Why did it take the police twenty minutes to get to the Woolwich site yesterday? Why?
And, why were people taking photos and videos on their phones AND NOT HELPING THE YOUNG MAN?
Immigration problems and not dealing with the violent talk in the religious circles which feeds this type of murder led to this.
This guy is great.
http://www.france24.com/en/20130523-car-bombings-niger-hit-uranium-mine-army-base?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Thursday, 23 May 2013
The Church is not rich
a bit of righteous anger today....
The Church in Europe is poor. Why do people think otherwise? Do I need to give examples? There will come a day in England when there will be many closed church buildings.
It has been the coldest winter and spring for centuries in England and Scotland and most of the churches have not been able to heat the buildings. It is very cold during Mass, believe me, and Adoration. Many older people wear many layers and suffer in churches. I know women who tell me how hard it is on them to go to daily Mass and Adoration because of sitting in the cold. But, they do it. The same is true for the convents and monasteries. In Tyburn, there was not heat, although out of charity, the Novice Mistress brought me a space heater and I used a hot water bottle. It is very cold there. The sisters from Peru and the Philippines suffer. In some convents and seminaries in Europe, there is only cold water in the rooms for washing, not hot.
Beds in most Church properties are very old. Cobh had new mattresses but the ones in Tyburn and some seminaries are older than some of the parents or even grandparents, of the students! Food is good, but minimal, and much less than what Americans would be used to eating daily. There are few fat seminarians and most priests are thin. All the nuns are very thin, except for one with a medical condition. As Mother Novice Mistress told me, "If you stay here, you will lose weight."
One of a group of nuns visited Tyburn from America and said to Mother that the life was "spartan". It is both by choice and by necessity.
I am really not understanding two things:
One, why the Catholic laity is so stingy here and two; why people assume the Church has money. It emphatically does not. I know some parishes where the parish councils had to collect money for the priest's car, as his area of ministry was so large he could not afford the petrol. I know families which go to Spain on holiday two or three times a year and do not tithe.
Tithing is not the norm here in England, Scotland and Wales, nor it is in Ireland. People may give a pound or a euro at Mass and that is it. I have talked with priests about this, but the Catholics do not regularly support the Church. There are some big donors, such as the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk, but those types of donors have become more rare, as families fall away from the Church.
When I ask for help, I am asking for help from my readers, as there are no other resources. Groups tend to give to the Third World very generously which is good. But, the truth is that there are many nuns and seminarians who are suffering from a very low standard of living.
When I was in Cobh, some of the guests complained about the sparse and low quality of food. I said to them that the nuns depended on the laity for donations. One couple left food baskets outside the door there of vegetables, enough for about three dinners. One lady gives some vegetables to London Tyburn. The nuns do not have endowments or savings. They also feed the poorer than themselves. They drink the worst tea and the worst coffee. They live in rooms which make American prisons look like posh hotels. And, yet people think these groups have money. Yes, penance is part of the Rule, as is poverty. But, there is a difference between poverty and penury. Diocesan priests and sems do not make a vow of poverty.
Look into your own hearts and do not pass on the responsibility for giving to others. There may be no "others". If God calls a poor man to the priesthood from a poor family, who should help but the laity? He will be their priest and serve them.
By the way, I am stopping Anonymous comments. I have to do this as the nastiest ones are coming in, of course, under Anonymous. This is cowardice, by the way.
Choose a name and use it, please.
The Church in Europe is poor. Why do people think otherwise? Do I need to give examples? There will come a day in England when there will be many closed church buildings.
| Thanks to wiki for St. Benedict's Church in Paddlesworth |
Beds in most Church properties are very old. Cobh had new mattresses but the ones in Tyburn and some seminaries are older than some of the parents or even grandparents, of the students! Food is good, but minimal, and much less than what Americans would be used to eating daily. There are few fat seminarians and most priests are thin. All the nuns are very thin, except for one with a medical condition. As Mother Novice Mistress told me, "If you stay here, you will lose weight."
One of a group of nuns visited Tyburn from America and said to Mother that the life was "spartan". It is both by choice and by necessity.
I am really not understanding two things:
One, why the Catholic laity is so stingy here and two; why people assume the Church has money. It emphatically does not. I know some parishes where the parish councils had to collect money for the priest's car, as his area of ministry was so large he could not afford the petrol. I know families which go to Spain on holiday two or three times a year and do not tithe.
Tithing is not the norm here in England, Scotland and Wales, nor it is in Ireland. People may give a pound or a euro at Mass and that is it. I have talked with priests about this, but the Catholics do not regularly support the Church. There are some big donors, such as the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk, but those types of donors have become more rare, as families fall away from the Church.
When I ask for help, I am asking for help from my readers, as there are no other resources. Groups tend to give to the Third World very generously which is good. But, the truth is that there are many nuns and seminarians who are suffering from a very low standard of living.
