During this Coronavirus shut down of the Catholic Church, we are seeing our Church stripped to its pre-Vatican II core. All the self-absorbed nonsense we have experienced in the last 50 years or so has evaporated overnight, except at the blog Praytell.
From trying to stop climate change to save the planet, the pope is now trying to save people from the coronavirus, fear in general and the fear of death and perhaps promote the fear of God and damnation. Hopefully we won’t hear from the Holy Father ever again, the word synodality and the self-absorbed upcoming synod on synodality. What the hell????????
First the nasty, unsanitary, pandemic promoting common chalice was removed from the laity, then the Sign of Peace and then public Masses. No one is talking about climate change, as though the Church and her Magisterium could change that. Rather what the Church’s mission is to save souls. That’s the priority. The world, Mother Earth and our lives are coming to a conclusion. Denial about this seems to be evaporating amongst the Church’s elite, except in some quarters. We and the earth we live on will die. There will be a final consummation of the world. Heard that in the recent past? Hearing it now?
In my daily Mass homily on Friday, I stated that this pandemic is highlighting for us that we have spewed nonsense for the past 50 years, such as the focus on Vatican II, the focus on the reform of the liturgy, the focus on getting the laity empowered to do this, that or the other churchy thing. What we have failed to do and perhaps it is because our faith has shifted to what we do and do so horizontally and self absorbedly, a fake faith if you will, is to preach about the essentials of our Catholic Faith, about the spiritual warfare that all of us must be engaged against the world, the flesh and the devil as we prepare for the four last things, death, judgement, heaven and hell.
It is more sterile and self absorbed to focus on liturgy, new music, inculturation, synodality, climate change and the other nonsense that has nothing to do with the spiritual battle with the world, the flesh and the devil or to do with the four last things, death, judgment, heaven and hell.
Read this incredible Praytell post, posted during this pandemic and see where their focus is. I can tell you it isn’t on the spiritual warfare against the world, the flesh and the devil and it isn’t about the four last things, death, judgement, heaven and hell:
Livestreamed Eucharist “Without the People” – Step Backward or Forward?
Read the comments too and the feeble attempt of the blog’s moderator to defend his blogs whining and ridiculous post in this pandemic.
2 comments:
“the focus on getting the laity empowered to do this, that or the other churchy thing.”
Indeed, can the laity offer the sacraments? NO. Only the ordained priest can do that. If we Catholics haven’t learned THAT in this pandemic, we’ve learned nothing. The real-deal priests are stepping up to the plate right now, doing everything they can to offer us impoverished laity a chance to at least assist at Holy Mass online, drive-through Exposition and blessing, confessions heard in parking lots, etc. Even the Holy Father in his aging frailty sees the need for publicly-televised Adoration and prayer.
To all priests sitting on the sidelines spending their time criticizing and politicizing rather than ministering, SHAME ON YOU! Get busy helping us to reach our ultimate goal of Heaven. Let the politicians and committed seculars deal with earth-bound things. We laity are doing our best to help each other in our temporal needs right now; you take care of our sorely-tested spiritual needs. Thank you.
I was interested in his description of the live-streamed Mass as a dinosaur because it had been done before by televangelists. Placing my hands on the television, or now my iPhone does not conduct salvation to me. As Catholics we understand that but understand the effect that prayer has on my mind and spirit that I may muster another ounce of commitment to open my heart for the spiritual Communion. Even if I were present, perhaps serving my faithful priest as he prays the holy Mass, wouldn’t I need that same commitment? In the reply the host admonished a responder that Protestant is not a dirty word. Isn’t it? Not that I am condemning Protestants but the ideology, especially as it has infected and blinded so many Modern Catholics Is certainly worthy of condemnation.
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