If the World Hates You...

On August 21, 1998, Fr. Lawrence Murphy died.  He had been ordained a priest in 1950, and was assigned to St. John's School for the Deaf in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from 1950 to 1974.  At the time of his death, he had had no pastoral assignment for nearly a quarter of a century, and was living in a family residence in the Diocese of Superior.  

He was also the defendant in an ecclesiastical criminal case, in which he was charged with sexually abusing children, and with solicitation within the confessional. 

Fr. Murphy's victim's reported his crimes to the police in the mid 1970s.  Nothing came of this.  In 1974, he was removed from the school for the deaf.  Apart from the occasional Mass and retreat for the deaf, Fr. Murphy was effectively retired.

It was not until 1995 that Archbishop Rembert Weakland ordered a preliminary investigation into the allegations of abuse.  It was not until 1996 that the Archbishop consulted Rome.  Specifically, because there was a statute of limitations issue regarding the outrages in the confessional, the Archbishop consulted the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which had jurisdiction over canonical crimes related to the confessional.  (It did not then have jurisdiction over cases of sexual abuse by priests, though it does now.)  The CDF ultimately gave the Archbishop the green light to waive the statute of limitations and proceed against Fr. Murphy.

But Fr. Murphy died without being convicted of any crimes, either by Church or by State, and without being dismissed from the clerical state.  It is apparently being reported that the trial was kiboshed.  And since the man who is now Pope Benedict XVI was Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, his enemies seek to pin the rap on him.

Except for one small problem: there is no rap to pin on the Pope.  Just ask Fr. Thomas Brundage, JCL, canon lawyer and ecclesiastical judge.  Nobody in the drive-by media has ever thought to ask him anything; yet he was the presiding judge in the case against Fr. Murphy.  A couple of samples from Fr. Brundage's article in Catholic Anchor Online responding to the media furor over the case (emphasis added):

...the fact is that on the day that Father Murphy died, he was still the defendant in a church criminal trial. No one seems to be aware of this. Had I been asked to abate this trial, I most certainly would have insisted that an appeal be made to the supreme court of the church, or Pope John Paul II if necessary. That process would have taken months if not longer.

...the competency to hear cases of sexual abuse of minors shifted from the Roman Rota to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith headed by Cardinal Ratzinger in 2001. Until that time, most appeal cases went to the Rota and it was our experience that cases could languish for years in this court. When the competency was changed to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in my observation as well as many of my canonical colleagues, sexual abuse cases were handled expeditiously, fairly, and with due regard to the rights of all the parties involved. I have no doubt that this was the work of then Cardinal Ratzinger.

Fourth, Pope Benedict has repeatedly apologized for the shame of the sexual abuse of children in various venues and to a worldwide audience. This has never happened before. He has met with victims. He has reigned in entire conferences of bishops on this matter, the Catholic Bishops of Ireland being the most recent. He has been most reactive and proactive of any international church official in history with regard to the scourge of clergy sexual abuse of minors. Instead of blaming him for inaction on these matters, he has truly been a strong and effective leader on these issues.

Read the rest of the story here.

When Pope Benedict was elected, nearly five years ago, I remember thinking that any Pope who gets as many salvos from the sewer as he got in about the first 30 seconds of his pontificate has got to be good.  This present furor confirms me in this belief.  Such a barrage from the forces of darkness is an extremely serious matter, calling for much prayer and penance.  Yet, in a way, it is reassuring.  It means the Holy Father must be doing something right.     

If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you.  If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

John 15:18-19

 

Life Teen: Rooted in Filth

Time line:

1978: Dale Fushek is ordained a priest of the Diocese of Phoenix, Arizona.  He plans to focus his ministry on children and teenagers.

1981: Bishop Thomas O'Brien is appointed Bishop for the Diocese of Phoenix.

1985: As pastor of St. Timothy's Catholic Church in Mesa, Arizona, Fr. Fushek founds Life Teen along with Phil Baniewicz.

1995: The Diocese of Phoenix pays $45,000.00 to settle a sexual harassment claim against Fr. Fushek by a former employee of St. Timothy's.  Fr. Fushek announces this settlement to his parish in 2002, stating that although he did nothing wrong, the settlement was paid in order to avoid costly litigation in the future.

2000: Bishop Thomas O'Brien appoints Fr. Fushek Vicar General of the Diocese of Phoenix.

2002: Fr. Fushek is given the title of Monsignor.

2003: As part of a deal struck with the Maricopa County prosecutor to avoid indictment, Bishop Thomas O'Brien admits to having protected sexually abusive priests in his diocese.  Shortly afterward, the bishop is charged with leaving the scene of a fatal accident after striking and killing a pedestrian, then giving as his reason for not stopping that he thought he had only hit an animal.  He resigned as bishop four days later.

2004: More sex abuse allegations against Msgr. Fushek lead to the suspension of his faculties by the new Bishop of Phoenix, Bishop Thomas Olmsted.

2005: A man files a civil action is filed in the Maricopa County Superior Court alleging that in 1985, Fr. Mark Lehman (who afterwards served ten years after pleading no contest to attempted sex abuse) and Phil Baniewicz (co-founder of Life Teen) sexually assaulted him at Msgr. Fushek's parish, that the latter plied him with alcohol and masturbated while watching the abuse, and that all three made threats to prevent the plaintiff from reporting the abuse.  Also: Msgr. Fushek is indicted on several misdemeanor counts arising from alleged sexual contact with young boys.  Msgr. Fushek and Phil Baniewicz resign from Life Teen.

