same thing. It seems like a decision is made without reference to the major players or the parties involved and a decision is simply made and then executed and formulated in a way so that no one is held accountable for it and no one is willing to talk about it. That tactic is troubling. So that’s what I would also ask the Bishop, “Are you aware that these types of tactics are being used in your name?”

Another thing that was personally troubling to me was the sense that what I had said was somehow characterized as being insensitive? I’m not sure what it said in that little section…

RT “In videos posted on the internet, Mr. Voris makes comments that certainly can be interpreted as being insensitive to people of other faiths.”

MV Well I could interpret that comment as being insensitive to me. Then should he therefore retract it? Interpretation is kind of "...beauty is in the eye of the beholder". I believe that Jesus saying to the Pharisees "Woe to you you brood of vipers, you hypocrites, how can you escape damnation?" I think that might be able to be interpreted as insensitive. I simply don’t buy that. I simply don’t buy that. Personally, I don’t believe this is a matter of people being insensitive to other faiths, they just don’t like the content of the message, and are using the way the message is said as the excuse to squelch the message and I firmly believe that.

Be cause now, all of these questions are out there. When someone delivers a statement, and someone says, ”…this is the way it is” that statement should be pretty clear. And there shouldn’t be people walking away with a lot of questions, except some little minor things. You shouldn’t release something and then cause a whole hornet’s nest of other questions and charges and counter charges and it doesn’t seem like a good way to run the candy store. Let’s put it that way.

RT Looking forward, do you have any future plans in the Diocese?

MV Yes, Paul and his wife are planning on doing something, I’m coming in next weekend. They’re just running around organizing that now.

RT Our talk would have been a bit different if you were still coming in tomorrow, so I wanted to go back to what I originally wanted to talk to you about and I’ll tie it in to the recent events. On a recent episode of The Vortex you spoke about the people having to take responsibility for carrying on the true faith since many of our Shepherds are incapable of doing it themselves. Now that you have experienced the Scranton style of shepherding, can you elaborate on that for the people of our Diocese?

MV Sure. I think it’s, again, I can’t vouch for how involved Bishop Bambera was, so I can’t speak directly to him as a man, but some functionary of his at the Scranton chancery made a decision about this talk on Church property. Whether he knows this or not, I would come back and ask these functionaries “Why do you think Catholics want to bring people in to speak?” That should sort of be a red flag for you. If they were being fed, they wouldn’t need to turn to outside sources to feed them. They should ask themselves the question “What is the attraction of Real Catholic TV?” Or for that matter, any of these other organizations and outfits that so many Catholics are turning to on the internet.

The usual channels for the distribution of the faith are becoming irrelevant to Catholics who actually care about learning the faith. That’s not my doing, that’s not your doing, that’s the doing of the people that have been responsible for those channels the last 30 or 40 years. They have used those channels to choke off the delivery of the Faith in an authentic, life-affirming, changing fashion. And because of that, people are now turning to other sources. It speaks a disturbance of the soul on the part of the people who do this, that they choke one off outlet, and they cut another one off at the knees. They want control of the message of the faith but what they have controlled is preventing people from finding out the true faith They have gotten a watered down version of the Faith. They present a type of a Faith or a version of the Faith or a flavor of the Faith, that really, really isn’t the Faith. It smacks of the Faith, it has a bit of the odor of the Faith, but that’s about it. And because of that, people who really want to know about the Faith turn to other sources.

In one sense, it’s kind of like Totalitarian regimes when they cut off one source of the truth people go and find other sources, they develop an underground press, you simply cannot conquer the innate desire within human beings to want to know the truth because that is the innate desire placed there by Almighty God. That’s what inspires people to move toward him and you cannot choke that off. Cannot defeat it. Half truths, false truths and that sort of stuff, you cannot expect that people are going to be remain content. It never happens, and it never will happen. Now you will kill off a lot of people’s spiritual life, but you won’t kill off everyone’s spiritual life.

And that seems to be the lesson the people that operate in this fashion simply have not learned.

Catholic Definition Day

Just in case you were wondering I have decided to have "Catholic Definition Day". Here is the definition for today:

Heretic – a baptized person who rejects a dogma of the Catholic Church. Heretics are
automatically excommunicated from the Church (ipso facto) without any declaration for rejecting an authoritative teaching of the Faith.