When I was in Cobh, some of the guests complained about the sparse and low quality of food. I said to them that the nuns depended on the laity for donations. One couple left food baskets outside the door there of vegetables, enough for about three dinners. One lady gives some vegetables to London Tyburn. The nuns do not have endowments or savings. They also feed the poorer than themselves. They drink the worst tea and the worst coffee. They live in rooms which make American prisons look like posh hotels. And, yet people think these groups have money. Yes, penance is part of the Rule, as is poverty. But, there is a difference between poverty and penury. Diocesan priests and sems do not make a vow of poverty.
Look into your own hearts and do not pass on the responsibility for giving to others. There may be no "others". If God calls a poor man to the priesthood from a poor family, who should help but the laity? He will be their priest and serve them.
By the way, I am stopping Anonymous comments. I have to do this as the nastiest ones are coming in, of course, under Anonymous. This is cowardice, by the way.
Choose a name and use it, please.
Finally, back up on my theme of perfection
If you think you can hold beliefs contrary to the teaching of the Church and be holy, you are dead wrong. Following false seers and believing what you want will lead you to hell. Salvation is through the Catholic Church and purposefully remaining in ignorance is the fault of many Catholic adults, who cannot enter the road to holiness without being orthodox. If one is a charismatic and not following the guidelines of the bishops or Rome, one has removed one's self from the road to holiness. Period.
Catholic Silence
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/young-christians-will-be-locked-out-of-public-professions-by-gay-marriage-m
Some ministers are brave and Christian enough to say this. Sadly, only three bishops and a handful of priests here in Great Britain have said the same thing. Why?
The silence of the Catholic Church on these topics is a howling wind of apostasy. Where are our leaders? We need to hear this type of guidance and warning from the pulpit. I, personally, besides reading the statements of some of the bishops, not all, have heard only ONE priest talk about the changes in the life styles of the young, middle aged and old which will ripple from the SSM bill.
Why the silence? Why? From the article linked above:
Some ministers are brave and Christian enough to say this. Sadly, only three bishops and a handful of priests here in Great Britain have said the same thing. Why?
The silence of the Catholic Church on these topics is a howling wind of apostasy. Where are our leaders? We need to hear this type of guidance and warning from the pulpit. I, personally, besides reading the statements of some of the bishops, not all, have heard only ONE priest talk about the changes in the life styles of the young, middle aged and old which will ripple from the SSM bill.
Why the silence? Why? From the article linked above:
Young Christians will be shut out of all public professions, including teachers, doctors, nurses or any kind of public servant if the “gay marriage” bill is passed, a group of religious leaders has warned the government. The ministers issued the warning in a letter to the Daily Telegraph on the same day that the government came to an agreement with opposition parties over amendments. The bill is expected to move past the committee stage and on to the House of Lords after two days of debate today and tomorrow. (It passed-suupertradmum)
Should it be granted Royal Assent “in its present form,” the 17 Christian ministers said, the bill will “isolate hundreds of thousands of young students and workers across the country who hold a fuller view of marriage based on religion or a traditional view.”
“These young people, from teenagers to 30-year-olds, will suffer discrimination and face new risks to their careers, and futures,” they added. The ministers said that many young Christians understand marriage as “the thread that binds generations.” They warned that “without much clearer protections for freedom of speech and freedom of belief, teachers and public-sector workers will have to choose between their conscience and their career, as many will be deterred from a public-service career or from charity involvement”.
Finally, the real deal in Ireland
http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pro-abort-politicians-excommunicate-themselves-must-not-receive-communion-i
As usual, Life Site News is spot on. Here is a snippet. See article above for entire text.
You cannot regard yourself as a person of faith and support abortion,” Archbishop Eamon Martin told the Sunday Times. “If a legislator comes to me and says, ‘Can I be a faithful Catholic and support abortion?’ I would say no. Your communion is ruptured if you support abortion.”
As usual, Life Site News is spot on. Here is a snippet. See article above for entire text.
You cannot regard yourself as a person of faith and support abortion,” Archbishop Eamon Martin told the Sunday Times. “If a legislator comes to me and says, ‘Can I be a faithful Catholic and support abortion?’ I would say no. Your communion is ruptured if you support abortion.”
Wednesday, 22 May 2013
Our Lady of Walsingham, Pray for Us
Prayer to Our Lady of Walsingham
O Mary, recall the solemn moment when Jesus, your divine Son, dying on the cross confided us to your maternal care. You are our Mother; we desire ever to remain your devout children. Let us therefore feel the effects of your powerful intercession with Jesus Christ. Make your name again glorious in this place, once renowned throughout our land by your visits, favours and many miracles. Pray, O Holy Mother of God, for the conversion of England, restoration of the sick, consolation for the afflicted, repentance of sinners, peace to the departed. O Blessed Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady of Walsingham, intercede for us. Amen.