2006: The Diocese of Phoenix settles the Lehman/Fushek/Baniewicz suit for $100,000.00.

2008: Msgr. Fushek is excommunicated, together with Fr. Mark Dippre, for persistently participating in public ministry and holding non-denominational services, despite having been suspended and despite Bishop Olmsted's orders to cease and desist. 

February 16, 2010: The Diocese of Phoenix announces that in January of 2010, Dale Fushek was dismissed from the clerical state by order of Pope Benedict XVI.  Mr. Fushek incurred this penalty after the Diocese of Phoenix investigated allegations of sexual abuse against Mr. Fushek and forwarded its findings to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The excommunication previously imposed remains in effect.

Yes, it's true, Life Teen is filled with well-intentioned people.  It's also true that Life Teen distances itself from Dale Fushek and protests its fidelity to Rome and to the magisterium (though this fidelity is not terribly conspicuous in Life Teen-controlled liturgies).  But is there some reason the above should not raise the same red flags with Life Teen that, say, the revelations about Fr. Maciel have raised about the Legionaries of Christ? 

Nun the Worse

Let's see now...

ITEM: With the support of her prioress, a Dominican sister has aided and abetted abortion by escorting women past demonstrators into abortion mill

ITEM: Three elderly nuns, along with two priests, burglarize a naval base near Seattle in order to brandish kindergarten scribblegrams and scatter sunflower seeds in protest of nukes

ITEM: A nationally known Benedictine nun writes inane columns for an infamous liberal rag

ITEM: A significant number of women religious regularly assemble, in various groups, for the purpose of promoting dissent from the Magisterium

ITEM: The number of women religious declined 54% between 1965 and 2000

So what is the point of the apostolic visitation?

Visiting the Orphans and Widows

So is Pope Benedict's forthcoming apostolic constitution poaching? Sheep-stealing? "Fishing in the Anglican pond?"

Or could it be the rescue of the survivors of the shipwreck that is the Anglican communion? Could it be the shelter and care of the numberless orphans and widows of an organization that, bereft of an infallible teaching authority, bears less and less of a resemblance to Christianity? Could it be an act of obedience to Christ's injunction to be "fishers of men"?

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

James 1:27

New Saints

Today Pope Benedict canonized five new saints. Click their pictures for information about their lives.

St. Sigmund Felix Felinski, archbishop of Warsaw, founder of the
Franciscan Sisters of the Family of Mary (1822-1895)

St. Raphaël Arnáiz Barón, Trappist oblate (1911-1938)

St. Marie de la Croix (Jeanne Jugan), foundress of the Little Sisters of the Poor (1792-1879)

St. Francisco Coll y Guitart, O.P., founder of the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary(1812-1875)

St. Damien de Veuster, apostle to the lepers of Molokai (1840-1889)

Courtesy of Zenit, a translation of the Holy Father's address on the occasion of today's canonizations:

At the end of this solemn celebration, we are invited to pray the Angelus. Before reciting it, I would like to address a cordial greeting to all of you, who wanted, by your devout participation, to pay homage to the new saints. A special thought goes to the authorities with the official delegations who have come from various countries: I thank you for your presence.

[In French:]

I greet with joy the French-speaking pilgrims who have come for the occasion of the canonizations. Following the example of St. Jeanne Jugan, I invite you to concern yourselves with the poorest and the least, those who have been wounded by life and the marginalized of our society, above all on the occasion of the World Day to Overcome Extreme Poverty, which will be celebrated in a few days. Remembering the holy Father Damian, I ask you to commit yourselves at the same time to support with your prayer and your works those who generously dedicate themselves to the struggle against leprosy and against other forms of leprosy that are due to lack of love because of ignorance and cowardice. May your prayer accompany the work sessions of the 2nd African Synod. May God bless all of you!

[In English:]

I extend cordial greetings to all the English-speaking pilgrims here this Sunday, especially those who have come to Rome in such great numbers for today’s canonization. May these new saints accompany you with their prayers and inspire you by the example of their holy lives. I also greet the group of survivors of the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and I pray that the world may never again witness such mass destruction of innocent human life. May God bless all of you, as well as your families and loved ones at home.

[In German:]

I cordially greet the German-speaking pilgrims and especially the recently ordained priests of the German College with their guests. May the Lord give you courage and strength in your ministry! Let us take the new saints as models for our life. Among them there is a saint who is dearly loved in Germany, Father Damian, who lived among the lepers of on the Hawaiian island of Molokai and died of having contracted the disease in the end. Let us invoke the intercession of the holy Bishop Zygmunt Szczęsny Felińsk, of the holy religious Francisco Coll y Guitart, Rafael Arnáiz Barón and Marie de la Croix Jugan, that God may give us today as well many religious vocations. May the Lord accompany all of you with his grace.

[In Spanish:]

I greet the Spanish-speaking pilgrims with affection, in particular those who participated in this joyous ceremony of canonization, especially the lord cardinals, the archbishops and bishops who have arrived with them from Spain, a land so bountiful with the fruits of sanctity. The Dominican, St. Francisco Coll, with his priestly and missionary dedicaton, and the Trappist, St. Rafael Arnáiz Barón, with his entirely contemplative soul, both fervently devoted to the Virgin Mary, honor to the best religious tradition and the deeply Christian roots of your people. May the example and the intercession of these new saints reinvigorate in everyone, and especially in the Dominican Sisters of the of the Annunciation, in the Order of Preachers and in the Trappist monks, the commitment to follow Christ in a generous and disinterested way, according to their particular vocation, witnessing to his Gospel in modern society. I also greet the groups from Colombia and from the other Latin American countries.