Pope Leo XIII, Satis Cognitum (# 9), June 29, 1896:
“No one who merely disbelieves in all (these heresies) can for that reason regard himself
as a Catholic or call himself one. For there may be or arise some other heresies, which are
not set out in this work of ours, and, if any one holds to a single one of these he is not a
Catholic.” The Papal Encyclicals, by Claudia Carlen, Raleigh: The Pierian Press, 1990,Vol. 2 (1878-1903), Vol. 2 (1878-1903), p. 393.

Pope St. Pius X, Editae Saepe (# 43), May 26, 1910: “It is a certain, well-established fact that
no other crime so seriously offends God and provokes His greatest wrath as the vice of
heresy.” The Papal Encyclicals, Vol. 3 (1903-1939), p. 125.

Now heresy is not the same as "apostasy". The apostate abandons fully the faith of Christ. The heretic still maintains his faith in some fashion. So someone who rejects Christ and becomes a Mohammedan for instance would be an apostate. Someone who rejects some dogma of the Church but remains "Catholic" is a heretic.

Hope this helps!

Not The Same Church

Here's the latest from banned Catholic speaker Michael Voris over at RealCatholicTV.com. With the advent of the new "Liturgical Dance Ensemble" over at Marywood, we can clearly see the designs these people have set for our Diocese. Don't let it happen here. Be strong, stay informed, and be vocal in your opposition to heresy.

What's Next?

I received a comment to this post about the Bambera Doctrine. This comment was from two of the organizers of the Michael Voris talks that were to be held this weekend, but that the Diocese decided they had to cancel.

Response to Diocese of Scranton's Banning of Michael Voris:

As faithful Catholics who respect and value Church authority and the virtue of obedience, we are both shocked and saddened that such a short-sighted mindset has afflicted our local Church leadership. In a day when diversity is prized above all, we stand in stunned amazement that our leaders cannot read the signs of the times and would not extend a pastoral welcome of tolerance, inclusiveness and justice to Mr. Voris.

Michael Voris is an accomplished Catholic layman, a multiple Emmy Award winning journalist who is confident and comfortable in communicating the truths of our Catholic Faith. He has spoken in dozens and dozens of Church locations all around the world, where he has been warmly received by both bishops and laity alike.

Our events were open to all as we simply wanted to celebrate our Catholic Faith. Now, because of a refusal on the part of Catholic College Marywood to subscribe to the tenets of academic freedom, and a glaring amount of intolerance and prejudice on the part of diocesan leaders, we are being forced to abandon our Catholic "home" properties, not to mention the injustice done to Michael Voris’ character. We ask Bishop Bambera to enter into dialogue with us regarding this matter.

Because Michael Voris is an orthodox Catholic, faithful to the Magesterium and all the teachings of the Holy Catholic Church, it would be a shame for us to re-schedule our events at a secular site. However, thanks to the publicity being generated by the actions of those who operate out of fear and rash judgments, we would look forward to an even more successful event with larger crowds than originally planned.

The re-scheduled events will be posted as soon as they are finalized. For more information and questions you may contact Paul and Kristen Ciaccia at 570-814-1863 or learnthefaith@yahoo.com.

Bravo for the organizers!

No Oppposition!

That's apparently the Bambera Doctrine. No opposition to modernism, progressivism, or the liberal agenda will be tolerated. But if you're abortion lovin' Senator Bobby Casey, you are certainly welcome in the Cathedral to take Communion right under Bambera's nose, though.

Today the Diocese posted this on their website:

The Diocese of Scranton has determined that Mr. Voris will not be allowed to speak in a Diocesan or parish facility. After these engagements were scheduled, the Diocese became aware of concerns about this individual’s views regarding other religious groups. In videos posted on the Internet, Mr. Voris makes comments that certainly can be interpreted as being insensitive to people of other faiths. The Catholic Church teaches us to respect all people, regardless of their faith tradition.

Although the Diocese shares Mr. Voris’ support of efforts to protect human life, his extreme positions on other faiths are not appropriate and therefore the Diocese cannot host him.

This is an absolute outrage! Michael Voris stands with the true Magisterium of the Church and to blacklist him from speaking throughout the entire Diocese is a disgrace.

It shows us just how scared these modernists are of the truth and the lengths this new Bishop will go to to maintain the status quo.

More to follow...

Marini Rocks!