More on evil from the Catholic Encyclopedia
The disorder in the temporal order is due to Original Sin. Adam and Eve started the whole problem of evil in the natural order. We cannot deny this. The world was created in a perfection which was lost by sin and the consequences of sin.
God permits evil for many reasons.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05649a.htm
Evil is threefold, viz., "malum naturæ" (metaphysical evil), "culpæ" (moral), and "paenæ" (physical, the retributive consequence of "malum culpæ") (I, Q. xlviii, a. 5, 6; Q. lxiii, a. 9; De Malo, I, 4). Its existence subserves the perfection of the whole; the universe would be less perfect if it contained no evil. Thus fire could not exist without the corruption of what it consumes; the lion must slay the ass in order to live, and if there were no wrong doing, there would be no sphere for patience and justice (I, Q. xlviii, a. 2). God is said (as in Isaiah 45) to be the author of evil in the sense that the corruption of material objects in nature is ordained by Him, as a means for carrying out the design of the universe; and on the other hand, the evil which exists as a consequence of the breach of Divine laws is in the same sense due to Divine appointment; the universe would be less perfect if its laws could be broken with impunity. Thus evil, in one aspect, i.e. as counter-balancing the deordination of sin, has the nature of good (II, Q. ii, a. 19). But the evil of sin (culpæ), though permitted by God, is in no sense due to him (I, Q. xlix, a. 2).; its cause is the abuse of free will by angels and men (I-II, Q. lxxiii, a. 6; II-II, Q. x, a. 2; I-II, Q. ix, a. 3). It should be observed that the universal perfection to which evil in some form is necessary, is the perfection of this universe, not of any universe: metaphysical evil, that is to say, and indirectly, moral evil as well, is included in the design of the universe which is partially known to us; but we cannot say without denying the Divine omnipotence, that another equally perfect universe could not be created in which evil would have no place.
St. Thomas also provides explanations of what are now generally considered to be the two main difficulties of the subject, viz., the Divine permission of foreseen moral evil, and the question finally arriving thence, why God choose to create anything at all. First, it is asked why God, foreseeing that his creatures would use the gift of free will for their own injury, did not either abstain from creating them, or in some way safeguard their free will from misuse, or else deny them the gift altogether? St. Thomasreplies (C. G., II, xxviii) that God cannot change His mind, since the Divine will is free from the defect of weakness or mutability. Such mutability would, it should be remarked, be a defect in the Divine nature(and therefore impossible), because if God's purpose were made dependent on the foreseen free act of any creature, God would thereby sacrifice His own freedom, and would submit Himself to His creatures, thus abdicating His essential supremacy--a thing which is, of course, utterly inconceivable. Secondly, to the question why God should have chosen to create, when creation was in no way needful for His ownperfection, St. Thomas answers that God's object in creating is Himself; He creates in order to manifest his own goodness, power, and wisdom, and is pleased with that reflection or similitude of Himself in which the goodness of creation consists. God's pleasure is the one supremely perfect motive for action, alike in God Himself and in His creatures; not because of any need, or inherent necessity, in the Divinenature (C. G., I, xxviii; II, xxiii), but because God is the source, centre, and object, of all existence. (I, Q. 65:a. 2; cf. Proverbs 26 and Conc. Vat., can. 1:v; Const. Dogm., 1.) This is accordingly the sufficient reason for the existence of the universe, and even for the suffering which moral evil has introduced into it. God has not made the world primarily for man's good, but for His own pleasure; goodfor man lies in conforming himself to the supreme purpose of creation, and evil in departing from it (C.G., III, xvii, cxliv). It may further be understood from St. Thomas, that in the diversity of metaphysical evil, in which the perfection of the universe as a whole is embodied, God may see a certain similitude of His own threefold unity (cf. I, Q. xii); and again, that by permitting moral evil to exist He has provided a sphere for the manifestation of one aspect of His essential justice (cf. I, Q. lxv, a. 2; and I, Q. xxi, a. 1, 3).
A little bit on evil one
Evil has been defined as both the opposition of good and the absence of good. The common understanding of evil is that it is a negation of good, or the absence of good. For example, if there is a tornado, the odd weather patterns, out of the control of humans, must be accepted as part of a larger scheme of Nature, causing evil, not necessarily by the design of a malevolent force, such as the devil, but as the permissive will of God, or even, in the long run, the perfect will of God. We do not understand our own part in the history of evil. We cannot understand the death of a young soldier walking on a sunny street in London today by two crazed Muslims anymore than we can understand the death of the children in Moore. Such evils are beyond rational explanation, and even scientific examination.
Nature, as created by God, is objective and not subjective. A tornado is however, subjectively evil, as it kills and destroys people and things dear to people, but not in the same way which abortion or homosexual relations are objectively evil. Intrinsic evil must involve a decision. If there were no houses and merely the plains of Oklahoma to meet the tornado's power, we would not even think of it as evil.
