Archives for 2012

7 Quick Takes Friday (set #69)

Friday, July 13, 2012 A.D. 2 Comments

This week: Cardinal Burke’s views on the Extraordinary Form Mass. A young person’s views on the same. Father Barron reviews For Greater Glory. Using the ADA to “club” an abortion clinic. The IRS is staffing-up to enforce ObamaCare on the public. We are still very “under water” on bailing-out GM, so how is our “investment” working out? A EE’s business card.

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Cardinal Raymond Burke was interviewed last week by CNS on his views of the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. Yes, this is the Latin Mass but those who focus on Latin vs. English completely miss the point. Many people are drawn to the traditional, EF Mass by its beauty, timelessness and – most importantly – its sacredness.

Last Saturday was the 7th anniversary of Summorum Pontificum (07-07-07), Pope Benedict’s motu proprio Apostolic Letter supporting the EF Mass.

— 2 —

So, does the Extraordinary Form of the Mass only appeal to “old” people?

(This video is no longer available.)

This young person was known as “She is Catholic” and had more videos on her YouTube channel. Thanks to Father Z for spotting her!

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Father Barron reviews For Greater Glory:

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a great idea gone bad. It is often used as a club for unreasonable demands against certain targets. Turning this lemon into lemonade, Allen County Right to Life (IN) is suing an abortion center because they do not provide adequate wheelchair access! On the one hand, this is a typical abuse of the law. On the other, anything that makes it more difficult for abortuaries to stay in business has at least some merit. Thanks to Matthew Archbold at CMR for spotting this.

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The IRS is adding scores of new agents to enforce ObamaCare and collect penalties from anyone who refuses it. Note too that the penalties are huge. This is a terrible law and will do great harm to the country and its citizens.

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We American taxpayers took a big risk ($50 billion) bailing-out General Motors. As a result, we own 26.5% of them. Those shares, if sold at market value today would net us a loss of $16.6 billion (not counting around $45 billion in write-offs – at book value making our net loss around $35 billion).

In addition to their debt to us, how are they going to repay us?

— 7 —

You want your business card to stand out. Here is one electrical engineers solution:

Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was started by Jennifer Fulwiler at Conversion Diary to address this blogging need. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Jen for hosting this project!

Filed Under: quick takes

Baltimore Catechism: on contrition

Tuesday, July 10, 2012 A.D. 1 Comment

Lesson 18

195	Q.	What is contrition or sorrow for sin?
	A.	Contrition or sorrow for sin is a hatred of sin and a true grief of the soul for having offended God, with a firm purpose of sinning no more.

“Offended” – that is, done something to displease Him.

*196	Q.	What kind of sorrow should we have for our sins?
	A.	The sorrow we should have for our sins should be interior, supernatural, universal, and sovereign.

*197	Q.	What do you mean by saying that our sorrow should be interior?
	A.	When I say that our sorrow should be interior, I mean that it should come from the heart, and not merely from the lips.

“Interior” – that is, we must really have the sorrow in our hearts. A boy, for example, might cry in the confessional and pretend to the priest to be very sorry, and the priest might be deceived and absolve him; but God, who sees into our hearts, would know that he was not really sorry, but only pretending, that his sorrow was not interior, but exterior; and God therefore would withhold His forgiveness and would not blot out the sins, and the boy would have a new sin of sacrilege upon his soul; because it is a sacrilege to allow the priest to give you absolution if you know you have not the right disposition, and you are not trying to do all that is required for a good confession. So you understand you might deceive the priest and receive absolution, but God would not allow the absolution to take effect, and the sins would remain; for if the priest knew your dispositions as God did, or as you know them, he would not give you absolution till your dispositions changed.

*198	Q.	What do you mean by saying that our sorrow should be supernatural?
	A.	When I say that our sorrow should be supernatural, I mean that it should be prompted by the grace of God, and excited by motives which spring from faith, and not by merely natural motives.

