From The "Why Contraception is Evil" File:

Here is some great commentary from Timotheos at Ballam's Ass:

"So I was watching Last Comic Standing last night and (in my opinion, the funniest guy) Chris Porter, made a profound but likely unintentional comment on the state of our culture. He was making a joke about the birth control patch, and how, if they were for guys, they would have them plastered on their forehead ("four or five of them; look ladies, backup") so that women would know they were ready for uninhibited sex--sex uninhibited by the fear of children, that is.

He went on to say that for a guy to discover a birth control patch on a woman was like getting a toy for Christmas with batteries included. "You can play with her right out of the box!" To that, women could be heard cheering. Now, I don't know about you, but that comment and the response to it strikes me as symptomatic of everything that is wrong with our materialistic culture of death. When women no longer retain the capacity to recognize that they are being treated as objects and toys to be played with, the birds of radical feminism...have come home to roost. Far from being funny, the joke was a sad commentary on the state in which we find ourselves."

Amen!  I pray that the day will soon come when women will realize that it is below their dignity to allow themselves to be used.

You Have My Support!

ANAHEIM, July 27 /Christian Newswire/ -- As the Knights of Columbus hold their annual convention in Orlando, August 1-3, we fellow Catholics are holding them accountable,” said Kenneth M. Fisher, founder and chairman of Concerned Roman Catholics of America, Inc. (CRCOA). “We ask the Knights, especially Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, to live up to their Catholic foundational principles by expelling all pro-abortion politicians from their ranks.”

“It’s long past time,” Fisher continued, “for the Knights to end the scandal of allowing membership in good standing to pro-abortion politicians who blatantly defy Catholic morality and teaching, such as Massachusetts Senator Teddy Kennedy (Inactvie), New York former Governor Mario Cuomo and many others.”

Fisher said his Concerned Roman Catholics group will start using its http://www.crcoa.com/ Website to spotlight pro-abortion politicians at the national, state and local levels who belong to the Knights. He said the Knights have failed to enforce a resolution they adopted at their 2003 convention that banned pro-abortion politicians from their organization, facilities and functions.

“We in Concerned Roman Catholics,” Fisher said, “are a lay organization with many religious members. We defend orthodox Catholic teaching and we seek to expose false teaching, corruption and scandals and bring them to an end. That is why we want the Knights to clean up their membership and restore their Order’s good name.”

Fisher said, “The Knights of Columbus can be a major force for good in the Church and society in general. But how can they call themselves ‘the strong right arm of the Church’ when they harbor pro-abortion politicians – enemies of the Church -- as members?”

The Knights of Columbus have more than 1.7 million members in 14,000 councils in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, the Pacific and now Poland. They were founded in 1882 in New Haven, Connecticut, by Father Michael McGivney, a parish priest whose cause for sainthood is now underway, to give Catholic men a fraternal order of their own, to provide financial aid for Catholic families and to combat the rampant anti-Catholic prejudice of the day.

Fisher said, “Sadly, the Knights’ leadership in recent decades has fallen far short of Father McGivney’s ideals. Supreme Knight Carl Anderson has been at the helm of the Knights for more than five years now. He needs to do his duty and expel the pro-abortion and pro-homosexual politicians – or resign immediately.”

I am not quite sure why anyone who is pro-choice would even want to be part of the Knights of Columbus who do so much for the pro-life movement.  It seems as though anyone who has even a shred of integrity would be part of a group but not believe what that group believes.  But, apparently, there are many, many people who don't feel the same way.

How To Create Your Own Conclusion:

From Mere Comments:

      If you want to learn how to reach the conclusion you wish, regardless of the rules you are sworn to obey, you might pay close attention to the exegesis of somebody called the "Diocesan Liturgist" in the Roman Catholic diocese of Winona, Minnesota.  The question is the appropriateness of using glassware for the Eucharist.  Here is the relevant passage from Redemptionis Sacramentum, 117:

     "It is strictly required, however, that such materials be truly noble in their common estimation in a given region, so that honor will be given to the Lord by their use, and all risk of diminishing the doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharistic species in the eyes of the faithful will be avoided.  Reprobated, therefore, is any practice of using for the celebration of Mass common vessels, or others lacking in quality, or devoid of all artistic merit, or which are mere containers, as also other vessels made from glass, earthenware, clay, or other materials that break easily.  This norm is to be applied even as regards metals and other materials that easily rust or deteriorate." (italics mine)

     Now, you want to use glassware for communion.  What do you do?