Who decides tornadoes? Nature works as it was created to be, by forces, mostly beyond human control.
People who create evil choose that evil for many reasons. Ideology is merely one. Selfishness and pride are the most common reasons for evil.
God in His discussion with Satan in the Book of Job allows evils, even the death of children, to afflict Job. The story teaches us many things, but one is that we cannot understand God or His Ways. We simply cannot.
However, evil is something which is obviously growing around us.
That there is a lack of perfection in the world of Nature and in our own natures seems too obvious to mention, and yet, people ask constantly, "Why does God allow this?"
Perhaps we are entering into a time of great trial because of the great sins of nations, like the passing of the SSM bill here yesterday, or the ideology of Islam. Those are human constructs and it is much easier to understand the evil perpetrated by humans than those objective and remote natural evils, such as drought or flooding.
It is important not to think that evil is inherent in nature. God is in control of Nature. It is one of His creations, like animals and plants. There is a scheme of things in God's Plans which we cannot see, being finite. One can say, with Augustine, that evil may be used by God for punishment and trial and, indeed, that is so. Therefore, even catastrophes are in a mysterious plan, which we cannot comprehend, but accept in humility and patience.
Human evil based on free will choices and here is the Catholic Encyclopedia on three aspects concerning evil. When trying to deal with evil, we must consider
- the omnipotence, omniscience, and absolute goodness of the Creator;
- the freedom of the will; and
- that suffering is the penal consequence of wilful disobedience to the law of God.
And more
There is therefore no "summum malum", or positive source of evil, corresponding to the "summum bonum", which is God (I, Q. xlix, a. 3; C. G., III, 15; DeMalo, I, 1); evil being not "ens reale" but only "ens rationis"--i.e. it exists not as an objective fact, but as a subjective conception; things are evil not in themselves, but by reason of their relation to other things, or persons. All realities (entia) are in themselves good; they produce bad results only incidentally; and consequently the ultimate cause of evil if fundamentally good, as well as the objects in which evil is found (I, Q. xlix; cf. I, Q. v, 3; De Malo, I, 3). Thus the Manichaean dualism has no foundation in reason.
To be continued...
Too much evil
The horrific murder and beheading of a young soldier in broad daylight by Islamic terrorists and the beheading of his body, all happening in Woolwich on the street, has created a nervous nation here. Sadly, the vote for SSM was passed last night and has very little coverage. The Queen only has to sign it into law.
Tuesday, 21 May 2013
On the misunderstanding of the term discernment of spirits
Discernment is a gift which comes with the purification of the imagination and conscience. One must be orthodox for keen discernment.
Many charismatics think that the term "discernment of spirits" has to do with figuring out which demons may be in a situation. NOT SO.
The term "discernment of spirits" is defined by the Church as something more profound and more applicable to daily life than some sort of gift given to exorcists.
Here is the Catholic Encyclopedia, to begin this examination of a definition and my comments are in blue:
"Discernment of spirits" is the term given to the judgment whereby to determine from what spirit the impulses of the soul emanate, and it is easy to understand the importance of this judgment both for self-direction and the direction of others. Now this judgment may be formed in two ways.
Pay attention here, readers.
In the first case the discernment is made by means of an intuitive light which infallibly discovers the quality of the movement; it is then a gift of God, a grace gratis data, vouchsafed mainly for the benefit of our neighbour (1 Corinthians 12:10). This charisma or gift was granted in the early Church and in the course of the lives of the saints as, for example, St. Philip Neri.
This is a gift which has been given to many saints, such as St. Bernard of Clarirvaux and most of the Doctors of the Church. Clearly, St. Catherine of Siena had this gift, to give one example in addition to the one above.
Second, discernment of spirits may be obtained through study and reflection. It is then an acquired human knowledge, more or less perfect, but very useful in the direction of souls. It is procured, always, of course, with the assistance of grace, by the reading of the
Holy Bible, of works on theology and asceticism, of autobiographies, and the correspondence of the most distinguished ascetics.
Many leaders in the Church have such a gift, acquired through these means. One thinks of the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, or Father Pavone, or Cardinal Burke. As all of us are called to perfection, this discernment comes in that process.
The necessity of self-direction and of directing others, when one had charge of souls, produced documents, preserved in spiritual libraries, from the perusal of which one may see that the discernment of spirits is a science that has always flourished in the Church.
Mother General of Tyburn exhibits this gift, as do other persons who have responsibility for souls, who have allowed God to purify them.
I suggest that one stops listening to those who want to look for demons under every rock, instead of studying, praying, and permitting God to purify their imaginations and destroy all their desires which are not of Him.
Detachment brings discernment of spirits-and it is our own spirit where this discernment starts.
