I just finished reading the two letters/communiques put out by the Legion of Christ/ Regnum Christi (LC/RC) over the weekend. I did so line-by-line. Here is my initial impressions, in point form, for those who are interested:
– The letter from Fr. Alvaro seems to be written for the inside, that is current members and close supporters of Regnum Christi and the Legion of Christ. Whereas the communique signed by Fr. Alvaro and various Legion superiors seems to be written for the broader Church community and perhaps society at large. Until LC/RC clarify otherwise, this is my assumption in reading and interpreting each piece of correspondence
– The LC/RC appears to have read the ecclesiastical tea leaves from Pope Benedict’s apology to the Irish, and the recent interview with Msgr. Scicluna. Whether this is good or bad will depend upon how the movement conducts itself in the future.
New monk and cow adventure!
I will respond to the two Legion communiques in a separate post, but first a few updates:
– Back after a busy weekend. A nasty cold prevented me from indulging in beer, but Bonum and I met at the local Timmies for coffee and tea. (I’m the tea drinker, in case anyone is wondering). It was great meeting him, his lovely wife and his adorable children (including their newborn) – even if it was from a distance due to the cold. We’re hoping to meet up again this summer.
– Speaking of tea, Erin Manning (aka Red Cardigan at And Sometimes Tea) has brewed the latest monk and cow cautionary tale, which I’m hope readers will enjoy as much as I did. It’s called The Monk, the Cow and the Peddler. Each of the previous installments are posted here.
– For those who haven’t heard, Vows of Silence author Jason Berry, who along with Gerald Renner broke the original Hartford Courrant story exposing Maciel’s sexual molestation of minor seminarians, is due to publish a new piece in the National Catholic Reporter this week exposing the Legion’s alleged money trail.
– Sandro Magister responds to the Legion’s communiques.
New York Times Smears
From Father Raymond J. de Souza, a response to the New York Times.
The story is false. It is unsupported by its own documentation. Indeed, it gives every indication of being part of a coordinated campaign against Pope Benedict, rather than responsible journalism.
Some perspective, please
On a mailing list I follow, tempers got hot this week over discussions of liturgical abuses.
Some people were appalled about erroneous practices; some people, who don’t see those abuses locally, wondered what the fuss was about.
So I urged everybody to be more understanding:
Dear fellow list-members,
Please try to keep some perspective about liturgical faults that happen in various churches.
First, it’s reasonable to feel offended by abuses that happen now, and abuses that we witness personally. On the other hand, let’s not give undue importance to one-time aberrations that are not widespread and are not repeated. Let’s not be outraged for years over some abuse that we saw on the Internet. Constant outrage is not good for our spiritual life.
Second, let’s acknowledge that right now there is good news: there is a strong movement underway among priests, bishops, and laity to recover reverence and beauty in the celebration of Mass. The writings of Pope Benedict are contributing to this.
You can follow this development through websites like
http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/
http://adoremus.org/
Third, the clergy are changing, but correcting problems takes time. The 1960s generation of ultra-liberal priests that introduced many abuses is going to retirement; they are passing from the scene, and younger priests are not interested in keeping their erroneous attitudes or erroneous practices.
Many people have learned wrong practices, and in some parishes, they are so habitual that correcting the problems is going to require some patience. Sad to say, it’s going to take decades to turn attitudes around.
This week the press reported about the Archbishop of Ottawa who is trying to get people all over his diocese to kneel during the Eucharistic Prayer. In some parishes up there, people hadn’t been kneeling at all:
http://www.cathnewsusa.com/article.aspx?aeid=20148
This movement for reform is a good thing, but the press is happy to report complaints from people who don’t like it.
(Be aware that the rules for kneeling are not the same in every country, so don’t be surprised if the Archbishop’s rules are not the same as the American rules.)
Bishops and priests who want to make the celebration of Mass more correct and more reverent often have to choose their battles carefully, letting some smaller failings go on, while trying to educate the people about what the Church wants.
So if some minor deviation happens, don’t jump to conclusions about the priest or the parish. Be merciful.
Fourth, keep in mind that your local experience in your diocese — whether your experience is good or not so good — can’t be projected out to the whole country or the whole world. Other readers who have different experiences from yours are not crazy: conditions really are not the same everywhere.
Thanks for thinking about these things. Thanks for being merciful.
Help for a sincere mom re RC retreats
Reader Susan’s cry for help is one that many readers can identify with:
Help!! I am scheduled to attend a mother daughter retreat with my teenage daughters sponsored by Regnum Christi. I have only recently become familiar with this LC/RC situation and I must say that I am thoroughly disgusted and confused. Do the RC members continue to quote/recognize/acknowledge Maciel at the retreat centers? If so, I will not attend. I have left a message at Mt. Kisco but not sure if it will be returned in time. Between this and the situation in Europe, I am feeling very disheartened about the Church overall and not much in the mood for a retreat, but I don’t want my feelings to affect my children. My daughters are excited about attending this and we are going with good friends. Any advice??
Susan, as a fellow parent I both understand and appreciate your concern. In fact, your situation is similar to one that came up in discussion last year over enrolling one’s daughters in RC-sponsored Pure Fashion. I would invite you to check out the post, which identifies some problems and offers a practical alternative for Catholic moms and daughters to grow together spiritually. Please click here.
Additionally, many monasteries and some convents, take retreatants. Some have special guest houses for women. As a teen I attended several youth retreats – via both the Catholic Church and the PAOC (Canada’s equivalent to Assemblies of God) that were “teen orientated” – retreats like Antioch, Youth Encounter, etc. I even attended spiritual exercises with the SSPX.
However, the most memorable retreats for me were the times my dad took me to the Trappist monastery in Oka or Orangeville, or my visit to the Benedictine Monastery in St. Benoit du Lac. Ironically, it was after a retreat with these old, tried and contemplative orders that I discerned God calling me back to the Catholic Church – the first time home from evangelical protestantism, and the second time home from radical traditionalism. In retrospect, I feel there is something about praying in a relaxed and simple surrounding, in the middle of nature, that draws the soul back to God.
The other nice thing is that one’s schedule is open. So one can join the monks for prayer and mass followed by a breakfast of fresh bread and fruits. Then take a walk around the monastery grounds, while praying the Rosary, before joining the monks for more prayer and lunch. Then drive into town for a little mother-daughter shopping in small town boutiques, take in the local sights and grab supper – using it as an opportunity to really converse with your girls. Then return to the monastery for evening prayer followed by recollection and night prayer.
As many of us have discovered as parents doing our best to raise our kids Catholic, what speaks most to our children is our time. We don’t need fancy retreats, programs, marketing, etc… What we need to do is take the time to introduce them to simple Catholicism, to old charisms like that of the Benedictine which is both tested and true.
For instance, like we try and do every summer, our family will probably mix our summer vacation at Mackinac Island and Jellystone Park with a day at this national Franciscan shrine. So it’s Yogi Bear in the morning; Mass with the Franciscans and the National Nun Doll Museum in the afternoon; followed by an evening shopping along the boardwalk at St. Ignace. Then back to the trailer to pray the rosary while roasting marshmallows by campfire. Sometimes we arrange to meet up with other Catholic families, sometimes we just happen to run into them and plans merge for the afternoon or evening.
In fact, if any of you live in Michigan and enjoy camping, you’re welcome to join us this summer. Perhaps we could all get together for the Canada Day – Independence Day long weekend. There are several KOAs and a couple of Jellystone Parks between St. Ignace and Higgins Lake. It’s just a matter of picking one; putting together a loose schedule that combines prayer time, historical time, fun time and family time; and meeting up.