Pay close attention Bishop Bambera, and Diocese of Scranton priests, to this interview. The Papal Master of Ceremonies explains how the Papal Liturgies are to be examples to all priests everywhere. The liturgy is not open to you or some "director of worship's" need to express yourselves. From the Poland Sunday magazine Niedziela.

Wlodzimierz Redzioch: – What does the collaboration between Benedict XVI and his Master of Ceremonies look like? Does the Pope decide about everything?

Msgr. Guido Marini: – At first, I would like to stress that the celebrations the Holy Father presides over are to be the points of reference for the whole Church. The Pope is the highest priest the one who offers the sacrifice of the Church, the one who shows the liturgical teaching through celebrations – the point of reference for all.Considering this explanation it is easier to understand what the style of collaboration between the Papal Master of Ceremonies and the Holy Father should be. One should act in the way to make the papal liturgies the expressions of his authentic liturgical orientation. Therefore, the Papal Master of Ceremonies must be a humble and faithful servant of the liturgy of the Church. I have understood my work in the Office of Papal Liturgical Celebrations in this way since the very beginning.

– We all can see the changes introduced to the liturgical celebrations by Benedict XVI. How can we synthesize these changes?

– I think that these changes can be synthesized in the following way: first of all, these are changes made in accordance with the logic of development of continuity with the past. So we do not deal with breaking with the past and juxtaposing with the former pontificates. Secondly, the introduced changes serve to evoke the true spirit of liturgy like the Second Vatican Council wanted, ‘The “subject” of the liturgy’s intrinsic beauty is Christ himself, risen and glorified in the Holy Spirit, who includes the Church in his work.’

– Celebrations directed towards the cross, Holy Communion received directly by mouth and while keeling, longer moments of silence and meditation – these are the most visible liturgical changes introduced by Benedict XVI. Unfortunately, many people do not understand the theological and historical meanings of these changes and what is worse, they can see them as ‘return to the past.’ Can you briefly explain the meanings of these changes?

– To tell you the truth our office has received many testimonies of the faithful who have favourably received the changes introduced by the Pope because they see them as the authentic renewal of the liturgy. As for the significance of some changes I will say a few synthetic reflections. Celebrating towards the cross stresses the correct direction of liturgical prayer, i.e. towards God; during prayers the faithful are not to look at themselves but should direct their eyes towards the Saviour. Giving hosts to people kneeling aims to giving value to the aspect of adoration both as the fundamental element of celebration and the necessary attitude while facing the mystery of God’s real presence in the Eucharist. During the liturgical celebration prayer assumes various forms: words, songs, music, gestures and silence. Furthermore, moments of silence let us participate truly in the act of worship, and what’s more, from the inside evoke every other form of prayer.

– The Pope attaches importance to the liturgical vestments. Is it a matter of pure aestheticism?

– In order to understand better the Pope’s ideas concerning the meaning of the beauty as an important element of liturgical celebrations I would like to quote the apostolic exhortation ‘Sacramentum caritatis, ’This relationship between creed and worship is evidenced in a particular way by the rich theological and liturgical category of beauty. Like the rest of Christian Revelation, the liturgy is inherently linked to beauty: it is veritatis splendor. […] This is no mere aestheticism, but the concrete way in which the truth of God’s love in Christ encounters us, attracts us and delights us, enabling us to emerge from ourselves and drawing us towards our true vocation, which is love. The truest beauty is the love of God, who definitively revealed himself to us in the paschal mystery. […] The beauty of the liturgy is part of this mystery; it is a sublime expression of God’s glory and, in a certain sense, a glimpse of heaven on earth. Beauty, then, is not mere decoration, but rather an essential element of the liturgical action, since it is an attribute of God himself and his revelation.’

– Benedict XVI has changed his pastoral staff – currently he is using the cross-shaped staff. Why?

– I would like to remind you that till the pontificate of Pope Paul VI popes did not use crosiers at all; on special occasions they carried a ferula (cross-shaped staff). Pope Montini, Paul VI, introduced a cross-shaped crosier. And so did Benedict XVI till the Pentecost Sunday of 2008. Since then he has been using ferula because he thinks that it is more suitable for the papal liturgy.

– Why is it so important that the Church preserves using Latin in the liturgy?

