CNN, THE KING OF FAKE NEWS AND PARTIAL NEWS JUMPS THE SHARK

Don Lemmon just said this on CNN, although this is a paraphrase: Mr. Trump is going to Kenosha, Wisconsin but there are no plans for him to meet Jacob Blake's family. There is no evidence that the Blake family wants to meet with the President. The wild card is Jacob's mother. She is a God-fearing woman and has respect for the office of the presidency. She should considered very carefully if she plans to visit with the president. 

In other words, a so-called CNN reporter, although, more accurately, an editorialist, warns the mother of Jacob Blake not to visit with the president. And the direct words that Lemmon used were "she is a God fearing Christian woman with respect for the office of the Presidency." These two characteristics were not being praised, but being used to show how awful being God fearing and having respect for the presidency is.

That coupled with the direct warning to her what it will mean if she does meet him gave me shivers almost like a Mafia boss wearing someone of consequences for this, that or the other.

On another story about the violence in Portland, another actual reporter for CNN reported that a man with "right wing" connections in Portland was murdered. However, there was not description of the murderer whatsoever and that the murderer executed the protester with leaning toward President Trump. How's that for bias.

The right wing Trump supporter is guilty of his own murder because he is a right wing Trump supporter.

 (And at CBS's evening news just now, said the very same thing as the CNN reporter. A right wing man was killed by a man. No descrption of the murderer whatsoever or if he is a left wing agitator. )

More concerning for me as a Catholic blogger is the denigration of a black woman by using the term God-fearing Christian woman who also respects the office of the presidency as an insult or the reason she might act more reasonably that other family members associated with Jacob Blake.

THE TRANSLATION WARS OF THE VERNACULAR MASS

Praytell is gloating over the fact that Pope Francis has approved the new Roman Missal in Italian. The biggest thing for them is that His Holiness, in contradiction to the Emeritus Pope, approved the used of the term "for all, per tutti" at the consecration of the Precious Blood.

Our new and glorious English translation, at the behest of Pope Benedict, has "for many."

Technically, "pro multis" could be translated into English, loosely as "for all" but more accurately it would be "for the multitudes" if you want an English word derived from the Latin. Or simply add "the" to "many", "for the many."

Evidently, too, the Italian Our Father has the novelty that Pope Francis desired and the Gloria has this little ditty: "Glory to God and to people beloved by God..."

And also there are additional Collects for the Sunday Mass according to the lectionary cycle, A, B, C. These are options in place of the one collect our current Roman Missal has. These are concocted collects.

It's all very sad to say the least unless you are the group that likes it. It boils down to taste and preferences. What a novel idea as it concerns the liturgy.

WHEN IT COMES TO PROMOTING THE CHURCH’S MORAL TEACHES, ESPECIALLY CONCERNING LIFE, FROM CONCEPTION TO NATURAL DEATH, DON’T CLAM UP!

Spaghetti alle vongole Bianco (white clam sauce) as made in Italy, not USA. So good! So easy to make. I used a dozen and a half fresh clams. In pan add olive oil, chopped garlic and pepper flakes if desired. Sauté briefly, add clams add a half of cup of dry white wine (I did not have wine and used beer and I could not tell the difference) cover and cook on high until all the clams open and exude their juice into the pan. Then take clams in shell out. As this was happening, spaghetti or linguini should have been boiling away. The pasta is removed from that very al dente and added to the liquid the clams were cooked in. The pasta is cooked al dente absorbing the juices it is cooked in. If needed the pasta water can be added and cooked down, so don’t put too much salt in the pasta water or the pasta will be too salty. When the pasta has absorbed the juices (becomes dry, “asciutto”) plate and place clams in shells on top. Before adding clams, you might sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, but Italians don’t normally add cheese to fish/shell fish dishes. But i think it is a matter of taste, though.

CARDINAL O'MALLEY OF BOSTON FORCES PRIEST TO APOLOGIZE FOR AGREEING WITH THE DEMOCRAT PARTY'S PRO CHOICE GENOCIDE POLICY

From CNA:

On Thursday, Fr. Garrity clarified that he is “totally against legalized abortion.”

“I am committed to upholding Church teaching regarding the sanctity of life from the moment of conception until natural death,” he said in his most recent Facebook post. Garrity added that he was “not prepared for the uncharitable responses” to his earlier post, and that “the last thing that I would ever want to do is hurt anyone with my words.”

On Thursday, Cardinal O’Malley, Archbishop of Boston, issued a statement saying that Catholics have “the right to expect the priests of the Archdiocese and those entrusted with handing on the faith to be clear and unequivocal on the Church’s teaching concerning respect and protection for life from the first moment of conception to natural death.”

“This teaching is of the highest priority for the Church,” he added.