“Supernatural” – that is, we must be sorry for the sin on account of some reason that God has made known to us. For example, either because our sin is displeasing to God, or because we have lost Heaven by it, or because we fear to be punished for it in Hell or Purgatory. But if we are sorry for our sin only on account of some natural motive, then our sorrow is not of the right kind. If a man was sorry for stealing only because he was caught and had to go to prison for it, his sorrow would only be natural. Or if a boy was sorry for telling lies only because he got a whipping for it, his sorrow would only be natural. Or if a man was sorry for being intoxicated because he lost his situation and injured his health, he would not have the necessary kind of sorrow. These persons must be sorry for stealing, lying, or being intoxicated because all these are sins against God – things forbidden by Him and worthy of His punishment. If we are sorry for having offended God on account of His own goodness, our contrition is said to be perfect. If we are sorry for the sins because by them we are in great danger of being punished by God, or because we have lost Heaven by them, and without any regard for God’s own goodness, then our contrition is said to be imperfect. Imperfect contrition is called attrition.

*199	Q.	What do you mean by saying that our sorrow should be universal?
	A.	When I say that our sorrow should be universal, I mean that we should be sorry for our mortal sins without exception.

“Universal.” If a person committed ten mortal sins, and was sorry for nine, but not for the tenth, then none of the sins would be forgiven. If you committed a thousand mortal sins, and were sorry for all but one, none would be forgiven. Why? Because you can never have God’s grace and mortal sin in the soul at the same time. Now this mortal sin will be on your soul till you are sorry for it, and while it is on your soul God’s grace will not come to you. Again, you cannot be half sorry for having offended God; either you must be entirely sorry, or not sorry at all. Therefore you cannot be sorry for only part of your mortal sins.

*200	Q.	What do you mean when you say that our sorrow should be sovereign?
	A.	When I say that our sorrow should be sovereign I mean that we should grieve more for having offended God than for any other evil that can befall us.

201	Q.	Why should we be sorry for our sins?
	A.	We should be sorry for our sins, because sin is the greatest of evils and an offense against God our Creator, Preserver, and Redeemer, and because it shuts us out of Heaven and condemns us to the eternal pains of Hell.

We consider an evil great in proportion to the length of time we have to bear it. To be blind is certainly a misfortune; but it is a greater misfortune to be blind for our whole life than for one day. Sin, therefore, is the greatest of all evils; because the misfortune it brings upon us lasts not merely for a great many years, but for all eternity. Even slight sufferings would be terrible if they lasted forever, but the sufferings for mortal sin are worse than we can describe or imagine, and they are forever. The greatest evils in this world will not last forever, and are small when compared with sin. Sin makes us ungrateful to God, who gives us our existence.

“Our Preserver,” because if God ceased to watch over us and provide for us, even for a short time, we would cease to exist.

“Our Redeemer,” who suffered so much for us.

*202	Q.	How many kinds of contrition are there?
	A.	There are two kinds of contrition: perfect contrition and imperfect contrition.

*203	Q.	What is perfect contrition?
	A.	Perfect contrition is that which fills us with sorrow and hatred for sin because it offends God, who is infinitely good in Himself and worthy of all love.

It can be a very hard thing to have perfect contrition, but we should always try to have it, so that our contrition may be as perfect as possible. This perfect contrition is the kind of contrition we must have if our mortal sins are to be forgiven if we are in danger of death and cannot go to confession. Imperfect contrition with the priest’s absolution will blot out our mortal sins.

*204	Q.	What is imperfect contrition?
	A.	Imperfect contrition is that by which we hate what offends God because by it we lose Heaven and deserve Hell; or because sin is so hateful in itself.

*205	Q.	Is imperfect contrition sufficient for a worthy confession?
	A.	Imperfect contrition is sufficient for a worthy confession, but we should endeavor to have perfect contrition.

206	Q.	What do you mean by a firm purpose of sinning no more?
	A.	By a firm purpose of sinning no more I mean a fixed resolve not only to avoid all mortal sin, but also its near occasions.

“Fixed.” Not for a certain time, but for all the future.

207	Q.	What do you mean by the near occasions of sin?
	A.	By the near occasions of sin I mean all the persons, places and things that may easily lead us into sin.