– Although the Second Vatican Council introduced national languages it recommended using Latin in the liturgy. I think it is for two reasons that we should not give up Latin. Above all, we have a great liturgical legacy of Latin: from the Gregorian chant to polyphony as well as ‘testi venerandi’ (sacred texts) that Christians have used for ages. Besides, Latin allows us to show catholicity and universality of the Church. We can experience this universality in a unique way in St Peter’s Basilica and during other international gatherings when men and women from all continents, nationalities, languages, sing and pray in the same language. Who will not feel at home when being at church abroad can join his/her brothers in the faith at least in some parts by using Latin?

– Do you agree that the faith of priest is expressed in the liturgy in a special way

– I have no doubts about it. Since the liturgy is the celebration of Christ’s mystery here and now the priest is called to express his faith in a twofold way. Firstly, he should celebrate with eyes of the one that looks beyond the visible reality to ‘touch’ what is invisible, i.e. God’s presence and work. It is ‘ars celebrandi’ (art of celebration) that lets the faithful check whether the liturgy is only a performance, spectacle for the priest or whether it is a vivid and attractive relation with Christ’s mystery. Secondly, after the celebration the priest is renewed and ready to follow what he has experienced, i.e. make his life a celebration of Christ’s mystery.

Breaking News!

Catholic speaker and host of www.realcatholictv.com Michael Voris's speaking engagement which was to be held at Marywood University this coming Saturday has been CANCELED!

According to my sources Mr. Voris' work has been deemed "Too controversial" by the university.

But not to be undone by Marywood, a supposed "Catholic institution", the talk will now take place at Saint Paul's school located at 1527 Penn Avenue in Scranton. The talk will begin at 6:30pm.

I'll have more on this travesty by the Marywood officials soon. Stay tuned here.

First Obama Campaign Ad of 2012!

Right on the money? You decide!

Dogma! Part Deux

Two days ago I started a Lenten series based on the Dogmas of the Church. Today I present part two.

II. God the Creator

1. All that exists outside God was, in its whole substance, produced out of nothing by God.
2. God was moved by His goodness to create the world.
3. The world was created for the glorification of God.
4. The Three Divine Persons are one single, common principle of creation.
5. God created the world free from exterior compulsion and inner necessity.
6. God has created a good world.
7. The world had a beginning in time.
8. God alone created the world.
9. God keeps all created things in existence.
10. God, through His Providence, protects and guides all that He has created.
11. The first man was created by God.
12. Man consists of two essential parts - a material body and a spiritual soul.
13. The rational soul per se is the essential form of the body.
14. Every human being possesses an individual soul.
15. God has conferred on man a supernatural destiny.
16. Our first parents, before the fall, were endowed with sanctifying grace.
17. In addition to sanctifying grace, our first parents were endowed with the preternatural gift of bodily immortality.
18. Our first parents in Paradise sinned grievously through transgression of the Divine probationary commandment.
19. Through sin our first parents lost sanctifying grace and provoked the anger and the indignation of God.
20. Our first parents became subject to death and to the dominion of the devil.
21. Adam's sin is transmitted to his posterity, not by imitation but by descent.
22. Original sin is transmitted by natural generation.
23. In the state of original sin man is deprived of sanctifying grace and all that this implies, as well as of the preternatural gifts of integrity.
24. Souls who depart this life in the state of original sin are excluded from the Beatific Vision of God.
25. In the beginning of time God created spiritual essences (angels) out of nothing.
26. The nature of angels is spiritual.
27. The evil spirits (demons) were created good by God; they became evil through their own fault.
28. The secondary task of the good angels is the protection of men and care for their salvation.
29. The devil possesses a certain dominion over mankind by reason of Adam's sin.

Thank You, Vatican II!

This travesty is the closing mess from the 2011 National "Catholic" Educational Conference held in Los Angeles. They actually had super dissenting, rolemodel for IHM Marywood nuns everywhere, "Sister" Joan Chittister, as a keynote speaker. "Sister" Joan speaks and writes constantly against Church teaching on issues such as homosexuality and the ordination of women. So we have a manifest heretic addressing Catholic educators from around the country.

Maybe this is why Catholic education is so bad nowadays.

Sign Of The Times

Who at Marywood could be working so hard to refuse Catholic speaker Michael Voris his speaking engagement this weekend? Maybe a dissenting IHM sister? Someone involved in the so-called "Liturgical Dance Ensemble"? A modernist priest? Keep your eyes here.