Again, the Catholic Encyclopedia:
An excellent lesson is that given by St. Ignatius Loyola in his "Spiritual Exercises". Here we find rules for the discernment of spirits and, being clearly and briefly formulated, these rules indicate a secure course, containing in embryo all that is included in the more extensive treatises of later date. For a complete explanation of them the best commentaries on the "Exercises" of St. Ignatius may be consulted. Of the rules transmitted to us by a saint inspired by Divine light and a learned psychologist taught by personal experience, it will suffice to recall the principal ones.
The world, the flesh and the devil must be discerned.
Ignatius gives two kinds and we must call attention to the fact that in the second category, according to some opinions, he sometimes considers a more delicate discernment of spirits adapted to the extraordinary course of mysticism. Be that as it may, he begins by enunciating this clear principle, that both the good and the evil spirit act upon a soul according to the attitude it assumes toward them. If it pose as their friend, they flatter it; if to resist them, they torment it.
The devil can be part of the spiritual battle of the soul, obviously. But, the loci of good and evil also dwell within ourselves. If we allow God to completely destroy our self-will, then we can begin to discern good from bad, impulse from grace, virtue from vice.
But the evil spirit speaks only to the imagination and the senses, whereas the good spirit acts upon reason and conscience. The evil labours to excite concupiscence, the good to intensify love for God. Of course it may happen that a perfectly well-disposed soul suffers from the attacks of the devil deprived of the sustaining consolations of the good angel; but this is only a temporary trial the passing of which must be awaited in patience and humility. St. Ignatius also teaches us to distinguish the spirits by their mode of action and by the end they seek. Without any preceding cause, that is to say, suddenly, without previous knowledge or sentiment, God alone, by virtue of His sovereign dominion, can flood the soul with light and joy. But if there has been a preceding cause, either the good or the bad angel may be the author of the consolation; this remains to be judged from the consequences. As the good angel's object is the welfare of the soul and the bad angel's its defects or unhappiness, if, in the progress of our thoughts all is well and tends to good there is no occasion for uneasiness; on the contrary, if we perceive any deviation whatsoever towards evil or even a slight unpleasant agitation, there is reason to fear. Such, then, is the substance of these brief rules which are nevertheless so greatly admired by the masters of the spiritual life. Although requiring an authorized explanation, when well understood, they act as a preservative against many illusions
To be continued...
Many charismatics think that the term "discernment of spirits" has to do with figuring out which demons may be in a situation. NOT SO.
The term "discernment of spirits" is defined by the Church as something more profound and more applicable to daily life than some sort of gift given to exorcists.
Here is the Catholic Encyclopedia, to begin this examination of a definition and my comments are in blue:
"Discernment of spirits" is the term given to the judgment whereby to determine from what spirit the impulses of the soul emanate, and it is easy to understand the importance of this judgment both for self-direction and the direction of others. Now this judgment may be formed in two ways.
Pay attention here, readers.
In the first case the discernment is made by means of an intuitive light which infallibly discovers the quality of the movement; it is then a gift of God, a grace gratis data, vouchsafed mainly for the benefit of our neighbour (1 Corinthians 12:10). This charisma or gift was granted in the early Church and in the course of the lives of the saints as, for example, St. Philip Neri.
This is a gift which has been given to many saints, such as St. Bernard of Clarirvaux and most of the Doctors of the Church. Clearly, St. Catherine of Siena had this gift, to give one example in addition to the one above.
Second, discernment of spirits may be obtained through study and reflection. It is then an acquired human knowledge, more or less perfect, but very useful in the direction of souls. It is procured, always, of course, with the assistance of grace, by the reading of the
Holy Bible, of works on theology and asceticism, of autobiographies, and the correspondence of the most distinguished ascetics.
Many leaders in the Church have such a gift, acquired through these means. One thinks of the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, or Father Pavone, or Cardinal Burke. As all of us are called to perfection, this discernment comes in that process.
The necessity of self-direction and of directing others, when one had charge of souls, produced documents, preserved in spiritual libraries, from the perusal of which one may see that the discernment of spirits is a science that has always flourished in the Church.
Mother General of Tyburn exhibits this gift, as do other persons who have responsibility for souls, who have allowed God to purify them.
I suggest that one stops listening to those who want to look for demons under every rock, instead of studying, praying, and permitting God to purify their imaginations and destroy all their desires which are not of Him.
Detachment brings discernment of spirits-and it is our own spirit where this discernment starts.
Again, the Catholic Encyclopedia:
An excellent lesson is that given by St. Ignatius Loyola in his "Spiritual Exercises". Here we find rules for the discernment of spirits and, being clearly and briefly formulated, these rules indicate a secure course, containing in embryo all that is included in the more extensive treatises of later date. For a complete explanation of them the best commentaries on the "Exercises" of St. Ignatius may be consulted. Of the rules transmitted to us by a saint inspired by Divine light and a learned psychologist taught by personal experience, it will suffice to recall the principal ones.
