Y'know, at this time of year, I have a hard time keeping It Came Upon the Midnight Clear separate in my head from Mother Dear, O Pray for Me.
November 2006 Archives
I wasn't able to live-blog this afternoon's meeting about the future of Boston's Latin Mass parish, but I did send the news to Dom Bettinelli, who posted the info on his site.
"Speaking just to find applause or to tell people what they want to hear....is like prostitution," he told the theologians, according to a transcript. "Don't look for applause, but look to obey the truth."
I'd like to say that my wife and I had dinner with Mr. Arroyo last night, but it was more like... adjacent to Mr. Arroyo.
My wife couldn't resist introducing herself and getting a Mother Angelica impression.
"Be safe, sweetie!" was what she got - in the high-pitched, gruff voice that makes you think you're on location at EWTN.
He does have a book coming out in March. Since he was gracious enough to make my wife smile on her birthday, here's the plug.
The Vatican has settled the most prominent issue of contention regarding the English translation of the Mass. CWN reports that Cdl. Arinze has written to the heads of English-speaking bishops' conferences with the news:
The Vatican has ruled that the phrase pro multis should be rendered as "for many" in all new English-language translations of the Eucharistic Prayer, CWN has learned.
Although "for many" is the literal translation of the Latin phrase, the translations currently in use render the phrase as "for all." All new English-language translations will use "for many" when they appear.
This is good news for a couple of reasons: that debatable translation "for all", placed so close to the words of consecration, scandalized traditionalists and gave many scruples about the validity of Masses said in English. As debaters on the issue point out, St. Thomas' opinion even considered them essential to the consecration.
Restoring a undisputed translation of pro multis to the Mass removes an obstacle to reconciliation between the Church and disaffected members of the traditionalist movement. It also confirms to all the partisans struggling over the English liturgy that Pope Benedict and CDW are going to require that new translations conform to the Church's wishes as expressed in Liturgiam Authenticam: the English version of Mass is supposed to be the Roman Mass, so the English words of the Mass should represent the ideas and concepts in the Latin liturgy.
Our Faure concert went well last night - and a CL visitor came to the concert.
Dale - I'm glad you enjoyed it!
We video taped the concert - I'll see about getting some clips on YouTube in between diaper changes.
"Enigma"
But applied to Pope Benedict? Bah.
full article.
Puzzling pope? – Author explores continuing enigma of Benedict XVICHICAGO (Commonweal Magazine) -- Recently, Vatican postage stamps, adorned from time immemorial with the papal triple crown, conveyed a different note: “Episcopus Romae,” Bishop of Rome.
An ecumenist in the curia explained to Zenit News Service that it was a nod to the Orthodox, who prefer that title. Maybe it was and maybe it wasn’t.
Yet a year and a half after his election, Papa Benedetto remains an enigma. Who is he really? After the generally hostile reaction to his election in the European and American media, he does not seem to fit their initial fears. Nor does he fit the happy dreams of observers, like Father Richard John Neuhaus or George Weigel who waited eagerly for the purges that have not happened.
Instead, the pope suspended the founder of the Legionaries of Christ because of sexual-abuse charges, and replaced Joaquin Navarro-Valls, head of the Vatican Press Office, with a Jesuit, Frederico Lombardi of Vatican Radio, a change, one hears, stoutly resisted by Opus Dei.
Is Benedict the liberal conciliar adviser to Cologne’s Cardinal Joseph Frings? Or the disciple of St. Augustine who was horrified at the Vatican II document, The Church in the Modern World, because he believed modern secularism constituted the greatest threat to the church?
Somewhat old, but good news.
JERUSALEM (Zenit.org) -- A "gay pride" parade destined for the streets of Jerusalem went no further than a university's sports stadium.Organizers backed down from today's scheduled event following the pleas of Jewish, Christian and Muslim religious leaders who called such a public display in the holy city offensive.
The Holy See sent an appeal to Israeli authorities to cancel the parade, explaining that "it constitutes a grave affront to the sentiments of millions of Jewish, Muslim and Christian believers, who recognize the particular sacred character of the city of Jerusalem and request that their conviction be respected."
On Wednesday, the Apostolic Nunciature in Israel also sent a note that called on authorities "to prevent immodest parades and any overt actions which offend the sensibilities of religious communities that reside in Jerusalem and hold her dear."
The Associated Press reported that the police had planned to post 9,000 officers to protect marchers. Authorities asked organizers to scale back the gathering amid reprisal threats after errant Israeli artillery shells killed 18 Palestinian civilians in Gaza on Wednesday.
Organizers agreed Thursday to turn the public parade into a rally, held inside a closed stadium.