Calling All Men!

Do you know what it is means to be a real man?

Do you know what it takes to be a real Catholic man?

Join us at Our Lady of Victory, Pole 26, Harvey’s Lake on April 9th at 10 AM to hear Michael Voris speak on the topic – Real Catholic Men: Strength and Honor! (If you are planning to attend, please call Paul at 592-0264).

What makes a man a real Catholic man is his practice of VIRTUE.

The word “virtue” comes from the Latin word "vir" which means man, male (as opposed to mankind or humanity).

From the days of the Ancients, masculinity has always been associated with virtue and vice versa.

Virtue is also associated with Heaven. Without virtue, you may never hope to see God in the Face.

Presented by Real Catholic TV and St. Michaels Media and sponsored by The Guardians of the Redeemer. (Visit realCatholicTV.com)

Dogma!

Or, what you as a Catholic must believe.

A "Dogma" is an article of faith which has been revealed by God, and which the Magisterium of the Holy Catholic Church has presented to be believed.

Since there seems to be confusion about what Catholics believe I thought this Lenten season would be a good time for us to review that which we must believe.

The following De Fide statements comprise "Our Catholic Faith without which it is impossible to please God" (The Council of Trent, Session V, explaining the correct interpretation of Hebrews 11: 6). These positive "articles of faith" have the function of fundamental principles which the faithful accepts without discussion as being certain and sure by virtue of the authority of God, Who is absolute truth (Council of the Vatican). They represent the mind of Christ as St. Paul says:

• 1 Cor. 2:16. But we have the mind of Christ.
• Hebrews 13:8. Jesus Christ yesterday, and today: and the same for ever.

Since Our Catholic Faith comes from God, they are not open for debate, and they are not reversible.

The Christian is called to adhere to Christ and His teaching integrally; the unity of faith is the dominant motif of divine revelation on which St. Paul insists energetically, when he writes:

• 1 Cor. 1:10. I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no schisms among you: but that you be perfect in mind and in the same judgement.

There is, then, no place for "pick and choose" in the truths proposed to the Faith of Christians by the Infallible Teaching Church for they are bound in Heaven by God Himself. If something is decreed on earth and is also bound in Heaven, that thing must be the truth. Otherwise, God is no longer the Truth, which is contrary to the Gospel:

• Matthew 16:19. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in Heaven.

The Catholic Church is infallible because it is :

• 1 Tim 3:15. the church of the living God, the pillar and the ground of the truth.

If a baptized person deliberately denies or contradicts a dogma, he or she is guilty of the sin of heresy and automatically becomes subject to the punishment of excommunication. And that also includes ccd teachers, rcia teachers, priests, sisters, bishops, cardinals, and yes, even the Pope.

And bloggers, too!

I. The Unity and Trinity of God

1. God, our Creator and Lord, can be known with certainty, by the natural light of reason from created things.
2. God's existence is not merely an object of rational knowledge, but also an object of supernatural faith.
3. God's Nature is incomprehensible to men.
4. The blessed in Heaven possess an immediate intuitive knowledge of the Divine Essence.
5. The immediate vision of God transcends the natural power of cognition of the human soul, and is therefore supernatural.
6. The soul, for the immediate vision of God, requires the light of glory.
7. God's Essence is also incomprehensible to the blessed in Heaven.
8. The divine attributes are really identical among themselves and with the Divine Essence.
9. God is absolutely perfect.
10. God is actually infinite in every perfection.
11. God is absolutely simple.
12. There is only one God.
13. The one God is, in the ontological sense, the true God.
14. God possesses an infinite power of cognition.
15. God is absolute veracity.
16. God is absolutely faithful.
17. God is absolute ontological goodness in Himself and in relation to others.
18. God is absolute moral goodness or holiness.
19. God is absolute benignity.
20. God is absolutely immutable.
21. God is eternal.
22. God is immense or absolutely immeasurable.
23. God is everywhere present in created space.
24. God's knowledge is infinite.
25. God's knowledge is purely and simply actual.
26. God's knowledge is subsistent.
27. God knows all that is merely possible by the knowledge of simple intelligence.
28. God knows all real things in the past, the present and the future.
29. By the knowledge of vision, God also foresees the future free acts of rational creatures with infallible certainty.
30. God's Divine Will is infinite.
31. God loves Himself of necessity, but loves and wills the creation of extra-divine things, on the other hand, with freedom.
32. God is almighty.
33. God is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth.
34. God is infinitely just.
35. God is infinitely merciful.
36. In God there are three Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Each of the three Persons possesses the one (numerical) Divine Essence.
37. In God there are two internal divine processions.
38. The Divine Persons, not the Divine Nature, are the subject of the internal divine processions (in the active and in the passive sense).
39. The Second Divine Person proceeds from the First Divine Person by generation, and therefore is related to Him as Son to Father.
40. The Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and from the Son as from a single principle through a single spiration.
41. The Holy Ghost does not proceed through generation but through spiration.
42. The relations in God are really identical with the Divine Nature.
43. The Three Divine Persons are in one another.
44. All the ad extra activities of God are common to the three Persons.