1. Play Kreskin the Magnificent...

2. Draw Factitious Distinctions.  Yes, Saint Paul inveighs against sodomites.  But our sodomites are not like their sodomites.  Yes, the Bible proscribes fornication.  But we don't fornicate the way other people do; we're in love.  So the Diocesan Liturgist finds a difference between glass and glass.  She notes that the glassware used in Winona is "approximately 3/8 inches or more thick" (sic).  Therefore the vessels "do not break easily but could be broken if a person purposefully works at it" (sic).  Well, plexiglass could hardly break at all, with normal use.  Why shouldn't the manufacturers of windshields carve out a lucrative side business in communion vessels?  The point of the instruction is not to guard against the breakage of vessels, but to proscribe materials of a sort that is perceived as breakable; some fired clay is actually hard to break, but we still consider porcelain as a sort of material that can be broken.  That is why the instruction specifically states that even vessels that are not common and that do possess artistic merit are not to be used if they are made of glass or clay.

Click here to read more of this wonderfully humorous exposition on the topic at hand.

New From the Catholic Sign Company

More hilarious signs here.

Now Here is An Idea... Beach Ministry

The beaches of Italy offer a wide variety of facilities: loungers, umbrellas; ice creams, of course; and, increasingly, a chance to get a massage or a tattoo. But the Adriatic resort of Pescara can now offer a unique attraction - the opportunity to emerge from a night of partying with a soul wiped free of sin.

Don Vito Canto, a 33-year-old priest from a village near Pescara, told the Guardian he had listened to confessions "almost uninterruptedly" from Saturday night into Sunday morning at a makeshift shrine on the sands.

Backed by volunteers wearing red Baywatch-style T-shirts and calling themselves the Lifeguards of Jesus, Father Vito and another priest were on hand to offer penance and absolution from 10 at night until one in the morning.

"Some people were a bit mistrustful and others were sarcastic. But in general the reaction was very positive," he said.

Some 30 Lifeguards of Jesus - drawn from a Catholic lay association, the Movimento pro Sanctitate - fanned out from the nearby Church of St Peter to fish for souls among the resort's night-time revellers. Their outpost on the sands was made up of a crucifix, a host in a monstrance and a lifebelt.

Younger and Younger

Apparently the culture of death thinks that we should help 13 year old children to have sex:

A condom manufacturer has set its sights on British youth, intending to market condoms designed for young teenagers in the United Kingdom as soon as 2007, provoking outrage from parents and pro-family organizations, according to the Sun, a British newspaper.

Durex, the condom manufacturer, intends to market a smaller, 49 mm condom to Britain’s youth, which it introduced in Germany just last week. The company claims the condom is also easier to put on for those who are inexperienced.

“It is aimed at youths between 13 and 16, where a not insignificant number engage in unprotected sex,” said a Durex spokesman.

However, Matthew O’Gorman, spokesman for the pro-life charity LIFE, blasted the deliberate marketing of the condoms to young teenagers as “sick and irresponsible.”

“We know that teenagers engage in risky behaviour. If it’s messing around on roads or taking drugs, we teach them not to – because it’s bad for them,” added O’Gorman.

“But when it comes to sex, we do the opposite – by throwing condoms at the problem.”

A recent exposé of condoms by Human Life International indicates that the failure rate of condoms due to bursting, tearing, and slipping off is 8.08%, or 1 in 12. The rate of pregnancy in women with partners who always use condoms is 15% within the first year, a rate that increases to 80% after ten years.

Recent research has also consistently dispelled the myth that condoms are effective at preventing the spread of STDs.

Pray and Fast

VATICAN CITY, JUL 20, 2006 (VIS) - Faced with worsening situation in the Middle East, the Holy See Press Office has been directed to communicate the following:

"The Holy Father is following with great concern the destinies of all the peoples involved and has proclaimed this Sunday, July 23, as a special day of prayer and penance, inviting the pastors and faithful of all the particular Churches, and all believers of the world, to implore from God the precious gift of peace.

