New Personal Parish for the Traditional Mass and Sacraments

From Rorate Caeli:

America is fast becoming the nation of Personal Parishes for the Traditional Roman Mass and Sacraments. This Sunday, the creation a new Personal Parish, to be established by the Ordinary of Fort Wayne-South Bend, was announced - a decision of Bishop Kevin Rhoades, as foreseen by Summorum Pontificum, art. 10. As reported by D. Werling, the existing Sacred Heart parish will cease being a territorial parish and is to become a personal parish for those attached to the "Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite" in Fort Wayne, Indiana (with its former territory attached to that of another territorial parish).

The parish will be administered by the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter (FSSP).

The Oath against Modernism

Fr Z and Fr Ray Blake have put this Oath on their blogs. Here it is. Naturally I would have no hesitation in signing this if asked. Would you?

THE OATH AGAINST MODERNISM

Given by His Holiness St. Pius X September 1, 1910.

To be sworn to by all clergy, pastors, confessors, preachers, religious superiors, and professors in philosophical-theological seminaries.

I . . . . firmly embrace and accept each and every definition that has been set forth and declared by the unerring teaching authority of the Church, especially those principal truths which are directly opposed to the errors of this day.

And first of all, I profess that God, the origin and end of all things, can be known with certainty by the natural light of reason from the created world (see Rom. 1:90), that is, from the visible works of creation, as a cause from its effects, and that, therefore, his existence can also be demonstrated:

Secondly, I accept and acknowledge the external proofs of revelation, that is, divine acts and especially miracles and prophecies as the surest signs of the divine origin of the Christian religion and I hold that these same proofs are well adapted to the understanding of all eras and all men, even of this time.

Thirdly, I believe with equally firm faith that the Church, the guardian and teacher of the revealed word, was personally instituted by the real and historical Christ when he lived among us, and that the Church was built upon Peter, the prince of the apostolic hierarchy, and his successors for the duration of time.

Fourthly, I sincerely hold that the doctrine of faith was handed down to us from the apostles through the orthodox Fathers in exactly the same meaning and always in the same purport. Therefore, I entirely reject the heretical' misrepresentation that dogmas evolve and change from one meaning to another different from the one which the Church held previously. I also condemn every error according to which, in place of the divine deposit which has been given to the spouse of Christ to be carefully guarded by her, there is put a philosophical figment or product of a human conscience that has gradually been developed by human effort and will continue to develop indefinitely.

Fifthly, I hold with certainty and sincerely confess that faith is not a blind sentiment of religion welling up from the depths of the subconscious under the impulse of the heart and the motion of a will trained to morality; but faith is a genuine assent of the intellect to truth received by hearing from an external source. By this assent, because of the authority of the supremely truthful God, we believe to be true that which has been revealed and attested to by a personal God, our creator and lord.

Furthermore, with due reverence, I submit and adhere with my whole heart to the condemnations, declarations, and all the prescripts contained in the encyclical Pascendi and in the decree Lamentabili, especially those concerning what is known as the history of dogmas.

I also reject the error of those who say that the faith held by the Church can contradict history, and that Catholic dogmas, in the sense in which they are now understood, are irreconcilable with a more realistic view of the origins of the Christian religion.

I also condemn and reject the opinion of those who say that a well-educated Christian assumes a dual personality-that of a believer and at the same time of a historian, as if it were permissible for a historian to hold things that contradict the faith of the believer, or to establish premises which, provided there be no direct denial of dogmas, would lead to the conclusion that dogmas are either false or doubtful.

Likewise, I reject that method of judging and interpreting Sacred Scripture which, departing from the tradition of the Church, the analogy of faith, and the norms of the Apostolic See, embraces the misrepresentations of the rationalists and with no prudence or restraint adopts textual criticism as the one and supreme norm.

Furthermore, I reject the opinion of those who hold that a professor lecturing or writing on a historico-theological subject should first put aside any preconceived opinion about the supernatural origin of Catholic tradition or about the divine promise of help to preserve all revealed truth forever; and that they should then interpret the writings of each of the Fathers solely by scientific principles, excluding all sacred authority, and with the same liberty of judgment that is common in the investigation of all ordinary historical documents.