[In Flemish:]

I greet the Flemish-speaking pilgrims, who have come to Rome to join in the thanksgiving of the Church for the canonization of Father Damian. Consecrated to the Heart of Jesus and Mary, this holy priest was led by God to let a total “yes” bloom in his vocation. May the intercession of Our Lady and the Apostle of the Lepers free the world from leprosy, make us open to the love of God and grant us enthusiasm and joy in the service of our brothers and sisters. With my apostolic benediction.

[In Polish:]

I cordially greet the faithful who have come from Poland, with the cardinals, archbishops and bishops. I greet all the Polish who, celebrating the traditional Day of the Pope, can rejoice in the gift of a new saint: Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński. I entrust the Church in Poland and the whole nation to his protection. May God bless you!

[In Italian:]

Dear brothers and sisters, the Virgin Mary is the star that guides every journey of sanctity. Her “fiat” is the perfect model of adhesion to the divine will and her “magnificat” expresses the Church’s song of exultation. Already on this earth the Church rejoices in God’s mighty deeds and in heaven praises his glory eternally. We turn to the Mother of Christ with filial confidence, asking, through her intercession and that of the newly canonized saints, for peace and salvation.

When Did Ignorance Become a Point of View?

After crawling out from under my rock and reading yesterday's outpouring of drivel from Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, I was ready to crawl right back. Newsweek.com's headline: "Without a Doubt: Why Barack Obama represents American Catholics better than the pope" (and "pope" is uncapitalized in the original and throughout). That this towering monument to crass stupidity should be taken seriously in a major newsweekly is a testament to how far mainstream American culture has slid into the sewer.

Townsend begins with a summary of the President's visit with the Pope in the wake of the controversy surrounding Notre Shame's decision to award an honorary degree on the most virulently pro-abortion president ever to occupy the White House, and then offers the following:

In truth, though, Obama's pragmatic approach to divisive policy (his notion that we should acknowledge the good faith underlying opposing viewpoints) and his social-justice agenda reflect the views of American Catholic laity much more closely than those vocal bishops and pro-life activists. When Obama meets the pope tomorrow, they'll politely disagree about reproductive freedoms and homosexuality, but Catholics back home won't care, because they know Obama's on their side. In fact, Obama's agenda is closer to their views than even the pope's.

She then treats us to her "analysis" of the Pope's new encyclical (did she actually read it? If she did, does she pack the intellectual gear to understand it?), and then forfeits once and for all any claims to be taken seriously on any subject by declaring that "Obama (the community organizer from Chicago) could teach the pope a lot about politics—and what a Catholic approach to politics could entail." Barack Obama -- radical leftist pup who lucked into an office for which he is grossly unprepared -- a light illuminating the darkness. Pope Benedict -- theologian, professor, Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, author of more than 30 books, Vicar of Christ on earth -- total ignoramus.

Then we find out that the Truth in its fullness really subsists, not in the Church, but in Kathleen Kennedy Townsend:

Politics requires the ability to listen to different points of view, to step into others' shoes. Obama might call it empathy. While the pope preaches love, listening to the other has been a particular stumbling block for the Catholic hierarchy (as it is for many in power). The hierarchy ignores women's equality and gays' cry for justice because to heed them would require that it admit error and acknowledge that the self-satisfied edifice constructed around sex and gender has been grievously wrong. Before he became John Paul II, Karol Wojtyla had a telling all-or-nothing formulation: "If it should be decided that contraception is not an evil in itself then we should have to concede frankly that the Holy Spirit is on the side of the Protestant Churches." That attitude has resulted in some heinous decisions.

Most famously, in the lead up to the encyclical "Humanae Vitae" in 1968, an advisory body of theologians and laity empaneled by the pope advised that the church should reverse its position on birth control and concede that the issue should be a question for morality and for science. But authority—not truth, not love—prevailed: Pope Paul VI, listening to the advice of Wojtyla, disagreed with the majority of these advisers, who had voted 69 to 10 for change, fretting that to change this position would weaken his authority.

If only the Popes would allow Church doctrine to be decided by majority rule, then maybe Catholic doctrine would deserve to be taken seriously. But alas, this will never happen on Pope Benedict's watch. Laments Townsend: "Pope Benedict, having lived in the safety and security of the Vatican for much of his professional life, is part of this culture that silences dissent. (His last job was as the enforcer of doctrine.)" This is as opposed to the unsheltered life of Barack Obama, whose career is thoroughly uncontaminated by any experience that might suit him to discharging the high office which he now holds by dint of sheer dumb luck, let alone repairing the appalling ignorance of the Successor of St. Peter.

Then there is Townsend's tactful and delicate take on limiting the priesthood to men:

In 1979, Sister Theresa Kane, the head of the Sisters of Mercy and the president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, greeted Pope John Paul II on his first visit to the United States by proposing that the Church provide "for the possibility of women as persons being included in all ministries of our Church," including the priesthood. This was greeted with revulsion at the Vatican, which insists that the only people who can represent God in the priestly role are those with male sex organs.

As if that wasn't enough proof that the papacy is out of touch with American Catholics (instead of the other way around), the polls are there to prove how wrong Rome is. Or as Townsend puts it, "...American Catholics do not want to be told by the Vatican how to think." 54% of American Catholics think homosexual relationships are morally acceptable. 79% of American Catholics disagree with the Pope's statements about condoms and AIDS. 73% of American Catholics didn't think John Kerry should be denied Holy Communion (or "communion" as Townsend puts it). More than two thirds of American Catholics don't think the Church should try to influence Catholic votes or even Catholic candidates. If all this is true, then it's no wonder so many Catholics had no problem voting for a man who supported infanticide in the Illinois legislature. 54 percent of American Catholics voted for Obama, proving that they're "tired of watching the church grasp frantically for control at the expense of truth and love." No wonder the country is going to hell in a hand basket.