The world, the flesh and the devil must be discerned.
Ignatius gives two kinds and we must call attention to the fact that in the second category, according to some opinions, he sometimes considers a more delicate discernment of spirits adapted to the extraordinary course of mysticism. Be that as it may, he begins by enunciating this clear principle, that both the good and the evil spirit act upon a soul according to the attitude it assumes toward them. If it pose as their friend, they flatter it; if to resist them, they torment it.
The devil can be part of the spiritual battle of the soul, obviously. But, the loci of good and evil also dwell within ourselves. If we allow God to completely destroy our self-will, then we can begin to discern good from bad, impulse from grace, virtue from vice.
But the evil spirit speaks only to the imagination and the senses, whereas the good spirit acts upon reason and conscience. The evil labours to excite concupiscence, the good to intensify love for God. Of course it may happen that a perfectly well-disposed soul suffers from the attacks of the devil deprived of the sustaining consolations of the good angel; but this is only a temporary trial the passing of which must be awaited in patience and humility. St. Ignatius also teaches us to distinguish the spirits by their mode of action and by the end they seek. Without any preceding cause, that is to say, suddenly, without previous knowledge or sentiment, God alone, by virtue of His sovereign dominion, can flood the soul with light and joy. But if there has been a preceding cause, either the good or the bad angel may be the author of the consolation; this remains to be judged from the consequences. As the good angel's object is the welfare of the soul and the bad angel's its defects or unhappiness, if, in the progress of our thoughts all is well and tends to good there is no occasion for uneasiness; on the contrary, if we perceive any deviation whatsoever towards evil or even a slight unpleasant agitation, there is reason to fear. Such, then, is the substance of these brief rules which are nevertheless so greatly admired by the masters of the spiritual life. Although requiring an authorized explanation, when well understood, they act as a preservative against many illusions
To be continued...
A new twist on vocations
Taking with a highly intelligent young person who knows several young women who are considering a religious vocation but cannot choose an order, I discovered an interesting twist on the lack of vocations. This is an idea which came to me months ago, but I did not think of it again until this discussion.
Most of the orders of nuns lack a charism which speaks to the modern world, and especially to young traditional women.
Let me try to explain.
The older orders are stuck in paradigms of service which no longer apply to the modern world.
This does NOT apply to Tyburn, or other enclosed orders, wherein the first charism is Adoration and contemplative prayer. That charism has been with the Church for almost 1,400 years and is extremely valid. The problem, as I experienced, is the need for physical stamina and strength.
Contemplative orders of all types are more necessary than ever.
However, most orders have lost their reason for existing in the world.
Trad girls know the evils of Catholic schools, especially the compromises foisted upon such by governments and heretic leaders. I do not need to explain all the scandals of Catholic schools in Malta (lesbian teaching in a junior girls' school); England (non-Catholic in charge of a high-school RE department); America (where the the curriculum includes heresies of modernism and sex education in many dioceses).
Trad girls do not want compromising orders.
But, what of the real call to a specific charism, besides the contemplative orders? The Dominicans are doing very well here, as the one getting the most vocations wears a full habit and allows for a multiple use of talent in various places, such as evangelization, catechesis, and other parish work. The new paradigms of service are allowed. Mother Teresa of Calcutta's order was a new paradigm and is highly successful in getting vocations.
Not so most orders. Real orders have strong charisms which are needed in the world. The Sisters of Life is an obvious excellent example. as are the various new Dominican groups.
Perhaps it is part of the problem of the lack of sensitivity to the needs of the world and of Catholics in 2013, which are adding to the vocation problem.
Mother General of Tyburn knows that praying for peace in Nigeria and 24/7 Adoration, a response to the requests of bishops there, is a real charism.
Those sisters who are involved in conservative moments, such as Evangelium in Great Britain are responding to the Holy Spirit's call for teaching youth the real stuff of the Catechism and Scripture. Only teaching the "real deal" is a charism from the Holy Spirit. Any order, any, despite the name or pedigree, which is compromising, is not meeting the needs of the Church.
The Holy Spirit must decide the charisms and give these. If people decide, the orders will fail.
I am convinced that contemplation and service encouraging the Latin Mass is the way forward for England.
Does anyone else share this vision? This is a real charism.
God calls, but many do not respond. This blog includes this call to prayer and reparation.
The time for certain charisms which were necessary in the past is long gone.
We do not need more retreat centres which do not include orthodoxy and real sacrifice.
We do not need sisters who are social workers.
The nursing orders will not be able to be Catholic in any national health system, so that charism is gone, except in Third World Countries, where these sisters may actually have more freedom to be Catholic and be nurses or midwives.