“Occasions.” There are many kinds of occasions of sin. First, we have voluntary and necessary occasions, or those we can avoid and those we cannot avoid. For example: if a companion uses immodest conversation we can avoid that occasion, because we can keep away from him; but if the one who sins is a member of our own family, always living with us, we cannot so easily avoid that occasion. Second, near and remote occasions. An occasion is said to be “near” when we usually fall into sin by it. For instance, if a man gets intoxicated almost every time he visits a certain place, then that place is a “near occasion” of sin for him; but if he gets intoxicated only once out of every fifty times or so that he goes there, then it is said to be a “remote occasion.” Now, it is not enough to avoid the sins: we must also avoid the occasions. If we have a firm purpose of amendment, if we desire to do better, we must be resolved to avoid everything that will lead us to sin. It is not enough to say, I will go to that place or with that person, but I will never again commit the same sins. No matter what you think now, if you go into the occasion, you will fall again; because Our Lord, who cannot speak falsely, says: “He who loves the danger will perish in it.” Now the occasion of sin is always “the danger”; and if you go into it, Our Lord’s words will come true, and you will fall miserably. Take away the cause, take away the occasion, and then the sin will cease of itself. Let us suppose the plaster in your house fell down, and you found that it fell because there was a leak in the water-pipe above, and the water coming through wet the plaster and made it fall. What is the first thing your father would do in that case? Why, get a plumber and stop up the leak in the pipe before putting up the plaster again. Would it not be foolish to engage a plasterer to repair the ceiling while the pipe was still leaking? Everyone would say that man must be out of his mind: the plaster will fall down as often as he puts it up, and it matters not either how well he puts it up. If he wants it to stay up, he must first mend the pipe – take away the cause of its falling. Now the occasion of sin is like the leak in the pipe – in the case of sin, it will very likely cause you to fall every time. Stop up the leak, take away the occasion, and then you will not fall into sin – at least not so frequently.

“The persons” are generally bad companions, and though they may not be bad when alone, they are bad when with us, and thus we become also bad companions for them, and occasions of sin.

“The places.” Liquor saloons, low theaters, dance halls, and all places where we may see or hear anything against faith or morals.

“Things.” Bad books, pictures, and the like.

Filed Under: Baltimore Catechism

7 Quick Takes Friday (set #68)

Friday, July 6, 2012 A.D. 2 Comments

This week: 43 archbishops receive their pallium from the Holy Father. A young priest is ambushed by LCWR protesters. A newly ordained priest talks about the vocation. A father and son are ordained together. Father Barron speaks on opposing heresy. Moral decisions of the commander-in-chief and their consequences. A quote of the week.

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At the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Holy Father placed the pallium upon the 43 Archbishops he appointed over the last year. This year therefore included Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore and Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia. Rome Reports has the story.

— 2 —

Young Father Ted Martin was greeting parishioners after Mass at the Cathedral of Kalamazoo. A protester supporting the deeply troubled Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) approached him to make points. A reporter and a gaggle of other protesters are also present. It is basically an ambush.

(This video is no longer available.)

Fr. Martin was excellent! After listening carefully, he responds to the vague assertions on Vatican II with document names, paragraphs and quotes. He has an impressive grasp of scripture and Latin too. The persistent protester, despite obviously coming armed with talking points, seems to ramble and change the subject. She promises to call him later but so far has not.

It’s basic stuff, but obviously some people need it. Especially the protester, who turns out to be a former Mercy sister of 11 years with 2 theology degrees. Fr. Zuhlsdorf covers the story here and here. Pray for these lost sheep. Pray also for more priests like Fr. Martin.

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Father Pablo Santa Maria is a recently ordained priest in the Archdiocese of Vancouver. In this video from their vocations office, Fr. Santa maria speaks on the priestly vocation, calling, seminary and importance of liturgy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdQQjzCWywg

Spotted by Shawn Tribe at NLM

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A father and son have been ordained as priests… at the same Mass.

— 5 —

Is being anti-heresy being uncharitable? Of course not. Father Barron:

I wrote about the new atheists last August. Spirit Juice Studios has put together a new video for the teen / young adult audience that might find appeal in such shallow nonsense:

Spotted by Marcel LeJeune

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We must choose our presidents very carefully. This is a true story, demonstrating how NOT to be a faithful commander in chief:

Spotted by my friend Tom

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Quote of the week:

Members of this Court are vested with the authority to interpret the law; we possess neither the expertise nor the prerogative to make policy judgments. Those decisions are entrusted to our Nation’s elected leaders, who can be thrown out of office if the people disagree with them. It is not our job to protect the people from the consequences of their political choices.