Finally, we have the justification for Notre Shame's subversion of Catholic teaching:

Notre Dame awarded the president an honorary degree because it saw the need to highlight the best of Catholic teaching as applied to politics: the ability to open the eyes of those who would prefer to keep them closed, and to open the hearts of those who would prefer not to know the pain that their actions cause.

Now if only our ignorant, benighted Pope would get on board:

The pope has a lot to learn about Catholic politics in America.

Fortunately, we have the solution, if only he would open up his mind:

Barack Obama can teach him.

Actually, come to think of it, the Church is run by majority rule. It is ruled by a majority of Three in One whose votes outweigh those of all the papal commissions and fallen Catholic universities and Barack Obamas and Kathleen Kennedy Townsends put together.

That's something we can take comfort in.

The Church and the Holocaust

Israel's media and other elites seem bent on whipping up anti-Catholic sentiment by raising a hue and cry about how Pope Benedict failed to offer a groveling apology on behalf of the Church for the Holocaust. Some are naming the Church as a culprit, and even Pope Benedict personally as a German, in the atrocities committed against the Jews during the Second World War.

So while it is true that nominal Catholics (including Hitler himself) helped perpetrate Nazi atrocities, it pays for us to remind ourselves what the true children of the Church, living by her teachings, were doing during the war. Here is a very, very short list:

St. Maximilian Kolbe

Franciscan priest, a prisoner at Auschwitz. In July of 1941, a prisoner from his barracks escaped; as a punishment, the guards chose ten men out of the barracks to be starved to death. One of them, Franciszek Gajowniczek, lamented for his wife and family; St. Maximilian approached the guards and offered his own life in place of Gajowniczek's. The offer was accepted. After three weeks of starvation and dehydration, St. Maximilian was dispatched by an injection of carbolic acid. The man he saved was later reunited with his wife (although his sons perished in the war), and lived to see the canonization of the priest who had given his life for him.

The Martyrs of Nowogrodek

When the Nazis arrested 120 citizens of Nowogrodek, Poland on July 18, 1943, the town's community of Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth unanimously offered in prayer to take their places. In the name of their community, Sister Mary Stella, their superior, begged God that if the sacrifice of lives was needed, to take their lives in place of the imprisoned, who included their chaplain. On July 31, 1943, all but one of the sisters was arrested; the following day, they were taken out to the woods and shot, and buried in a common grave. Meanwhile, most of the other prisoners, including their chaplain, were spared.

St. Theresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)

From afar, Edith Stein, who had been born and raised Jewish, discerned the fate that awaited her people at the hands of the Nazis. In 1933, she wrote: "I had heard of severe measures against Jews before. But now it dawned on me that God had laid his hand heavily on His people, and that the destiny of these people would also be mine." Six years later, in her last will and testament, the child who had been born on the Day of Atonement would offer herself up for the sake of atonement: "Even now I accept the death that God has prepared for me in complete submission and with joy as being his most holy will for me. I ask the Lord to accept my life and my death...so that the Lord will be accepted by His people and that His Kingdom may come in glory, for the salvation of Germany and the peace of the world." Although her order smuggled her to the Netherlands for her safety, she desired to share the fate of her Jewish brethren. This desire was granted on August 9, 1942, when St. Theresa Benedicta and her sister Rose, also a convert to the Faith, were murdered in the gas chamber at Auschwitz.

Bl. Hilary Pawel Januszewski

Carmelite friar. When the Gestapo came to arrest some friars out of the Carmel in Cracow in December of 1940, Fr. Hilary volunteered to go in place of a sick, elderly friar. He gave himself to the care of dying prisoners at Dachau, and died of typhus in 1945 -- just days before the camp was liberated.

Bl. Julia Rodzinska

A Dominican nun, Sr. Julia was interned in the Stuthoff concentration camp, where she gave herself to serving the Jewish women prisoners. She died of typhoid at the camp in 1945.

Bl. Natalia Tulasiewicz

Bl. Natalia Tulasiewicz was a teacher from Poznan, Poland. She volunteered to be deported with other women sent to do heavy slave labor in Germany in order to give them spiritual comfort. On finding out what she was up to, the Gestapo arrested and tortured her, and sent her to Ravensbruck concentration camp. On March 31, 1945 -- Good Friday -- Bl. Natalia used the little strength she had left to mount a stool and give the other prisoners a talk about the Passion and death of Jesus. Two days later, she was put to death in the gas chamber.

Stanislawa Leszczynska

Polish midwife, arrested by the Germans in 1943 and sent to work in Hell on earth, the "sick ward" at Auschwitz. She delivered more than 3,000 babies at Auschwitz, and made sure every one was baptized. Miraculously, despite the unspeakable conditions, she never lost a single mother or child in childbirth, though few of the babies survived the war. Despite threats on her life, she flatly refused to drown newborns, even facing down the notorious Dr. Mengele. She died in 1974, and is still venerated in Poland. Evidence is being gathered for her cause for sainthood.

Bl. Franz Jägerstätter

Austrian farmer, husband and father of four. Jägerstätter was outspokenly anti-Nazi, and was the only one in his village to vote against the Anschluss (the annexation of Austria by Germany). After being drafted in the German army and serving for a brief period, he refused to serve any further, and was arrested. He spent time in prison before finally being beheaded, saying that it was better for his children to live without a father than for them to keep their father as a Nazi collaborator.