The real charisms for 2013 must be extreme, as in the days of Benedict and Catherine of Siena. We need clarity and a remnant.
We need prayers of reparation for many, many sins.
May God send me some companions in this vision of prayer and penance for reparation and the constant Adoration of Christ.
Monday, 20 May 2013
There are still Catholics I meet almost daily...
...who think Obama is a great man. Arrgghh. I cannot get through to these closed minds.
Maybe this article from the superb Life Site News would help these people; some are from African background, some are nuns (not Tyburn, they know and are savvy), some are priests, some are Liberals. I want them to understand the evil of this anti-life president. He was consistently anti-life way back in 2004, when he was a senator in Illinois. Many of us pro-lifers tried to stop his career then.
from http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/20/file-claims-obamas-father-paid-for-abortion-of-his-half-sibling/
"... President Obama had a half-brother or half-sister who, rather than having the chance to thrive and succeed as he has, ended up in a dumpster in London. The more complex reality for the president to grapple with is that it is not that far of a stretch to assume, given the complexities of his relationship with mother Ann Dunham, that Barack Obama, Sr. might have preferred the same end for our current president,” Heck writes. “Such a scenario, beyond offering a brand new perspective on Obama’s memoir Dreams from my Father, would provide the most pro-abortion president our country has ever known with the same chilling realization that so many of us born after the disastrous Roe decision encounter: had it not been for the strength and resolve of loving, pro-life mothers, we could have been legally slaughtered.”
“This disquieting account about his father allows our current President the chance to put himself where his half-brother or half-sister once was…where he once was…and reconsider his tragic position on life in the womb,” he writes.
He continues: “As I read the heartbreaking details of this story about a soul deprived of its unalienable right to breathe free, I’m taken back to President Obama’s response to Rick Warren at the Saddleback Church presidential forum in the lead-up to the 2008 election. Asked when a baby gets human rights, Obama cowardly surrendered righteousness for convenience and politics, infamously asserting that “answering that question with specificity is above my pay grade.”
“That embarrassing response shouldn’t have been a surprise given that just a few months prior, Barack Obama addressed the issue of sex education on the campaign trail. Speaking specifically about his own daughters, the man who could have been aborted himself proclaimed, “I am going to teach them first of all about values and morals. But if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.” Like father, like son.”
Pope and Merkel Met Today
The private meeting between the Pope and the German Chancellor took place in the Vatican Library with the help of an interpreter and lasted 45 minutes. Straight afterwards, Merkel – who was dressed in a silk blue dress – held a brief 10 minute meeting with Vatican Secretary for Relations with States, Dominique Mamberti. The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio was not present as he is currently in Spain.
First Pledge of a Donation
I am amazed at how quickly someone responded. I have been pledged 1,000 pounds by a reader for the House of Prayer and only need 409,000. A start and thank you, dear reader.
Pray, reflect, act.
Pray, reflect, act.
| Thanks, Wiki, for the bread photo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread |
More than the entire population of Malta has been killed since January, 2013
2013 USA Abortion Count
May 20
492,100 unborn children have been killed
#ProLife
Remember Baby Boy A
And people say there is not differences in religions...
This is wicked and graphic, but the story must be told. Lord have mercy on all.
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/05/afghanistan-8-year-old-bride-of-mullah-bleeds-to-death-on-her-wedding-night.html
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/05/afghanistan-8-year-old-bride-of-mullah-bleeds-to-death-on-her-wedding-night.html
The Face of Christ
Be an icon of the Lord, by imaging Him in the world. The Face of Christ is missing in many places, even in England.
..CAST YOUR BREAD UPON THE WATERS, FOR AFTER MANY DAYS YOU WILL FIND IT AGAIN.
And, this Bread is the Bread of Life...
“There are those who are well mannered, who do everything well, but are unable to bring people to the Church through proclamation and apostolic zeal,” Pope Francis
I am giving more details on the proposed community in Walsingham and asking for prayers and at least three members.
It is to be a lay community, such as a lay association of the faithful.
Group prayer is to be the Gregorian Chant in Latin and from the Monastic Diurnal.
Prayer will be at least three times a day, and eventually, with permission, all day Adoration of the Eucharist. No television, no chasing after the trivia of the world, but a place of serenity and suffering forms part of the tapestry of this community.
The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus is the center of this community, which will live simply and serve several types of people.
Pope Benedict XV instituted the Feast of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus and here is a section from his letter on this.
The chief reason of this feast is to commemorate the love of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the mystery of the Eucharist. By this means the Church wishes more and more to excite the faithful to approach this sacred mystery with confidence, and to inflame their hearts with that divine charity which consumed the Sacred Heart of Jesus when in His infinite love He instituted the Most Holy Eucharist, wherein the Divine Heart guards and loves them by living with them, as they live and abide in Him. For in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist He offers and gives Himself to us as victim, companion, nourishment, viaticum, and pledge of our future glory.