Here in Massachusetts, our overlords in the legislature have been obstructing the progress of a marriage-protection amendment to the state constitution by refusing to vote up-or-down on the petition. On Sunday afternoon, there's an opportunity to talk back to them when marriage supporters rally at the State House.
The answer to the question above is usually "no," but I think I may have found an exception. I have to travel to the Middle East this week, and because the work week is from Saturday to Wednesday, I will probably be working all day on Sunday. The country where I will be is part of the Vicariate Apostoic of Arabia, which apparently has a dispensation to allow Friday Masses to "count" as the Sunday obligation:
• On Fridays (mornings and evenings) and Saturdays (evenings only) the Holy Mass is that of the following Sunday.
Am I reading this correctly? This isn't the parish I would attend (I'm not going to Kuwait), but it's the cathedral parish of the vicariate -- can I assume that this dispensation extends beyond Kuwait to the other countries in its territory? I'll probably end up attending Mass on Sunday — there are plenty of Masses throughout the day in the parish I found — but it might be more convenient to attend on Friday.
This seemed like an interesting question, because I had never heard of such a dispensation. Servicemen deployed during wartime can attend Mass at any time during the week and have it fulfill their Sunday obligation, because they are not always able to attend for obvious reasons. These circumstances are quite different.
An event for our Boston-area readers:
Speaker: Thomas Howard, formerly professor of English at Gordon College and St. John Seminary
Topic: "If Your Mind Wanders at Mass"
Time: Sunday, November 19 at 3 p.m.
Place: St. Mary Star of the Sea School Hall, 13 Chapman St., Beverly, MA
Cardinal Francis Arinze, one of the most popular and powerful Vatican officials to visit St. Louis since Pope John Paul II's 1999 visit, told more than 250 people at the Chase Park Plaza Saturday morning that Latin should be used more frequently in the Roman Catholic liturgy.The Latin language now, he said "is in the ecclesiastical refrigerator ... Mass today should be in Latin from time to time." ...more
Homosexuality on Catholic bishops agenda BALTIMORE, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- New guidelines freeing gay Catholics from trying to alter their sexual orientation is being considered by U.S. Roman Catholic bishops this week.During their annual fall meeting in Baltimore the bishops will review guidelines for ministering to homosexuals, The Chicago Tribune reported.
Drafted by a conference committee, the documents may encounter opposition from some conservative bishops.
"We are trying to find a language that does not betray the teaching of the church, but will perhaps express it in ways that are not so offensive," Chicago's Cardinal Francis George, vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, told the Tribune.
Recent directives from the Vatican bar most gay men from pursuing ordination and prohibit priests with "homosexual tendencies" from teaching or running seminaries.
"They're lost focus on the needs of the human race," said Sam Sinnett, president of the gay Catholic group DignityUSA. "They're much more concerned with whether two homosexuals are going to get married or not."
Sounds some of the bishops are wordsmithing - but why? To try to get take off some of the heat they get from groups like DignityUSA? And when an item like that comes up for discussion on how they can make Church teaching more pastoral, they get flack anyway.
Hopefully the bishops keep focused on fundmentals:
A homosexual orientation is not a sin, homosexual acts are.
People with a homosexual orientation are called to celebacy, just like people who aren't married.
Everyone is called to chastity according to their state in life.
What else needs to be said that would convince people that the can't follow Jesus and lead an intrinsically sinful lifestyle?
Consider a Catholic couple who were previously married, divorced, and married outside the Church. Does the Church need to tweak their guidelines to try to be more pastoral and win them back to the Church? Or is the teaching crystal clear and you simply have the issue of folks needing to make immense lifestyle changes or sacrifices to get back in line with Church teaching?
I would say that the teaching on these items is clear, and attempts at being more pastoral have tremendous potential to muddy the waters rather than help people live in the manner Jesus is calling us to live.
But it would really just restate the pride of place given to chant and sacred polyphony in the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of Vatican II. See number 116.
Nov. 07 (CNA/CWNews.com) - Sources close the Holy See are saying that during his upcoming visit to the St. Cecilia Music Academy, Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) may address the need to recover the quality of sacred music in the liturgical life of the Church.The feast of St. Cecilia, patroness of music, will be celebrated on November 22, and the Pontiff has announced that during that week he intends to visit the academy of music in Rome that bears the saint’s name. According to Vatican sources consulted by the Catholic News Agency, the Holy Father, who has expressed his concern over liturgical music, may address the need to recover the place of sacred music, “both Gregorian and polyphonic,” in the Catholic liturgy.
“This pronouncement could even take the form of a motu proprio, an official document issued on the Holy Father’s own initiative,” sources said.