Bl. Maria Restituta Kafka

A Franciscan Sister of Charity, Bl. Maria Restituta was born in Brno in what is now the Czech Republic. A trained nurse, she went to work at the hospital in Mödling, south of Vienna after World War I, eventually becoming the head surgical nurse. Her refusal to take down crucifixes that she had hung in the hospital, plus her writings critical to the regime, led to her arrest by the Gestapo on Ash Wednesday, 1942. She was eventually sentenced to death, and was beheaded on March 30, 1943. Here is the link to Pope John Paul II's homily on the occasion of her beatification.

Msgr. Angelo Roncalli (Bl. John XXIII)

Working from Istanbul with Chaim Barlas of the Jewish Agency Rescue Committee, Msgr. Roncalli arranged for false papers, transit passes, false baptismal certificates and other documents that made it possible for thousands of Jews to escape the slaughter in Europe.

And last (though only on this list) but certainly not least...

Eugenio Pacelli (Pope Pius XII)

Just a few of the things Pope Pius XII -- whom the Nazis mocked as a "Jew-lover," and whom Hitler plotted to kidnap -- did to save the Jews before and during World War II include:

-- As Cardinal Pacelli, helped to author Mit Brennender Sorge (With Burning Sorrow), Pope Pius XI's anti-Nazi encyclical
-- As Pope, calmly confronted Nazi Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop with a list of Nazi atrocities in Poland during a personal audience, to Ribbentrop's deep mortification
-- Ordered the opening of monastaries, convents and even cloisters to Jewish refugees
-- Sheltered thousands of Jews at Castel Gandolfo
-- Sheltered as many refugees in the Vatican as could make their way there, and kept the railway lines into the Vatican running so as to be able to supply for all their needs
-- Came up with 100 pounds of gold to ransom the Jews of Rome, whom the Nazis threatened with deportation during the occupation, never revealing what he had to melt down to get it
-- Personally intervened to halt the deportation of Jews out of Hungary, Romania and Slovakia
-- Contributed unstintingly to relief efforts, even personally assisting those affected by the devastation of air strikes in Rome
-- Stuck to his post in Rome, despite the dangers to himself personally; his mere presence was a hindrance to Nazi atrocities in Rome

It is worth noting that when, after the war, Israel Anton Zoller, Chief Rabbi of Rome from 1939 to 1945, converted to Catholicism, he took the baptismal name Eugenio Zolli in honor of Pope Pius XII.

No, it is not the Catholic Church that owes an apology for the Holocaust. If any apologies are owed, they are owed by people whose blind hatred of the Church makes them equally blind to the facts, and enemies of the truth.

Nuggets from the News

A Man Is Measured by His Enemies. In an address in the Al-Hussein Mosque in Amman, Jordan, Pope Benedict disappointed Muslim leaders by failing to touch his forehead to the floor for remarks he made about Islam back in 2006. "We wanted him to clearly apologise," said Sheikh Yusef Abu Hussein, mufti of Karak, setting a classic example of what it means to forgive and forget. "What the pope said (in 2006) about the Prophet Mohammed is untrue. Islam did not spread through the power of sword. It's a religion of tolerance and faith," the mufti continued, barely managing to keep a straight face.

And the Saudi Judge Gives No Help to the Mufti. It's okay to slap your wife as a punishment for overspending, says Jeddah judge Hamad al-Razine. I guess there are some things the Religion of Peace and Tolerance just won't tolerate.

Liberal "Compassion." At the White House Correspondents' Dinner, Barack Obama laughs at alleged comedienne Wanda Sykes' vicious jokes about Rush Limbaugh, in which she says (a) he was the 20th hijacker on 9/11, but he was too loaded on Oxycontin to make the trip, and (b) she hopes his kidneys fail. This in an age when merely to mention B. Hussein Obama's middle name is considered "hate speech."

The Sheepification of America. Los Angeles' anonymous citywide gun buyback was so successful that it only took two hours for city officials to run out of the cheap crap they were doling out as "compensation" for renouncing a constitutionally protected ownership right. Some people went ahead and turned in their guns, even though they got nothing for them. Police reported that it was mostly little old ladies and people who looked like decent citizens who turned in their guns, thereby making Los Angeles a safer place for thugs and gang bangers.

Thanks, But No Thanks. Susan Boyle, the shock of a lifetime for the dismayingly large number of people in the world who judge strictly based on appearances, turned down an invitation to dine with Barack Obama at the aforementioned White House Correspondents' Dinner. An unnamed "source" claims she turned down the invite because she would have been "too nervous," although she "loves" President Obama and dreams of singing for him one day. This could be true; or maybe she is being diplomatic. Or, perhaps a lifetime as a book that is judged strictly by its cover has taught her not to be deceived by slick packaging. Plus, could be she has just never developed a taste for such low company as was evidently on parade at the event she was fortunate enough to miss.

A Canonist Weighs in against Crusurpation

Crusurpation: When a lay extraordinary minister of Holy Communion attempts to bestow a priestly blessing upon a child or a non-Catholic during Communion. (From A Modern Lexicon)

This is Pope Benedict giving a blessing. Pope Benedict gets to do this. The reason he gets to do this is because he is in Holy Orders. Men possessed of Holy Orders have the power to bestow blessings on behalf of the Church. There are apparently some exceptions in the Book of Blessings; but for the most part, laymen do not get to bestow blessings. This is why it makes me crazy to see extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion purporting to bestow blessings in the Communion line.