Taking It Back

Michael Voris, who will be speaking this weekend at Marywood University has two great new videos up. I present them here for your edification.

Quote Of The Day

"The devil has always attempted, by means of heretics, to deprive the world of the Mass..." St. Alphonsus

Did they succeed at Vatican II?

Personal Ordinariat?

Happy Sunday!

Even while our own short-sighted Bishop Bambera has forbidden faithful Catholics from attending the Society of Saint Pius X in Pittston, it seems the real authority in the matter, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, is working on a solution with the Lefabvrists.

I'll get back to the Pope in a second.

Does Bishop Bambera go out of his way to instruct the faithful to not attend the Orthodox? Or a Baptist Church? Or a Mosque?

No. No. And no.

But he will go out of his way to instruct the faithful to avoid the Society.

Go and visit the Protestants and do damage to your soul, but stay away from those other Catholics over there. We accept all the religions, all the sects, all the cults, but not those Catholics. Foolishness.

Anyway, back to the Pope and those terrible SSPXers.

The Pope is considering a personal ordinariat for the Society, which is basically a non-geographic diocese. This would secure for the Society a freedom from the local Bishops, and surely this will grate on his Excellence. But eventually I think that will need to change, as it certainly would need to include a change to the Constitution of the Church, which I don't see happening.

Anyway, things are moving along, keep a close eye on how they progress.

"Let them alone: they are blind, and leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the pit." Matthew 15:14

A Call To Action

You must watch this video to understand what is transpiring around the world concerning Islam. Soon it will be the dominate religion (cult) in the world. What are we going to do about it?



While you're at it, watch this one too.
Islam overtakes France

At Least 12 Dead In Afghanistan

And here's another shining example of the peaceful and oh so tolerant Muslims.

We spend billions and billions of dollars to build them a nation they could never even imagine and for what? We should just get out and leave these animals where we found them - in the 6th century.

Read here..

What's In A Name?

Would you start a Victorian Dance Ensemble if you would never be able to go to a Victorian ball and dance? Would you start a Victorian Dance Ensemble if you knew that Victorian Dance was considered a "dancing abuse"?

Well, that's apparently what some of the IHM "sisters" at Marywood University have done. No, they won't be dressed up like Scarlett O'Hara.

They have started a "Liturgical Dance Ensemble". The Diocese of Scranton, while having its share of liturgical abuses has been relatively unscathed by "liturgical dance".

It would seem our new Bishop is looking to fix that oversight.

At a Christmas concert held at the cathedral of all places, two supposedly Catholic nuns sashayed to and fro about the cathedral in an attempt to highlight their spirituality and creativeness.

Plus it has come to my attention that the good sisters have been prancing during actual Masses, but I have not been able to confirm this.

With few exceptions, the Holy See has said "no" to liturgical dance. James Akin, in his book Mass Confusion, notes that the Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship, in an authoritative 1975 document, cited specific cultures in which liturgical dance has enhanced the liturgy and reflected the religious values of those cultures. But liturgical dance has never been part of the liturgical tradition of the Latin Church, and never been deemed appropriate in the West. The documents states: "Conciliar decisions have often condemned the religious dance because it conduces little to worship and because it could degenerate into disorders." The document adds that pseudo-ballet, or "interpretive dance," which has been tried in liturgy, is also prohibited.

So what's the point?

Why bother starting a "Liturgical Dance Ensemble" if you know you cannot dance liturgically?

Similarly, why would start an organization called "Women Priests" when you know a woman cannot be a priest? There's something more at work here.