Finally, I declare that I am completely opposed to the error of the modernists who hold that there is nothing divine in sacred tradition; or what is far worse, say that there is, but in a pantheistic sense, with the result that there would remain nothing but this plain simple fact-one to be put on a par with the ordinary facts of history-the fact, namely, that a group of men by their own labor, skill, and talent have continued through subsequent ages a school begun by Christ and his apostles.

I firmly hold, then, and shall hold to my dying breath the belief of the Fathers in the charism of truth, which certainly is, was, and always will be in the succession of the episcopacy from the apostles. The purpose of this is, then, not that dogma may be tailored according to what seems better and more suited to the culture of each age; rather, that the absolute and immutable truth preached by the apostles from the beginning may never be believed to be different, may never be understood in any other way.

I promise that I shall keep all these articles faithfully, entirely, and sincerely, and guard them inviolate, in no way deviating from them in teaching or in any way in word or in writing. Thus I promise, this I swear, so help me God and these holy Gospels (which I touch with my hand).

Prayer - Divine Silence and homesickness for the tabernacle and altar...

"What makes the soul really suffer is when one is obliged to lend one's attention to some banal, worldly conversation. The soul then feels ill at ease, estranged by all the insignificant things she hears, and to which she must make some reply. She compares these empty words to the divine silence of the church and the tabernacle, and the heart is homesick for the altar." Spiritual Journal of Lucie Christine as edited by Father Poulain and quoted in Common Mystic Prayer by Gabriel Diefenbach, O.F.M. Cap.

I'll be addressing the topic of silence in Church soon... So many words that should not be uttered in this temple of "divine silence".

Human Life - the choicest vine

The Parable of the Vineyard (Mt 21:33-43) relates how God had dealt with Israel, the chosen people. But it also relates to the Church and the world, for the Church is the new People of God, the new Israel, not confined to any particular race or geographical location, but intended by God to embrace people of every race and nation, which is why it has been called "Catholic" from the earliest centuries of its existence.

The vineyard we hear about in the Gospel and in the prophecy of Isaiah (Is 5:1-7) was perfectly prepared:

• a hedge round it to mark the property out;
• a wine press to press the grapes to produce fine wine;
• a tower to ensure it would never be without water.

It was leased to tenants and the owner went to another country. God created this world and entrusted it to us as tenants. We were to be the stewards of this beautiful, perfect creation. We were left to it. All we had to do was protect it, till it, work to ensure it bore good fruit; to respect and not manipulate the laws of nature.

An absent landlord will generally employ an agent to keep an eye on the tenants:

• to ensure all is well
• to collect the rent, in this case the fruit of the vineyard: grapes and wine.

But all was not well in the vineyard. Had it been, the agents would have been welcomed. Instead, they were beaten, killed, stoned. God had sent his agents - his prophets - to the people of Israel, to remind them

• that they were God's people, his possession;
• that God expected fruits of good works, worship, fidelity, etc.

The prophets were, however, so frequently rejected.

The prophecy of Isaiah speaks of the vineyard of Jerusalem from which God expected fine grapes but which yielded only wild grapes.

When he looked for justice he found only bloodshed. Man was killing man, shedding the blood of his brother and, ultimately, the blood of God's only begotten Son, the heir in the parable whom they cast out of the vineyard and killed, taking Jesus outside the walls of Jerusalem and crucifying him outside the city.

The finest vine is the vine of human life. Each human being is like the finest of grapes. It, of all creatures on earth, must never be killed or harmed by another.

Everyone of us here sees in every baby a little miracle. Sure, it came about through the co-operation of its father and mother, but they did not determine what kind of baby they would have, what its features or character would be. This was the work of God, accepted as a gift to be marvelled at. And if the baby is sick in any way, we surround it with special care and it becomes even more of a treasure.

But there are those who see a baby as bad news, another burden on the planet, another person with whom to share the resources of the earth. And a sick baby as one not deserving to live.

As they did when the baby who would make the human population top 6 billion was about to be born, so as the population approaches 7 billion the BBC World Service has been focussing on India. Why India? Perhaps the 7 billionth member of our current population will be born in the USA? And if this were the case, it would consume far more than the baby born in India. The rich West wishes to control the population of places like India, seeing it as a threat to its comfortable life, not wishing to share the vast resources that are at our disposal.