"In particular, the Supreme Pontiff hopes that prayers will be raised to the Lord for an immediate cease-fire between the sides, for humanitarian corridors to be opened in order to bring help to the suffering peoples, and for reasonable and responsible negotiations to begin to put an end to objective situations of injustice that exist in that region; as already indicated by Pope Benedict XVI at the Angelus last Sunday, July 16.

"In reality, the Lebanese have the right to see the integrity and sovereignty of their country respected, the Israelis the right to live in peace in their State, and the Palestinians have the right to have their own free and sovereign homeland.

"At this sorrowful moment, His Holiness also makes an appeal to charitable organizations to help all the people struck by this pitiless conflict."

Embryonic Stem Cell Research Vote and Veto

The following is a list of U.S. Senators who voted in favor of killing and using babies currently frozen in order to "harvest" their stem cells:

 

Now here is a list of those senators who voted to defend the babies:

 
And of course a huge thank you to President Bush for doing the right thing.  I fear, however, that in the future we may not have someone like him to do the right thing when in comes to saving the lives of the little ones.  We must pray that our nation will come to realize the great evil of using children for their spare parts.  how did we ever get to the point where the majority of senators think it is ok to use people for their parts.  It's very, very sad.  But thanks be to God that many children have been spared...for now.

Update

For those of you wondering, the surgery went fine.  They found some stuff they were not expecting and thus making a two and a half hour operation into a three and a half hour operation and I got to spend a night in the hospital.  But all is good and I am recovering well. 

Thanks for the prayers and keep it up.

Prayer Request

Please keep me in your prayers today (July 13th).  I will be having an operation on my left ear.  It is nothing serious but prayers never hurt.

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. Pray for us.

St. Benedict.  Pray for us.

St. Josemaria Escriva.  Pray for us.

Bl. Aloysius Guanella.  Pray for us.

Staff Retreat

Yesterday the parish staff here made a little retreat at our diocesan retreat center.  It was a wonderfully prayerful day that brought me some much needed time to reflect.

We started the evening before with a little recreation.  We had wine and cheese and alot of stories and jokes.  The next day we had much of the morning for free time to enjoy the outdoors.  Throughout the day we had two half-hour times for quiet prayer and adortion, two-half hour talks, the stations of the cross, confessions, and of course the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  The pastor gave a talk on the apostolate of the laity and I gave a meditation using Pope Benedict's Deus Caritas Est.

A couple of people asked to have copies of it, so I thought I would let you all read it as well.  Here is the text of the meditation:

I would like to begin our meditation with a quote from Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI.  He said:

 

We have come to believe in God's love: in these words the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.[1]

 

Pope Benedict points out that we as Christians express the underlying decision of our lives when we come to a point in our lives where we can say with certainty and with all our hearts what we, you and I, have come to believe in God’s love for us.  This expression is not one that we can make haphazardly or flippantly.  We don’t just one day wake up and say that we have come to believe in God’s love - and really mean it.  This expression has a depth that goes far beyond what many of our separated brothers and sisters would call “accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.”  It is not something you can just do in a momentary altar call, but something that is an ongoing reality – a journey of sorts. It goes to the very heart of our lives and is not something we just say with our mouths, it is something we say by the way we live our lives in addition to saying it with our words.

 

This journey to fully and completely realizing that God truly loves us, as Pope Benedict puts it “is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person.”  My friends, this journey to knowing Gods love comes only through encounter with a person – the person of Jesus Christ.  It is that moment or moments of encounter with Christ that give our life a decisive direction.  We know this from experience.  No doubt many of us went through much of our lives saying that God loves us, but it was not until an encounter with him in prayer, in the Sacred Liturgy, or even in the midst of pain and suffering, that we truly came to understand and to believe in the depths of our being and with all our hearts that God loves us, and that we are His children.  And maybe you are not there yet, maybe you have yet to have that encounter with Jesus.  Have no fear.  Seek him out.  Search after Him confident that He too is searching you out and that if you seek Him with a sincere heart you will meet Him and encounter love itself.

 

This decisive encounter with Christ is an encounter that should spur us on to seek an ongoing encounter with Christ.  One that is continuous and lifelong – one through which we can truly live out what St. Paul has called us to do when he instructs us to “pray always”[2]  This is not easy, and it comes only through living a life consistent with Gospel values.  A life lived this way has a number of different characteristics, a few of which I will expound on today.