Here is something that laymen are REALLY forbidden to do: the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. In fact, it is a violation of canon law for a layman to do this. Nevertheless, I have seen an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion do it in the Communion line. On the occasion in question, a non-Catholic -- known to me as someone who has little or no love for the Church -- went up with her hands crossed over her breast. The extraordinary minister held up the Host and made the sign of the cross over her with it. Both the non-Catholic and the EMHC -- who was a vocal dissident against the primacy of Peter and the all-male priesthood -- smiled smugly at this blatantly political statement. This happened at a funeral, and directly in front of me. It is the only time I have ever seen a lay person "bless" somebody with the Host, but apparently the practice is not uncommon.

So hooray for canonist Ed Peters, who comes out strongly against the practice, of recent vintage, of crusurpation, which he forthrightly calls an abuse per se.

Lay ministers of holy Communion (by definition, extraordinary ministers thereof), in response to people approaching them without the intention to receive Communion (maybe such folks are non-Catholics [footnote omitted] or are Catholic kids prior to First Communion), currently do one of three things: they (1) speak and gesture a sign of the cross over such folks, or (2) lay hands on such persons' heads or shoulders while voicing a blessing, or (3) waive the Eucharist over them while purporting to confer a blessing. I think all three actions are liturgical abuses. [Emphasis added.]

You can get the whole story here.

Why Would Anybody Want to Hurt This Man?

Is Pope Benedict tough? You bet. Is he orthodox? Unquestionably. Is he a staunch supporter of tradition? No doubt about it. Is he firm in his principles? Much to the consternation of his opponents. Has he been putting the smackdown on error, heresy, and nutjobbery in the universal Church since 1981? The salvos from the sewer that have been lobbed at him ever since the day he was elected to succeed John Paul II tell you everything you need to know right there.

The fact that congregations of habitless liberal nuns have been using his picture as a dart board only adds to Pope Benedict's appeal. But that's not all. On a personal, human level, Josef Alois Ratzinger has to be the most adorable man to wear the Fisherman's Ring since Eugenio Pacelli, the thoroughly lovable and unjustly maligned Pius XII. Why on earth would anybody want to do this man harm?

It's a safe bet the dart board nuns, whose kind is easily routed even in mild verbal disagreements, lack the courage of their convictions. But apparently, there are those who not only think this would be a better world without Papa Ratzi; they are willing to take action to see that it really happens. Chris Gillibrand at CathCon reports that Israeli intelligence has detected indications of a planned Islamist attack on the Pope during his visit to the Holy Land in May. It has been noted that May 13th, the 92nd anniversary of the first apparition at Fatima and the 28th anniversary of the attempt on John Paul II's life, falls in the middle of Benedict's visit.

Pray for the safety of Pope Benedict.

Prayer for the Pope

O Lord, we are the millions of believers, humbly kneeling at Thy feet and begging Thee to preserve, defend and save the Sovereign Pontiff for many years. He is the Father of the great fellowship of souls and our Father as well. On this day, as on every other day, he is praying for us also, and is offering unto Thee with holy fervor the sacred Victim of love and peace.

Wherefore, O Lord, turn Thyself toward us with eyes of pity; for we are now, as it were, forgetful of ourselves, and are praying above all for him. Do Thou unite our prayers with his and receive them into the bosom of Thine infinite mercy, as a sweet savor of active and fruitful charity, whereby the children are united in the Church to their Father. All that he asks of Thee this day, we too ask it of Thee in union with him.

Whether he weeps or rejoices, whether he hopes or offers himself as a victim of charity for his people, we desire to be united with him; nay more, we desire that the cry of our hearts should be made one with his. Of Thy great mercy grant, O Lord, that not one of us may be far from his mind and his heart in the hour that he prays and offers unto Thee the Sacrifice of Thy blessed Son. At the moment when our venerable High Priest, holding in His hands the very Body of Jesus Christ, shall say to the people over the Chalice of benediction these words: "The peace of the Lord be with you always," grant, O Lord, that Thy sweet peace may come down upon our hearts and upon all the nations with new and manifest power. Amen.

The Cowboy of God Turns 82

Standing on a Whale, Fishing for Minnows

All the salvos from the sewer that Pope Benedict has been drawing lately, particularly in the wake of the totally contrived "controversy" over his decision to lift the excommunication of the SSPX bishops, got me to thinking about a small incident that took place shortly after his ascent to the Throne of Peter. I think of it as a sort of private revelation concerning the Holy Father: I feel sure I was not the source of it, and its edifying and consoling character makes me believe it did not come from the world, the flesh or the devil. I would not call it a vision; it was more along the lines of a waking dream that came out of nowhere, as though a gentle hand had taken hold of my imagination and guided it along a brief course.

It was during choir rehearsal at St. John's Cathedral. It was late, and the cathedral was dark, except for the lights over the loft. I looked out into the darkness; and suddenly, it became the darkness that covers the earth. The Mystery of Iniquity, the power of Evil in its full terror: an imposing, formidable, oppressive blackness, against which the world and everything on it seemed tiny and pathetic. There I was in the midst of it, keenly conscious of my own helplessness and and the helplessness of everyone around me.

And as I looked around, I saw the new Pope, Benedict XVI. He was also tiny in the face of this darkness, an insignificant speck of dust like the rest of us. And yet it was not so. He had been sent to be with us. The darkness did not give way before him; but still, he was a sign that we were not abandoned. He was a sign that, for all the terror of the darkness, it was doomed. Of himself, he was nothing, like the rest of us; but because he had been chosen and sent, and because of Who had chosen and sent him, he was not really helpless. And so neither were the rest of us.