Since the election of Pope Benedict XVI, sacred music has been given greater attention in the Roman liturgy. On November 19, as part of the year of Mozart-- one of the Pope’s favorite composers-- Cardinal Christoph Schönborn (bio - news), Archbishop of Vienna, will preside at a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, in which the famous Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra will present Mozart’s Mass of Coronation. Although no time has been officially allotted for remarks by the Holy Father, it is possible he will address the faithful at the conclusion of the liturgical celebration.
The following was written by the music director at my parish. Local folks should try to make it - the concert should be outstanding.
Incidently - I'm singing the baritone solo on the "Libera Me." I normally sing tenor, but there wasn't a suitable solo and my voice is sufficiently beefy to sing baritone. Should be fun.
“MUSICAL TRADITION IN VIENNA”Years ago, when the town of Vienna was first established, the original idea was to name it Ayr Hill. Someone with vision insisted that it be named Vienna, after the great musical city in Austria, in the hopes that good music would always flourish there. 252 years later, the tradition of great classical music flourishes here in Vienna, especially at St. Mark Catholic Church on Vale Road.
Beginning in 2002 under the direction of Minister of Music and Liturgy Nancy Novelly, an annual series of Major Composer concerts has drawn together the amazing wealth of parish musical talent to focus on the sacred works of one composer. These concerts take place on the Friday before Thanksgiving each year, roughly coinciding with the November 22 feast of St. Cecilia, Patron Saint of Music. They are part of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians’ program, “NPM Sing,” which encourages parish musical celebrations of her feast day.
A Festival Choir of 50-60 voices is assembled each September to begin rehearsals. Singers are drawn from the parish’s eight choirs, plus any interested parishioners who don’t have time for a regular choir commitment but who love to sing. Twice a week for two and a half months, the halls are filled with sounds of music which challenges the skills of singers and directors alike. The Festival Choir has presented concerts of the works of Mozart, Bach, Handel, and Ralph Vaughan Williams. This year’s concert, entitled “Faure in Vienna,” will present sacred works by Gabriel Faure (1845-1924), a French Catholic composer who devoted his life to service in the Catholic Church.
The program includes the breathtaking “Requiem” in its original 1893 version, with restrained orchestration: a handful of strings, which nevertheless add richness and warmth to the lush harmonies and SATTBB vocal writing. In addition, vocal solos and trios by sopranos Teresa Schultz and Michelle Kunz, Youth choir director Jackie Niedermaier and school music teacher Colleen Foarde, our Resurrection Choir, plus a stunning Barcarolle for solo piano performed by our Parish Council president Linda Carducci, and flute pieces by parish flautists Elisabeth Hays, Ann Brownell and Lynda Clark will round out the program. The St. Mark Handbell Choir will perform a contemporary piece commissioned especially for its director, resident organist Richard Weiand. In closing, Adult choir director John Schultz directs “Cantique de Jean Racine,” a beautifully simple prayer sung in French.
Those who present this concert each year are nourished musically and spiritually by the exercise of working on great music together. Those who attend are blessed and enriched by this gift of music. All of us pray that other communities might be inspired to institute such a program, if they don’t already have one.
All are invited to this year’s “Faure in Vienna” on Friday, November 17th at 7:30 pm in the main Church. Call 703-938-3293 for more information. Admission is free.
Philosopher John Haldane:
One thing that I would point to as a looming crisis -- which is also an opportunity --is the disintegration of the family... In Italy by 2050, halfway through this century, 60 percent of Italians, almost two thirds of Italians, will have no brother, no sister, no first cousin, no uncle, no aunt. In 45 years time... people will just be isolated atoms with no familial relationships. When that happens it will be a disaster and a tragedy, and we should be preparing ourselves, trying to warn people, trying to say that “Look what you’ve chosen, your lifestyles, haven’t enriched your lives. It has impoverished your lives. You’re poorer than you were, not richer than you were, and the only richness that you cannot recover is the richness of deep personal relationships, of family, intergenerational relationships and so on...
Almost three years to the day after I posted my announcement that I was going to get a new tattoo "soon," I finally got it. (My definition of "soon" is rather loose, I'll concede.) The design is based on a cross in our parish church, carved on a pedestal upholding a large statue of Mary:
Here's how it turned out:
And here it is in context:
The original design drew mixed reviews here on Catholic Light, so I hope this one goes over better. (Not that I'll change it.)
What conclusions can we draw from Pope Benedict's address to the Jesuit-run Gregorian University?