 

1. A life lived in such a way that we are continually in the presence of God is one that has as its rock foundation an understanding that we are sons and daughters of God.  St. Josemaria Escriva says that “Divine filiation (being Children of God) is a joyful truth, a consoling mystery…it shows us how to speak to God, to know and to love our Father in heaven. And it makes our interior struggle overflow with hope and gives us the trusting simplicity of little children. More than that: precisely because we are children of God, we can contemplate in love and wonder everything as coming from the hands of our Father, God the Creator. And so we become contemplatives in the middle of the world, loving the world.”[3]

 

This realization that we are indeed Children of God should move us to a profound trust and hope in God who is our Father.  He will never abandon us, he will never leave us orphan, and he will give us what we need, when we need it.  It should also move us to abandon all fear.  If God is our Father, we have nothing to fear.  Not even little rubber spiders in my desk drawer.  As Pope Benedict reminds us, that children of God, “Immersed like everyone else in the dramatic complexity of historical events… remain unshakably certain that God is our Father and loves us, even when his silence remains incomprehensible.”[4]

 

2. If God is our Father, then we, as His Children should spend time with  Him in prayer.  In recent times there has been a movement within Christian circles to make activism more important than prayer.  There has crept into the lives and teachings of many an attitude of “our work is our prayer.”  Now surely work can be prayer when it is offered to God, but it should never take the place of our time spent in private, personal prayer.  Pope Benedict points out that “It is time to reaffirm the importance of prayer in the face of the activism and the growing secularism of many Christians engaged in charitable work…[The Christian] seeks an encounter with the Father of Jesus Christ, asking God to be present with the consolation of the Spirit to him and his work.”[5]  For those of us involved in the apostolate of serving our brothers and sisters in parish work should be sure that our relationship with the Father in prayer is a priority.  This is why we, as a staff have began to pray together weekly.  That weekly prayer time is to remind us that we should be praying, not just together, but individually as well.  We should daily be lifting up the people we serve to God in personal prayer. 

 

3. If we are to come to know that we are children of God through personal and communal prayer, then we should make the greatest prayer the Church offers the high point of our lives, not just in theory, but in practice.  The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is the perfect time to lift up those we work with and those we serve in prayer, if possible, we should be doing this every day.  I think, and I am sure Fr. Morgan would agree, that it would be wonderful if everyone who worked at Holy Spirit was able to attend daily Mass.  I think it would make a huge difference in how we interact with each other and with the people we serve.

 

The Mass is the privileged place to meet Christ and to learn, at the foot of the cross, made present there, how to better love those around us.  For, as Pope Benedict says “The Eucharist draws us into Jesus' act of self-oblation.”[6]  This act of self oblation, or self gift is His death on the cross “in which gives himself in order to raise man up and save him. This is love in its most radical form.”[7]  This act of self gift is an action that we should imitate in our dealings with those we serve, so that we too, in cooperation with the Lord can raise up our brothers and sisters and lead them to salvation. We as human beings are called by our very nature to make a sincere gift of ourselves to those around us.  This is most clearly seen in ones relationship with their spouse, but it also should be lived out in a similar way in our service to those who we encounter every day in our work.  When we truly give ourselves to those we serve day in and day out we will be instruments in the hands of God; instruments that will help lead our brothers and sisters to heaven.

 

4. So how do we live these things out on a practical level.  How do we, as a result of being a child of God live out our calling to radical, self giving love?

 

1. Pray.  This was discussed earlier, but it is vitally important for us as people who seek to love as God loves in service to our brothers and sisters to have daily contact with God who is love.  We will never be able to give love if we do not receive love in daily prayer, especially in the Holy Sacrifice.