Of course, present-day events prove that not only does the darkness not give way before Pope Benedict; it rises up against him in furious assault. But he, and the One Whose Vicar he is, are going to triumph in the end.

So everybody who abandons the true successor of Peter, and runs after the Edward Schillebeeckxes, and the Hans Küngs, and the Matthew Foxes, and the Edwina Gateleys, and all the other false prophets, are really on the losing side.

Unnecessarily.

Orthodox Rabbi to Catholic Leftists: Go Soak Your Heads

Interesting how some people outside of the Church are bigger supporters of Pope Benedict than many members of his own flock. Case in point:

Left Wing of the Catholic Church Destroying the Faith Says Orthodox Rabbi

By Hilary White, Rome correspondent

ROME, February 11, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The dissident, leftist movement in the Catholic Church over the last forty years has severely undermined the teaching of the Catholic Church on the moral teachings on life and family, a prominent US Orthodox rabbi told LifeSiteNews.com. Rabbi Yehuda Levin, the head of a group of 800 Orthodox rabbis in the US and Canada, also dismissed the accusations that the Holy See had not sufficiently distanced itself from the comments made by Bishop Richard Williamson of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) on the Holocaust.

"I support this move" to reconcile the traditionalist faction in the Church, he said, "because I understand the big picture, which is that the Catholic Church has a problem. There is a strong left wing of the Church that is doing immeasurable harm to the faith."

Rabbi Levin said that he understands "perfectly" why the reconciliation is vital to the fight against abortion and the homosexualist movement.

"I understand that it is very important to fill the pews of the Catholic Church not with cultural Catholics and left-wingers who are helping to destroy the Catholic Church and corrupt the values of the Catholic Church." This corruption, he said, "has a trickle-down effect to every single religious community in the world."

"What's the Pope doing? He's trying to bring the traditionalists back in because they have a lot of very important things to contribute the commonweal of Catholicism.

"Now, if in the process, he inadvertently includes someone who is prominent in the traditionalist movement who happens to say very strange things about the Holocaust, is that a reason to throw out the baby with the bathwater and start to condemn Pope Benedict? Absolutely not."

During a visit to Rome at the end of January, Rabbi Levin told LifeSiteNews.com that he believes the media furore over the lifting of the excommunications of the four bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X is a red herring. He called "ridiculous" the accusations that in doing so Pope Benedict VXI or the Catholic Church are anti-Semitic and described as "very strong" the statements distancing the Holy See and the Pope from Williamson's comments.

Rabbi Levin was in Rome holding meetings with high level Vatican officials to propose what he called a "new stream of thinking" for the Church's inter-religious dialogue, one based on commonly held moral teachings, particularly on the right to life and the sanctity of natural marriage.

"The most important issue," he said, is the work the Church is doing "to save babies from abortion, and save children's minds, and young people's minds, helping them to know right and wrong on the life and family issues."

"That's where ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue has to go."

Although numbers are difficult to determine, it is estimated that the Society of St. Pius X has over a million followers worldwide. The traditionalist movement in the Catholic Church is noted for doctrinal orthodoxy and enthusiasm not only for old-fashioned devotional practices, but for the Church's moral teachings and opposition to post-modern secularist sexual mores. Liberals in the Church, particularly in Europe, have bitterly opposed all overtures to the SSPX and other traditionalists, particularly the Pope's recent permission to revive the traditional Latin Mass.

The Vatican announced in early January that, as part of ongoing efforts to reconcile the breakaway group, the 1988 decree of excommunication against the Society had been rescinded. Later that month, a Swedish television station aired an interview, recorded in November 2008, in which Bishop Richard Williamson, one of the four leaders of the Society, said that he did not believe that six million Jews were killed in the Nazi death camps during World War II.

At that time, the media erupted with protests and accusations that the Catholic Church, and especially Pope Benedict XVI, are anti-Semitic.

Rabbi Levin particularly defended Pope Benedict, saying he is the genius behind the moves of the late Pope John Paul II to reconcile the Church with the Jewish community.

"Anyone who understands and follows Vatican history knows that in the last three decades, one of the moral and intellectual underpinnings of the papacy of Pope John Paul II, was Cardinal Ratzinger.

"And therefore, a lot of the things that Pope John Paul did vis-à-vis the Holocaust, he [Benedict] might have done himself, whether it was visiting Auschwitz or visiting and speaking in the synagogues or asking forgiveness. A lot of this had direct input from Cardinal Ratzinger. Whoever doesn't understand this doesn't realise that this man, Pope Benedict XVI, has a decades-long track record of anti-Nazism and sympathy for the Jews."

The Hypocrisy of the Williamson Furor-Mongers...

...thrown into sharp focus by Paul at Catholic Cartoon Blog.

Get a Grip

The firestorm over the Pope's decision to lift the excommunication of SSPX Bishop Richard Williamson proves once again the hypocrisy of the enemies of Catholicism, who will never allow their alleged dedication to truth and liberty to stand in the way of their implacable hatred of the Church. So at this point, maybe some statements of the obvious are in order.

1. Bishop Williamson, along with three other priests, illicitly received episcopal orders from Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. This was a violation both of canon law and of specific directives from Rome.

2. The illicit episcopal ordination is the reason Bishop Williamson was excommunicated, along with his confreres and Archbishop Lefebvre. You can read all about it here and here.

3. The fact that Bishop Williamson holds kookburger notions about the Holocaust -- which kookburger notions Pope Benedict explicitly repudiates -- has nothing to do with why he was excommunicated.