First of all, there is real conflict between the worldly culture's idea of the good and the true good of man, which is found in God:
"Today," he continued, "we cannot fail to take account of the confrontation with secular culture, which in many parts of the world tends ... not only to deny all signs of God's presence in the life of society and of individuals, but, with various means that disorient and confuse man's correct understanding, seeks to undermine his capacity to listen to God.
Theologies of religious pluralism that disregard the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as the one savior of man and the uniqueness of the Church do not serve the truth:
"Nor can we ignore," he added, "relations with other religions." Such relations "are constructive only if they avoid all ambiguities that in any way weaken the essential contents of Christian faith in Christ, the only Savior of all mankind, and in the Church, a necessary sacrament for the salvation of all humanity."
The secular human sciences err and cannot be trusted uncritically when they disregard the truth about man, whose nature is directed toward love of God and love of the other, not self-seeking:
Other human sciences such as psychology, social science and communications, "precisely because they concern human beings, cannot omit a reference to God. Indeed, man, both in his interior and exterior aspects, cannot be fully understood if he is not recognized as being open to transcendence."
He continued: "Deprived of his reference to God, man cannot respond to the fundamental questions that disturb, and always will disturb, his heart; questions that concern the aim and, hence, the meaning of existence. ... Man's destiny, without reference to God, cannot but be the desolation of anguish that leads to desperation. Only with reference to God-Love, revealed in Jesus Christ, can man discover the meaning of his life, and live in hope, even while experiencing the evils that injure his personal life and the society in which he lives. Hope ensures that man does not close himself in a stagnant and sterile nihilism, but opens himself to generous commitment in the society in which he lives in order to improve it."
Pontifical universities and Jesuit universities in general are institutions with a religious mission and should be noted for their instruction in authentic Catholic doctrine:
Highlighting the fact that the integral formation of young people "is one of the traditional forms of the apostolate of Company of Jesus," the Holy Father recalled how the university's statutes and general regulations are currently being renewed, in order, he said, "to define the identity of the Gregorian University more clearly, facilitating the preparation of the most appropriate academic programs for carrying out its mission."
"As an ecclesial pontifical university, this academic institution is committed to 'sentire in Ecclesia et cum Ecclesia.' This is a commitment that arises from love for the Church, our Mother and Bride of Christ."
The other day I wrote about a fellow who made a sort of job out of performing religious acts; here's another case and one that's more obviously mercenary: western laymen dressing up as priests and conducting weddings for non-Christians in Japan.
Come to think of it, there's probably a market for such services here too.
A few weeks ago, a friend forwarded a promotional copy of lawyer Christopher Ferrara's book about EWTN. Since then I've browsed through it, but it doesn't seem worth spending the time to read it in full. Wherever I dip into the book, I find over-the-top complaints such as these:
- Masses on EWTN follow the new rite!
- When the Bishop ordered them to present only Masses said versus populum, they actually obeyed him!
- Their Masses actually use the approved English version of Mass, with the words "for all" in place of pro multis!
- Speakers on EWTN and writers on their website reject hard-line interpretations of Extra ecclesiam nulla salus!
- Their Q&A "experts" say that Communion in the hand is actually legal, whether we personally like it or not!
- Various speakers on EWTN promote "Theology of the Body" and -- good Heavens -- NFP!
- They don't support the suspended priest Nicholas Gruner and don't promote his opinions about Fatima!
Well, can you believe it?
Anyway, when Ferrara has the nerve to talk about Benedict Groeschel as having a "haughty, know-it-all tone", well, that's pretty rich.
Would you like to make a pilgrimage to Fatima on foot? If you're not able for some reason, a man in Portugal is willing to make the journey on your behalf.
For 2,500 euros ($3,169), Pilgrim Gil will make the journey in your place -- and send you a certificate stamped along the way to prove he walked your every step.
Carlos Gil, 42, who owns a small computer company, took up this medieval practice four years ago when he suddenly "felt an urge to walk to Fatima" and said charging each client was simply a way to keep doing what he loves.
"I make the trip to Fatima once or twice a year because it elevates my spirit," said Gil. "Sometimes the trip is so intense that I forget I'm doing it to fulfill my client's promises."
Like a true pilgrim, Gil begins his seven-day journey to Fatima on foot from his home in Cascais, a small town on the outskirts of Lisbon, about 160 kilometers from the shrine. It takes him another six days to walk back.
I know, it sounds almost like simony, and it probably trips all the alarms for an Evangelical: not only is it devotion to our Lady, not only is this a medieval devotional practice, but this amounts to vicarious devotional practice: giving someone else a stipend while he does the devotional practice for you! I mean! If it's not the full Tetzel, it's close, eh?
But somehow I like the idea: according to Gil, he's not making a profit off the pilgrimages, just covering his expenses and making up for the time away from his business.