 

2. Be people of sacrifice in imitation of Christ.  These little sacrifices do not need to be big.  You don’t need to fast on bread and water three days a week, although I could probably use that.  These sacrifices can be very simple.   Here is one of my favorite quotes from St. Josemaria that some of you have heard before:  “That joke, that witty remark held on the tip of your tongue; the cheerful smile for those who annoy you; that silence when you're unjustly accused; your friendly conversation with people whom you find boring and tactless; the daily effort to overlook one irritating detail or another in the persons who live with you... this, with perseverance, is indeed solid interior mortification.”^[8]

 

We all know that there are many sacrifices that we can make every day as we work in the office.  We can smile at those we don’t like.  We can help those who annoy us instead of making an escape through the back door.  We can not roll our eyes when “that person” calls again.  We can hold our tongue instead of gossiping about this or that parishioner.  All sacrifices.  All things that will be real life manifestations of our love for God and those we serve.

 

            In conclusion, Pope Benedict reminds us that God is Love, and that makes a difference.  It makes a difference in our lives, and through us, in the lives of others.  As we now move into a time of quiet prayer and meditation let us ask ourselves if God’s love truly does make a difference in our lives.  Does his love flow through us to our brothers and sisters?  How can I we do better as a group and as individuals?  Then make a strong resolution about what we need to change in our lives to grow in holiness and lead those we serve to the same.

Happy St. Benedict's Day!

Today is the memorial of St. Benedict one of my favorite Saints.  He is a special patron for me and I chose the name Benedict for my confirmation.

One of my favorite devotions to St. Benedict is the St. Benedict Medal so I thought I would share a bit about this medal.  It's a bit long, but worth it.

The Medal of St. Benedict

There is indeed no medal which possesses such wonderful power and none so highly esteemed by the holy Church as the Medal of St. Benedict. Whosoever wears this medal with devotion, trusting to the life-giving power of the holy Cross and the merits of the holy Father St. Benedict, may expect the powerful protection of this great Patriarch in his spiritual and temporal needs.

ORIGIN OF THE MEDAL

The origin of the Medal probably dates back to the time of St. Benedict himself, of whom we know that, in his frequent combats with the evil spirit, he generally made use of the Sign of the Cross and wrought many miracles thereby. He also taught his disciples to use the Sign of our redemption against the assaults of Satan and in other dangers. St. Maurus and St. Placidus, his first and most renowned disciples, wrought their numerous miracles through the power of the holy Cross and in the name and by the merits of their holy Founder.

THE BLESSING OF THE MEDAL OF ST. BENEDICT

The Medal of St. Benedict must be blessed by a Benedictine Father, or by a priest especially authorized. [The blessing can now be given by any priest (Instr., 26 Sept. 1964; Can. 1168). Also, Dom Gueranger states that the Medal is powerful even without the special Benedictine blessing.--Publisher, 1995]. There are three solemn prayers of the Church for the blessing of the Medal.

The first prayer is an exorcism of the wicked spirit, to make void his evil influence, with the earnest petition that the Medal be for the welfare of the body and soul of the wearer. The second prayer is a fervent petition:

O Almighty God, the Giver of all good gifts, we humbly beseech Thee that Thou wouldst bestow, through the intercession of the holy Father St. Benedict, Thy blessing upon these Medals, their letters and characters designed by Thee, that all who wear them and strive to perform good works may obtain health of body and soul, the grace of salvation, the indulgences conceded to us, and by the assistance of Thy mercy, escape the snares and deceptions of the devil and appear holy and stainless in Thy sight. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen

The third prayer is very impressive in virtue of the detailed and solemn commemoration of the agony, sufferings and death of Our Lord.

After the blessing, the Medals cannot be sold; otherwise, the blessing is lost. Medals must be bought before they are blessed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE MEDAL

On one side the Medal has a cross, the sign of our redemption, the protecting shield given us by God to ward off the fiery arrows of the evil spirit.

In the angles of the cross are found these four letters: C.S.P.B. They stand for the words: Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti --" The Cross of the Holy Father Benedict."

On the vertical bar of the cross itself are found the letters: C.S.S.M.L., and on the horizontal bar of the cross: N.D.S.M.D. They signify:

Crux Sacra Sit Mihi Lux,
Non Draco Sit Mihi Dux

 

May the holy Cross be my light,
Let not the dragon be my guide.

 

Round the margin of the Medal, beginning at the right hand on top, we have the following letters: V.R.S.N.S.M.V.--S.M.Q.L.I.V.B., They stand for the verses:

 

Vade Retro, Satana!
Nunquam Suade Mihi Vana.
Sunt Mala Quae Libas
Ipse Venena Bibas.

