God is still in charge

 

The devil is well pleased when he can spread ambiguity, confusion, 

misunderstanding or downright lies. 

The authentic Catholic faith is clear but nuanced, 

in it's codification of dogmas. 

It has but one goal; to sanctify us; to reconcile 

us to God, while we are still here in this dimension. 

Since Vatican 2 this doctrine has been undermined by the spirit 

of the world, where things are relative and subjective, where we

can interpret according to our own opinions, and it is still "true".

In most Novus Ordo Masses there is an absence of the sense of

the supernatural and mystical; the flatness 

of it in comparison to the Tridentine Mass, where one can enter

deeply into the absolute miracle that is taking place on the Altar.

The modern Mass: the N.O., has it's focus on human dignity, it 

honours earthly fruits rather than spiritual fruits, 

it puts man, rather than God, at the centre.

Proof: Pope Leo XIV first Encyclical Magnifica Humanitas 

(Magnificent Humanity).

Having said that, sometimes at the new Mass, largely 

depending on the priest who celebrates the Mass, but 

also depending on our own internal disposition, a sense of

the sacred, a moment where we can unite ourselves with 

Jesus's sacrifice for us by giving ourselves entirely to Him;

can be experienced.

It is a valid Mass, it is the Real Presence in the Eucharist. 

How often do we hear when trying to encourage people to 

come to church,

they say "you can make friends, have a social life, keep busy", 

etc,

not even knowing that the sole reason for the existence of the 

Catholic Church, that God Himself established,  is to draw us 

up to Him, to make us holy, restore us to His 

friendship, it has 

nothing to do with being a social past time.

Neither is the Church a political movement; although 

she does have a social doctrine,

but to see today that our current Pope is using his 

position in a political way, to push for unlimited illegal 

immigration by going to Lampedusa, disregarding the 

terrible effects upon Christian nations, is sad, to say 

the least. 

Having said that; I like the Pope in many ways; he seems

to have many great human qualities, and he comes across 

as a sensitive and intelligent man. 

 

One of the consequences of the degradation or bastardisation

of the catholic religion is; 

"people don't come to Church anymore, 

oh what can we do to attract people to come?"

which seems to mean that they believe that the 

Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a human effort endeavour. 

It was God who instituted the Mass, and it is still God 

who is Really and Truly present during each valid Mass. 

God is the Father of our soul. 

By Baptism we become His true children.

By Confirmation we receive The Holy Spirit; 

His indwelling Presence.

By the use of our willpower; by making conscious 

choices with our minds, 

we have the possibility of nurturing the growth of 

our soul. 

But this can not happen if we neglect it, if we have 

no interest, because without our participation nothing 

will grow. 

"And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead 

is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will 

also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit 

who lives in you."

Romans 8:11

Believing and practising Catholics make up 

the Mystical Body of The Church of which 

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Head. 

The Pope is the head of the visible Church.

Unfortunately there are many Catholics who 

believe that the Pope is the head of the Mystical Body, 

and not Jesus Christ, 

which means that they believe that the Pope is divine 

and perfect in everything he says and does.

This is a serious mistake.

The Pope's authority resides in the revealed truths of God,

they do not change, and no pope can invent new revelations. 

If Popes, who are human beings and therefore sinners, 

goes off the rails and diverge into other things, then it 

is the obligation of the faithful flock to resist him. 

We are obliged, by God, to always engage our brains. 

That is why God gave them to us. 

By refusing to do that, by thinking we are "obedient" 

following blindly, without thinking, we do great harm, 

not only to ourselves, but to the Church.

 

With the implementation of Vatican 2 itself, not only did

proper catechism cease to be widely available, but also it 

discouraged Catholics from educating themselves in the faith.

I spoke to a French woman who became very interested in

learning the faith, she contacted her parish, who told her

that "that was no longer necessary or done."

Of course people would be disoriented and confused.

We have people active in parishes who have precious little 

knowledge of the faith, and who tells themselves that it is all 

so mysterious and complicated that they can't even try. 

("Sure, I wouldn't understand!....")

The infallibility of the Pope is only as regards 

Ex Cathedra;

In the official capacity as the supreme shepherd, on a subject 

concerning faith or morals, intended to bind the entire RCC 

and it must be made clear to be binding, but he also can not 

invent new ideas, or doctrines, it is only as a means of 

clarification of existing truths of divine revelation.

His own personal opinions are just that; his own opinions. 

But if we believe the Pope is divine, then we are going to 

be heavily influenced by his private opinions too.

So, 

The Vatican has "excommunicated" the FSSPX.

(Again....)

The FSSPX asked for bread (of the doctrine) 

they asked for the water (of the sacraments), 

they asked for the wine of the the Holy Mass.

There is no basis for these "excommunications" 

in Canon Law,  all FSSPX want is to be Catholic 

and to continue to transmit the unmodified 

doctrine to future generations.

It is their refusal to accept Vatican 2 which is the 

reason they were refused the mandate.

They received correspondence the day after 

consecrating the new bishops, laying out that

if they signed on the dotted line accepting Vatican 2,

the "excommunication" would be lifted immediately.

 

This part of the story goes back to 1988, but it stems

from the Vatican 2 council, where a fundamental change 

took place in the Church. 

I have read the detailed events of this drama from start 

to finish, written by the clergy who were the main 

characters in it. 

I have been at a silent Saint Ignatius retreat in France

(Thiviers)

where some of them ended up, forming  l'Institut

du Bon Pasteur, ( Institute of the Good Shepherd),

Traditional Priests who are in full Communion with 

the Church. 

While in the past, a Catholic would be 

excommunicated for not adhering to 

the laws of the Church, we have now

the inverse, if you are "too" catholic you 

are "excommunicated".