Here is a translation of the propers of that feast, which is on the Thursday in the Octave of the Feast of the Sacred Heart from http://vultus.stblogs.org/2010/06/feast-of-the-eucharistic-heart.html from Father Mark.
Introit
SCIENS Jesus quia venit hora ejus ut
transeat ex hoc mundo ad Patrem:
cum dilexisset suos, qui erant in
mundo, in finem dilexit eos. Alleluia,
alleluia. Ps. 97. 1. Cantate Domino
canticum novum: quia mirabilia
fecit. Gloria Patri.
transeat ex hoc mundo ad Patrem:
cum dilexisset suos, qui erant in
mundo, in finem dilexit eos. Alleluia,
alleluia. Ps. 97. 1. Cantate Domino
canticum novum: quia mirabilia
fecit. Gloria Patri.
Jesus, knowing that His hour had come
to pass out of this world to the Father,
having loved His own who were in the world,
loved them to the end (Jn 13:1).
to pass out of this world to the Father,
having loved His own who were in the world,
loved them to the end (Jn 13:1).
Collect
DOMINE Jesu Christe, qui divitias
amoris tui erga homines effundens
Eucharistiæ Sacramentum condidisti:
da nobis, quæsumus; ut amantissimum
Cor tuum diligere, et tanto
Sacramento digne semper uti valeamus:
Qui vivis.
amoris tui erga homines effundens
Eucharistiæ Sacramentum condidisti:
da nobis, quæsumus; ut amantissimum
Cor tuum diligere, et tanto
Sacramento digne semper uti valeamus:
Qui vivis.
Lord Jesus Christ,
Who in pouring out the treasures of Your love for mankind,
instituted the sacrament of the Eucharist,
grant us, we beseech You,
always to cherish Your most loving Heart,
and worthily to avail ourselves of so great a Sacrament.
Who live and reign with God the Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Who in pouring out the treasures of Your love for mankind,
instituted the sacrament of the Eucharist,
grant us, we beseech You,
always to cherish Your most loving Heart,
and worthily to avail ourselves of so great a Sacrament.
Who live and reign with God the Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Epistle: Ephesians 3. 8-12, 14-19
Brethren: To me, the least of all the Saints, is given the grace, to preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ: and to enlighten all men, that they may see what is the dispensation of the mystery which hath been hidden from eternity in God, Who created all things: that the manifold wisdom of God may be made known to the principalities and powers in heavenly places through the Church, according to the eternal purpose which He made in Christ Jesus our Lord: in Whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him. For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of Whom all paternity in Heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened by His Spirit with might unto the inward man, that Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts: that being rooted and grounded in charity, you may be able to comprehend with all the Saints, what is the breadth and length, and height and depth: to know also the charity of Christ which surpasseth all knowledge. That you may be filled unto all the fullness of God.
Gradual
EXSULTA et lauda, habitatio Sion,
quia magnus in medio tui Sanctus
Israel. Notas facite in populis adinventiones
ejus.
quia magnus in medio tui Sanctus
Israel. Notas facite in populis adinventiones
ejus.
Exult and praise, O abode of Sion, for
great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst
of thee. Among the people make known His
works.
great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst
of thee. Among the people make known His
works.
Alleluia
ALLELUIA, alleluia. V. Quid bonum
ejus est, et quid pulchrum ejus, nisi
frumentum electorum, et vinum
germinans virgines. Alleluia.
ejus est, et quid pulchrum ejus, nisi
frumentum electorum, et vinum
germinans virgines. Alleluia.
Alleluia, alleluia. V. What is His good and
what is His beauteous thing, but the wheat of
the elect, and wine bringing forth virgins?
Alleluia.
what is His beauteous thing, but the wheat of
the elect, and wine bringing forth virgins?
Alleluia.
Gospel: Luke 22:15-20
At that time Jesus said to His disciples: With desire I have desired to eat this pasch with you, before I suffer. For I say to you that from this time I will not eat it, till it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God. And having taken the chalice, He gave thanks and said: Take and divide among you. For I say to you that I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, till the kingdom of God come. And taking bread, He gave thanks and brake and gave to them, saying: This is My Body, which is given for you. Do this for a commemoration of Me. In like manner, the chalice also, after He had supped, saying: this is the chalice, the new testament in My Blood, which shall be shed for you.
The house has room for three core people or four and one or two "guests" who want to make a silent retreat. Also, I would hope it would become a centre for the Latin Mass in Walsingham, which only has a Latin Mass once or twice a year.
The entire project is a vision given to me in the convent and discussed with Mother General, who said to proceed with God leading me slowly but surely.
One begins small, very small. The reason why Walsingham is important is that this is the National Shrine of Mary in England.
Pope Leo XIII said that "When England returns to Walsingham, Our Lady will return to England."
to be continued...
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