 

Begone, Satan!
Suggest not vain things to me.
Evil is the cup thou offerest;
Drink thou thine own poison.

 

The reverse of the Medal bears the image of St. Benedict holding in his right hand the Cross, in the power of which he wrought so many miracles, and in his left hand bearing the holy Rule, which leads all its followers by the way of the Cross to eternal light.

On a pedestal to the right of St. Benedict is the poisoned cup, shattered when he made the sign of the cross over it. On a pedestal to the left is a raven about to carry away a loaf of poisoned bread that a jealous enemy had sent to St. Benedict. Above the cup and the raven are the Latin words: Crux S-Patris Benedicti. [The initials ( C.S.P.B.) are found on the other side of the medal in the angles of the Cross -- see above.]

Round the margin is the inscription: Eius in obitu nostro praesentia muniamur--"May his presence protect us in the hour of our death."

Below St. Benedict we read: ex SM Casino MDCCCLXXX (from holy Monte Cassino, 1880).

THE POWER AND EFFECTS OF THE MEDAL

Let us state here that we do not ascribe any unknown or hidden power to the Medal, a power which the superstitious ascribe to their charms. We know wherein its power lies, and we protest that the graces and favors are due, not to the gold or the silver, the brass or aluminum of the Medal, but to our faith in the merits of Christ crucified, to the efficacious prayers of the holy Father St. Benedict, and to the blessings which the holy Church bestows upon the Medal and upon those who wear it. This Medal excludes every power or influence which is not from above.

Through the pious use of the Medal of St. Benedict thousands of miracles and wonderful cures have been obtained. We would here mention that in the last few years we have received a number of letters relating most remarkable cures and extraordinary favors obtained by the devout use of the said Medal. It is, indeed, edifying to see how that faithful love and venerate this highly blessed Medal and how anxious they are to obtain this holy article, which has proved to be a remedy to almost every evil.

The Medal of St. Benedict is powerful to ward off all dangers of body and soul coming from the evil spirit. We are exposed to the wicked assaults of the devil day and night. St. Peter says, "Your adversary the devil, as roaring lion, goeth about seeking whom he may devour." (1 Peter 5:8). In the life of St. Benedict we see how the devil tried to do harm to his soul and body, and also to his spiritual children. Father Paul of Moll, saintly Flemish Benedictine wonder-worker (1824-1896), frustrated the evil doings of the spirit of darkness chiefly through the use of the Medal of St. Benedict, which has proved a most powerful protection against the snares and delusions of the old enemy. Missionaries in pagan lands use this Medal with so great effect that it has been given the remarkable name, "The devil-chasing Medal."

 

THE USE OF THE MEDAL

It may be worn about the neck, attached to the scapular or the rosary, or otherwise carried devoutly about one's person. For the sick it can be placed on wounds, dipped in medicine or in water which is given to them to drink.

The Medal is frequently put into the foundation of houses or in walls, hung over doors, or fastened on stables and barns to call down God's protection and blessing. It is also buried in fields, as the saintly Father Paul of Moll advised his friends to do.

No particular prayers are prescribed, for the very wearing and use of the Medal is considered a silent prayer to God to grant us, through the merits of St. Benedict, the favors we request. However, for obtaining extraordinary favors, it is highly recommended to perform special devotions in honor of the holy Father St. Benedict, for instance, on Tuesday, on which day the Church commemorates the death of the holy Patriarch. The Way of the Cross is also highly recommended or a novena to St. Benedict. His feast is celebrated March 21st, two days after the feast of St. Joseph.

PLENARY INDULGENCES

A plenary indulgence may be gained on the following feasts of Our Lord:

Christmas -  Epiphany (Jan. 6)

Easter - Ascension

Pentecost - Trinity Sunday

Corpus Christi

 

On the following feasts of the Blessed Virgin:

Immaculate Conception (December 8)

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin (September 8)

Purification (Candlemas Day, February 2)

Annunciation (March 25)

Assumption (August 15)

Also, a plenary indulgence may be gained on the principal feasts of the Benedictine Order:

St. Maurus (January 15)

St. Scholastica (sister of St. Benedict, Feb. 10)

St. Benedict (March 21)

Dedication of the Basilica of Monte Cassino (October 1)

St. Placidus (October 5)

All Saints of our Order (November 13)

St. Gertrude (November 17)

A plenary indulgence on the feast of All Saints (November 1), once a year (at choice) and also at the hour of death.