The fullness of the perennial Catholic faith, 

fully integrated, this seems to be the threat.

Integrated human beings used to be a goal to

aim for, but today the word intégriste is a 

pejorative and an insult in France.

Thanks to the immense sacrifice of  

Monseigneur Marcel Lefebvre, with 

or without the Vatican mandate, 

Tradition continues to flourish, and 

even if it has to go underground,

back into the catacombs, it will 

continue still.

There is no schism;

The Catholic Church is still united in Jesus

Christ and she is One, Holy Catholic and Apostolic.

 

 "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I 

will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall 

not prevail against it."

Matthew 16:18

 

Faithfulness in the "small things"

"Whoever can be trusted with small things can also be trusted 

with big things. 

Whoever is dishonest in little things will be dishonest in big 

things too."

Luke 16:10 

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux was made a Doctor of the Church 

due to her developing the "The Little Way"; to do everything, 

any little daily habitual action, with the utmost perfection,

"down to a tee", as we would say; something that is done with

absolute exactness.

To be aware of our daily behaviour and interactions, to be

awake, all the time, every "little" thing we do, reveals the 

disposition of our heart, if we disregard fundamental rules

that may appear insignificant ( "small") we will apply the same

attitude to things on a larger scale. 

The two are in principle the same thing.

It is about the integrity, or the lack thereof, of a person. 

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day

 your Lord will come."

Matthew 24:42

In any society there are rules and regulations.

In the Legion of Mary, an apostolat of the Catholic Church,

thus supernatural in nature,

the order of the meetings is of utmost importance, and must 

be strictly adhered to.  

The object of the Legion is the glory of God through the 

sanctification of it's members, and thus unlike

any other worldly organisation, (which exists for the leisure

and pleasure of convenience for it's members).

One of the most basic principles of the discipline is 

punctuality and faithful participation of meetings.

Of course, sometimes one is prevented from attending, due

to absence from home or illness, but when attending,

it is required to be on time for the meeting; concretely that 

means arriving at least a few minutes before the start, so 

that one has the time to say hello and to settle into one's seat.

Despite this, there are a few, always the same ones, who 

habitually arrives after the prayers have started, and

even after the prayers have finished!, even during the reading

of the Handbook, even during the Allocutio by the Priest; the 

Spiritual Director. 

What is more, upon arriving, as the meeting

continues, they talk (loud whisper) to others, disturbing 

everybody, and making it all about themselves.

Then, when they get a chance, they will interrupt the 

proceedings by offering "heartfelt" apologies for them 

being late, and to top it all off, more often than not, that

is met with profuse expressions of gratitude for 

"having showed up at all"!

The very evening when the obligatory reading from the 

Handbook was concerning the importance of timekeeping; 

arriving on time and staying until the very end, and what 

was required if that was not adhered to by a member, the 

usual ones breezed in long time after the meeting had started, 

and what was more, "needed to leave early", before the end.

When somebody referred to the reading that had 

just been read earlier,

there was much heartfelt laughter and a total dismissal of it's 

content.

Needless to say, the Priest was not present that day.

Where is the respect for Our Lady, for Frank Duff, for Saint

Louis-Marie de Montfort, for the Holy Catholic Church?

( They pray with their lips, but not with their heart)

Are they serving the Church or is the Church there to serve 

them?

Pride is often said to be the deadliest of all sins.

If we are habitually late for the meeting that requires as a 

fundamental principle to be on time, if we are habitually late 

for Mass, which requires that we be there before it starts, it 

shows that we put ourselves above God, it is arrogant, we are 

so important so we are our own law. 

It goes without saying that they will also be late for everybody 

else as well, there is spiritual disrespect and dismissal of others 

as being less important than themselves.

 

And why is it that it is always the same ones who are 

always on time? They also have other things to do, but they 

arrange their day, they prioritise what is most important, they 

show respect. 

Yes, but they might say; "we do so much for the Church, we 

bring Holy Communion to the old and the sick, and 

we go to Mass every day." (We are important, the Church 

depends on us)

They have the same attitude to the Mass; they arrive

after the Mass has begun, and they always have 

their phone at hand, in case they "have to take a call during 

Mass".

It is actually scandalous, to always hear somebody's phone 

ringing or bleeping during Mass, during the consecration, 

even in front of the Priest to receive Holy Communion, and 

they STILL do not turn it off for the duration of the Mass.

Do they really think that they are so important that they can 

not leave their phone behind during Mass, or at least turn on 

the silent mode? 

Are they all on Stand-By A&E doctors and nurses?

Are they really at Mass?

Do they believe in the Real Presence?

If they did, would they always be late for Mass 

and  would they be "Eucharistic ministers"?

(an abomination and an affront to 

The Body of Jesus Christ).

If they knew that it IS the Real Body of Christ 

they would not, (nobody would have!), put 

themselves forward to distribute it.

"The extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion" 

was a proposal brought in to help the priest

"to save time", supposedly only for "extraordinary" 

circumstances, like very large gatherings.

 

Is Mass something to be rushed, to 

get over with as soon as possible?

Or is it to enter into the Real Presence of God?

The only person who should handle the Host, 

is the Priest.

How come that a truly "extraordinary" large gatherings, 

like the Traditional Latin Mass's annual pilgrimage to 

Chartres, with over 20 000 faithful, manages without 

them?  

This practice, has in my opinion, hugely contributed to 

the loss of belief in the Real Presence among church goers, 

subsequently it has had a massive negative impact on the 

priesthood itself, thus the Church.

The attention to all things, first of all the "small" ones, 

is crucial, because everything leaves a mark, it affects

others, good or bad.