4. The Pope's reasons for lifting the excommunications of the SSPX bishops are wholly unrelated to Bishop Williamson's nutjob Holocaust opinions.

5. In any case, having his excommunication lifted does not mean Bishop Williamson is 100% square with the Church. There is still the question of his illicit (even though valid) episcopal orders. The Holy See has announced that Bishop Williamson's ability to function as a bishop in the Church will be conditioned on his renunciation of his views on the Holocaust.

6. None of the sound and fury over Bishop Williamson's Holocaust denial has anything to do with defending or honoring the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust. It has everything to do with vilifying the Church and the Pope.

7. It is exceedingly arrogant and presumptuous for people outside the Catholic Church to think that their opinions on who should and should not be restored to full communion with the Church according to her laws should carry any weight whatsoever.

So, just to recap:

-- The excommunication that was lifted was about how Bishop Williamson got to be a bishop.

-- The excommunication has nothing to do with kookburger holocaust opinions.

-- The lifting of the excommunication has nothing to do with kookburger holocaust opinions.

-- Not only does the Pope repudiate Bishop Williamson's nutty notions, but he is requiring Bishop Williamson to do the same as a condition of being allowed to function as a bishop.

-- All those who think they have a quarrel with the Pope over this need to GET A GRIP.

The German Shepherd Defends His Flock: Tightening the Screws on Alleged Visionaries

Despite the widespread belief that Catholics are superstitious (because we use medals and holy water and other sacramentals) and that the Church is a huge bunco scheme (that gets rich off of bilking poor peasants in order to build sumptuous churches), the reality is that no person or organization in the whole universe has exposed and put the kibosh on more frauds, swindles, hoaxes and scams than the Catholic Church. Another reality is that few people are sharper, smarter, or more far-seeing or formidable than her present head, Pope Benedict XVI.

Which is why false visionaries need to re-evaluate their strategies, especially in light of the Pope's forthcoming instructions on how to assess purported apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and what conclusions are to be drawn from given facts. Get the story here.

Study on the Fate of Unbaptized Infants

I have previously posted on the fate of unbaptized infants, especially in the context of abortion. Quite a while after publishing that post, I caught hell from a "miscarriage support" forum, none of whose members were prepared to let their self-pitying wrath be quelled either by Christian charity or by what I actually said.

But in an age when more and more parents see no need to have their children baptized, and when so many children don't even make it to birth, it becomes necessary to reflect on the question of whether there is a possibility of salvation for unbaptized babies. Hence the International Theological Commission's study on this subject, the report on which was approved for publication by Pope Benedict on January 19, 2007.

Thanks to Fr. Powell, OP for bringing this to our attention.

Sounds Like a Plan to Me!

Catholic World News reports that a senior Vatican official says the Holy Father wants the extraordinary rite to be revived in every parish. Quoth the story:

Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, the president of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, told a June 14 press conference in London that the traditional Latin Mass should be reintroduced throughout the Catholic world. Asked whether the old liturgy would eventually be used in many parishes, the Colombian prelate replied: "Not many parishes; all parishes." [Emphasis added.]

Read: the Pope is determined to rein in all the liberal bishops who are determined to continue to suppress the extraordinary rite. Shall we take a wild stab at who is bound to prevail?

By the way, in a shocking gesture of disobedience to all the liturgical "experts" out there who not only despise the extraordinary rite, but also claim it is unlawful to have anything on the altar, this is Pope Benedict celebrating Mass at an altar decorated with candles and [gasp] a crucifix.

Pope Benedict Blesses Ground Zero

And anything the Pope blesses is blessed indeed.

O God of love, compassion, and healing,
look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions,
who gather today at this site,
the scene of incredible violence and pain.

We ask you in your goodness
to give eternal light and peace
to all who died here --
the heroic first-responders:
our fire fighters, police officers,
emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel,
along with all the innocent men and women
who were victims of this tragedy
simply because their work or service
brought them here on September 11, 2001.


We ask you, in your compassion
to bring healing to those
who, because of their presence here that day,
suffer from injuries and illness.
Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families
and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy.
Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope.

We are mindful as well
of those who suffered death, injury, and loss
on the same day at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Our hearts are one with theirs
as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering.


God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world:
peace in the hearts of all men and women
and peace among the nations of the earth.
Turn to your way of love
those whose hearts and minds
are consumed with hatred.


God of understanding,
overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy,
we seek your light and guidance
as we confront such terrible events.
Grant that those whose lives were spared
may live so that the lives lost here
may not have been lost in vain.
Comfort and console us,
strengthen us in hope,
and give us the wisdom and courage
to work tirelessly for a world
where true peace and love reign
among nations and in the hearts of all.

Hold It Right There!

Ole Q over at L.A. Catholic reported the other day on the twitter the L.A. Times sent forth against the Holy Father's roar on April 15th, criticizing his past public speaking performances and giving him tips on how to avoid future blunders, like, say, oh, preaching the Gospel to every nation, and baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

The perfect response to this effrontery was provided a couple of days earlier by Archbishop Pietro Sambi, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, in a call-in interview program with Raymond Arroyo. In response to a caller who wanted to know if the Pope was going to "take advantage" of his visit, and what he was going to say about the war in Iraq, the good Archbishop said:

If I may instruct the listener: Please don't ask-a the Pope-a to say what you want heema to say, but listen to what the Pope-a have-a to say.

So there, L.A. Times. Put that in your pipes and smoke it. Take the crack out first.

H/T Norm de Plume.