For gaining all these plenary indulgences, the conditions required are: l) the wearing of the Jubilee Medal, 2) the usual Confession and Communion, 3) a visit to a church, 4) prayers for the Pope and for the conversion of sinners.

THE "TOTIES QUOTIES" INDULGENCE

A great privilege connected with the Jubilee Medal by the decree of the Sacred Congregation of Indulgences, February 27, 1907 deserves special mention: the Toties Quoties plenary indulgence on All Souls' Day, November 2.

By virtue of this decree, all who habitually wear the Jubilee Medal can gain a plenary indulgence for the Poor Souls in Purgatory as often as (toties quoties) they visit any Catholic church or public oratory and pray according to the intention of the Holy Father and receive the Sacraments either on All Saints' or on All Souls' Day. Where there is a Benedictine church within one mile of your own church, the visits must be made to the Benedictine church. One need leave the church for only a few minutes between visits.

This great indulgence for the Poor Souls may be gained from twelve o'clock noon on All Saints' Day until twelve o'clock midnight on All Souls' Day. For thirty-six hours you may gain as many plenary indulgences as you make visits. What a wonderful help for the Poor Souls!

ANOTHER PRIVILEGE

Those who devoutly wear the Medal of St. Benedict and pray for the propagation of his holy order share in all the good works, Masses, Communions, Divine Office, prayers and fasts of the entire Order.

St. Benedict Medal Prayer

May the intercession of the Blessed Patriarch and Abbot Benedict render Thee merciful unto us, O Lord, that what our own unworthiness cannot obtain, we may receive through his powerful patronage. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen
(This prayer may be said when using the Medal for any pious purpose.)

Novena Prayer to St. Benedict

O glorious St. Benedict, sublime model of virtue, pure vessel of God's grace! Behold me humbly kneeling at thy feet. I implore thee, in thy loving kindness, to pray for me before the throne of God. To thee do I have recourse in the dangers that daily surround me. Shield me against my selfishness and my indifference to God and to my neighbor. Inspire me to imitate thee in all things. May thy blessing be with me always, so that I may see and serve Christ in others and work for His kingdom.

Graciously obtain for me from God these favors and graces which I need so much in the trials, miseries and afflictions of life. Thy heart was always full of love, compassion and mercy toward those who were afflicted or troubled in any way. Thou didst never dismiss without consolation and assistance anyone who had recourse to thee. I therefore invoke thy powerful intercession, confident in the hope that thou wilt hear my prayers and obtain for me the special grace and favor I earnestly implore. (Name your petition.)

Help me, great St. Benedict, to live and die as a faithful child of God, to run in the sweetness of His loving will and to attain the eternal happiness of Heaven. Amen.

More on Archbishop Burke

Here is a great piece from the Catholic News agency on Archbishop Burke and his recent appointment:

St. Louis, Jul. 10, 2006 (CNA) - ...While the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura is often labeled the “Supreme Court” of the Catholic Church, the Tribunal’s cases are generally more rare than those of the U.S. Supreme Court. Most judicial appeals, which come to Rome from dioceses around the world, are decided by the Roman Rota.  The Supreme Tribunal’s duties include responsibility for any appeals to rulings of the Roman Rota, in addition to oversight of the Roman Rota itself.  

The Tribunal is currently being asked to consider the appeal of a group of parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston, which have been closed due to restructuring in the archdiocese.  The parishes are appealing to the Tribunal after their initial appeals to Rome were denied earlier this month.

The Tribunal also oversees the administration of justice within the Church, examining administrative matters referred to it by the Congregations of the Roman Curia as well as questions committed to it by the Holy Father.

Archbishop Burke is known as an accomplished Canon Lawyer. Having completed his graduate studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Burke was named Moderator of the Curia and Vice Chancellor of the Diocese of La Cross, Wisconsin. Prior to being named Bishop of La Crosse in 1994, Burke served as Defender of the Bond of the Supreme Tribunal for five years - the first American to hold such a post.