We see our Christian youth as our future, with their desires to live good lives, and we wish to help them grow up pure and innocent.

But there are others who wish to corrupt our youth, to lead them along the ways of evil so that the culture of death may spread further.

We see our elderly as possessing so much wisdom from which we and the younger generations derive so much benefit, deserving of our care and respect.

Others see them as a burden whose deaths can be hastened by withdrawal of treatment and care or by other deliberate acts to hasten death.

Today the bishops of the US call us to observe a Respect Life Sunday. They ask us to go back to the basics about human life and sexuality.

To "Respect Life" means to respond appropriately to the value that is life:

• to preserve and nurture it;
• to honour marriage as the proper relationship between a man and a woman for the purpose of creating and nurturing human life. Marriage has precisely the purpose of creating life. That is what it is all about.
• to nurture in our young people the virtue of chastity and the respect they owe to their own bodies and those of others;
• never to deliberately frustrate the process of procreation through contraception which is where the first "NO" to life is uttered. It is here where the culture of death begins. It does not begin with abortion but with contraception;
• to value the lives of the poor and needy, seeing Christ in them, by helping them in their needs.

Those who killed the son in the parable - so we are told - will face a miserable death. So will the proponents of the culture of death. We wish to save them from such a miserable end.

The vineyard - if presently it seems to be tenanted by destroyers of the vine of life - will be taken from them and leased to other tenants who will bear fruit, fruit of the choicest grapes of life.

The culture of death will, eventually, give way to the culture of life. This became clear to me at January's March for Life in Washington DC, when I witnessed so many young people (and when I first came to know the fine young people of Gwinn) bearing witness to the value of life. The purveyors of the culture of death will - inevitably - kill themselves off. Their place will be taken by the proclaimers of the culture and Gospel of Life who are the future.

Let each one of us in our own personal lives be respectful of life and God's plan for life, each in accordance with our particular vocations. And let us do all we can to support those who are actively working to defend vulnerable human life, and join them in so far as we are able.

Witness of Christ's Presence in London

Photo: londonse1 community website

My home archdiocese's website carries news of a wonderful procession of the Blessed Sacrament from Westminster Cathedral to St George's Cathedral Southwark to commemorate the first anniversary of Pope Benedict's visit to the UK and the beatification of Blessed John Henry Newman. Here is the post in full (quoted in full since it is not possible to provide a link to the post itself).

On Saturday, 1st October 2011, nearly a thousand people, following the processional cross, accompanied the Blessed Sacrament in procession from Westminster Cathedral to St George's Cathedral, Southwark. The Blessed Sacrament Procession marked the first anniversary of the beatification of Blessed John Henry Newman and the Holy Father's visit to Britain. It was a walk to witness to the reality of the presence of Christ in London.

Biishop Alan Hopes, Auxiliary Bishop in Westminster, carried the Blessed Sacrament and gave Benediction at St George's Cathedral.

During the procession pilgrims sang hymns and prayed the Rosary

It took nearly fifteen minutes for the procession to enter the Cathedral

These two cathedrals are thought to be the closest Catholic cathedrals in the world. They are just 1.31 miles apart as the crow flies. And, strangely, although the Southwark diocese is south of the Thames and the Westminster diocese is north of the Thames, St George's Cathedral is further north than Westminster Cathedral due to a bend in the river.

More photos on the RCSouthwark Flickr page

Government to introduce square circles

Something amusing in the whole debate on marriage and same sex partnerships.

Biblical Walk through the Mass Bible Study

Last week we held our first sessions of this five-session study programme published by Ascension Press. The desire in the parish to know more about the Mass and to understand it better is amazing. The advent of the new English translation has surely been a wonderfully providential occasion to provoke renewed interest in the Mass.

Between 50 and 60 people have signed up for the programme which takes place in two groups: Tuesday evening with a repeat on Wednesday morning.

Highly to be recommended, thoroughly orthodox, deeply theological and biblical. The significance of the changes with the new translation is also explained.

Our parish wishes to record its thanks to the Marquette Diocese Legacy of Faith for funding the purchase of the presentation materials.