Chief Justice John Roberts
Supreme Court of the United States

Filed Under: quick takes

Independence Day

Tuesday, July 3, 2012 A.D. Leave a Comment

O God our Creator,
from your provident hand we have received
our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
You have called us as your people and given us
the right and the duty to worship you, the only true God,
and your Son, Jesus Christ.
Through the power and working of your Holy Spirit,
you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world,
bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel
to every corner of society.

We ask you to bless us
in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty.
Give us the strength of mind and heart
to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened;
give us courage in making our voices heard
on behalf of the rights of your Church
and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith.

Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father,
a clear and united voice to all your sons and daughters
gathered in your Church
in this decisive hour in the history of our nation,
so that, with every trial withstood
and every danger overcome?
for the sake of our children, our grandchildren,
and all who come after us?
this great land will always be “one nation, under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Filed Under: holiday

Obama’s war on religion (update #8)

Friday, June 29, 2012 A.D. Leave a Comment

Yesterday the Supreme Court of the United States ruled on the constitutionality of ObamaCare. Speculation has been rampant for months on the government’s authority to force people to purchase services under the commerce clause.

To the surprise of almost everyone, the Supreme Court saw ObamaCare as a massive new TAX. As a TAX, it passes constitutional muster based on the government’s unlimited authority to TAX.

This piece continues my series on the very real war on religion. My last summary was 1 month ago. This is the latest update. To see the whole series, click here.

What the Supreme Court did not decide

It is imperative that we understand the narrow scope of the Supreme Court’s decision. Specifically:

This case did not consider, in any way, the constitutionality of the HHS Mandate to force almost everyone, including the Catholic Church and its members, to purchase abortion inducing drugs, sterilizations, and contraceptive insurance coverage.
The Supreme Court did NOT rule that ObamaCare was in any way a “good idea,” merely that as a TAX it was not unconstitutional.

Where do we stand?

Nothing has changed. The numerous lawsuits brought by various Catholic dioceses and institutions remain full-steam-ahead. They are now more urgent than ever. We eagerly look forward to our day in court on this issue. ObamaCare enables the HHS mandate, which represents a major assault on freedom of religion. This is a completely different issue than what the Supreme Court decided yesterday.

Of course, we are disappointed. Had ObamaCare not been seen as a TAX (which admittedly, it actually is), it likely would have been overturned. That would have made the HHS mandate moot and our struggle to retain the religious freedom we have enjoyed for over 200 years intact.

Success in court is not the only way religious liberty can be restored. The other way is through legislative action. President Obama has been intransigent on this and with the Senate controlled by his party, legislative relief is impossible. Today’s decision therefore means that…

November 6th is now a REFERENDUM on ObamaCare

The decision to accept this controversial freedom crushing, pro-abortion healthcare law now goes to the voters. YOU decide. Cast your vote for president Obama and his party if you support this deeply flawed law. If you oppose the law and recognize that improving healthcare access does not have to be at the cost of religious liberty and innocent life, vote against President Obama and his enabling party. It really is that simple.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXZw6pF__3E

Fortnight for Freedom continues

Religious liberty has been a part of the American experience since before the United States even became an independent country. However, approaches to religious liberty have developed over time, as Catholics and people of other faiths have faced discrimination in various forms. Fortunately, there have been many heroes of religious liberty that span centuries.

Importantly, the First Amendment has protected the free exercise of religion since the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1789. While the HHS mandate forcing coverage of sterilization, contraception, and abortion-inducing drugs represents a significant threat to religious liberty, Catholics and others have endured religious crises throughout our country’s history.

Our bishops call to action continues through July 4th. Read the articles below to find out more about our country’s historic challenges, and view their educational resources page to find out more about current threats to religious liberty both at home and abroad.

What is at stake

The administration and their friends in the media try to spin this issue as either (1) the Church taking away everyone’s contraception or (2) a “war on women.” They know this to be false. In jeopardy is something much, much greater – with the unprecedented loss of religious freedom we would also irrevocably lose the very character of the country. This radical change sacrifices the birthright of future Americans.

Evangelical Eric Metaxas is the author of the new book on Dietrich Bonhoeffer how is remembered for his effort to overthrow Hitler. Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse is an economist and founder for the Ruth Institute which promotes families through the sanctity of marriage.