Burke has been one of the strongest voices in the American Church in recent years, speaking boldly against pro-abortion politicians who also claim to profess the Catholic faith.  

Burke, who attempts to meet one-on-one with Catholic politicians in his dioceses in order to explain and encourage them to follow Church teaching, is not afraid to take a public stance. In 2004 Burke, then Bishop of La Crosse, issued a directive to his priests to refrain from giving Holy Communion to politicians who support abortion.  

Burke was then named Archbishop of St. Louis and publicly criticized presidential candidate John Kerry for his pro-abortion stance, suggesting that Kerry should not be allowed to receive communion.

Burke was also involved in a difficult legal battle with a schismatic parish in his current archdiocese.  In 2004, while Archbishop Justin Rigali was still Archbishop of St. Louis, Stanislaus Kostka Parish, an ethnically Polish congregation, altered its by-laws to eliminate any recognition of the authority due to the archbishop and pastor - making it a self-governing church.  When Archbishop Rigali and then Burke attempted to talk the parish into returning to the governance of the Church, they refused.  

Archbishop Burke placed the parish under interdict and brought consulters from Poland to speak to the parish, but the parish decided to appeal to Rome for help.  When the ruling came back and the Congregation for the Clergy found in favor of Burke, the parish further distanced itself and appointed its own priest.  At that point, Burke declared that the parish had completed the break from Rome and excommunicated itself.  In 2005 Burke suppressed the parish and began taking action to encourage the growth of another Polish parish in St. Louis...

Congratulations Archbishop Burke!

Via Whispers in the Loggia:

This morning, it was announced that Pope Benedict XVI had named Archbishop Raymond Burke of St Louis as a member of the church's highest court.

Burke will join the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura alongside Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, the prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, and Archbishop Lluis Martinez Sistach of Barcelona. (The members of the Signatura serve on it in addition to the primary posts they hold.)

Beyond being an accolade for his legal aecumen, Burke's appointment to the high court could be seen as a vindication for the canonical strategy he employed in the case of St Louis' St Stanislaus parish. In December, following the refusal of the parish's board of directors to acknowledge the archbishop's right of governance over the Polish ethnic parish, Burke excommunicated the five members of the board, as well as the priest the laypeople had hired to serve the parish.

Why The Cassock?

Since I am a priest prone to wearing the cassock, I often get that question.  I have found that the question frequently comes from my brother priests, especially those from that era in the history of the church where cassocks were looked down upon as something reactionary and "pre-vatican II."  I also hear the same question it from some of the laity, mostly of the same generation.  However, the people I especially like to hear that question from are the young people.  They seem to like the cassock and are genuinely interested in the symbolism associated with it.  They, more than any other group of people, understand why it is that many younger clergy like to wear the cassock as opposed to a clerical shirt.

I write about this because I recently found this blog entry from Fr. Erik Richtsteig in which he lays out his case as to why he wears the cassock, and I like what he says.  So here it is:

Why do I wear it?

1-By wearing it I let everyone know immediately who and what I am--a Roman Catholic priest. Clerical suits are worn by just about anyone these days, but a cassock--that is almost exclusively Catholic. (I was mistaken for an Orthodox once by an old lady at a nursing home. But that is ok, they have valid orders.) Many times people just come up to me in the airport or at a store and start talking. It is a great way to evangelize and be availible as a priest.

2-By wearing a cassock I am embracing a poverty of appearence. A cassock is not high fashion. It is just there. Like a religious habit, it submerges my personal identity in my vocational.

3-It is comfortable. I admit it. I hate suits. They rank with dental work on the scale of things I don't like. A cassock on the other hand is comfortable. It isn't tight. It is cool in the summer and warm in the winter. And it is easy to throw on over sweats for those midnight sick calls.

So, there you have it.  Three good reasons to wear a cassock: catholic priestly identity, priestly simplicity, and practicality, and that, my friends, is why I frequently wear a cassock.

Nun Chucks

Here at the office we recently celebrated the June birthdays, one of which was mine.  And, lo, upon opening one of the gifts given unto me I found this somewhat irreverent, yet somehow amusing gift:

It's nice, and it gets lots and lots of laughs, but I must admit, (and my brother priests will understand) this would have relieved more stress:

You can order your own here.