AN ORDINARY FORM MASS BY THE BOOK BUT IN CONTINUITY WITH THE STYLE OF CELEBRATION OF THE EXTRAORDINARY FORM MASS BUT WITH ACTUAL/ACTIVE PARTICIPATION OF THE LAITY

While I might tweak the the Ordinary Form in the Vernacular according to the rubrics and order of the Divine Worship, The Missal Ordinariate Mass, I truly feel that if the Ordinary Form of the Mass looked like this immediately after Vatican II, there would not be the ongoing liturgical wars we are still experiencing.

And if the Ordinary Form allowed for the EF elements of the Introductory Rite, Offertory and other things to include its rubrics, there would be little distinction between it and the Extraordinary Form of the Mass, except the use of Latin in the EF.

This is St. Anne's Daily Mass from our historic "Martha and Mary" Chapel for the Feast of Saint Augustine and I lived streamed it all by myself on my iPhone! That it came out as well as it did, is no minor miracle!

WHEREIN THE BLOG MASTER MAKES A CORRECTION ON A COMMENT, AS HE IS PRONE TO DO

On a previous post on the Liturgy, I wrote this most astute comment:

I had a funeral once and had planned the liturgy with the family, only to have a relative from another state intervene with her own lists of songs to be sung. I ignored it. But along the way, we were taught that others should plan the liturgy no matter how poor their choices are. Then at the wake service she asked for her family member to read the Scripture and her children to bring up the gifts. I told her no,we have suspended bringing up the gifts, we don't need eucharistic ministers and we had already chosen a lector at the meeting I had with the family. She said, well, how are we to participate and I said, but doing so from the pew. That's the most important act of participation. she didn't realize that, given how we have clericalized the laity in our liturgy. 

August 25, 2020 at 3:51 PM

Then, Fr. Michael Kavanaugh wrote:

"Liberals have many straw men, Latin, ad orientem and certainly the EF Mass. Lay participation becomes a god,...

There's a pretty obvious straw man right there, Fr. ALLAN McDonald. Lay participation isn't a "god," it isn't worshipped. 

Lay participation, including EM's and lectors, is fosterred and welcomed by the Church as a good. 

There are always those who go to extremes in their views, both traddies and VAT II spiriters. But lay participation isn't a bad thing per se.

August 25, 2020 at 4:19 PM

More of my most astute comments:

If the good Father had read my entire comment, he would have read that I told the woman who was meddling in her relative’s funeral plans that at my meeting with the parent, a lector was chosen (by the father) and (I had contacted the person to confirm he would be the reader).

The relative, then asked me (at the wake of all places) if her daughter could be the lector. I said the deceased father had chosen the lector and I confirmed with the lector to be. Then she asked if anyone could be a Eucharistic Minister. I said we no longer provide the (pandemic producing) common chalice and have no need for additional Eucharistic Ministers since I and our parochial vicar would distribute the Host. 

Then she asked if her family could present the offerings. I said, no because we no longer do that. 

THEN SHE SAID, HOW COULD THEY PARTICIPATE IN THIS FUNERAL, TO WHICH I SAID, BY PARTICIPATING ACTIVELY FROM THEIR PLACE IN THE CHURCH. 

Of course my implied point is that lay participation isn’t in the Clericalizing  the the laity in this, that or the other or making the lay ministries into gods. 

A lay lector was chosen. Altar servers chosen. Cantor chosen. But this northeast Catholic family member did not think what she and her family do from the pew in terms of active/actual participation was good enough. What rubbish!

And now directors of the Ordinary Form of the Mass have another issue concerning inclusivity into the formal lay ministries of the Ordinary Form. In Argentina, and one of its more conservative dioceses, a new bishop unwittingly asked a “woman” to pray one of the petitions at a Mass. He has been praised by the left wing of the Church, the heterodox, because this “woman” was actually a biological man, a gender given him by his Creator, God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But that gift of gender was not to his pleasing or what he “felt” he was so he transitioned to becoming a ‘woman” which is an impossibility according to his genetic makeup created by God. Thus he either mutilated  his body to appear as a woman or he dressed as a woman, either way, he is not a woman. And what he is doing is immoral. And for him to be asked to do any formal ministry at Mass is an implicit or explicit endorsement by the Church that gender ideology is no problem, the ideology of inclusivity must trump orthodox Catholic teaching that God is our creator and the one who blesses us with our gender, male and female He created us.

But the god of lay participation says we must, we must, we must, in the name of the god of inclusivity include LGBTQ+++ in every aspect of lay ministries, including the priesthood and religious life, not to mention, lector’s, communion ministers, cantors, especially if they are front and center, and altar servers. This is called idolatry, pagan idolatry at that.

Transgender woman’s role at Mass stirs controversy in Argentina

• Inés San Martín
  Aug 28, 2020
  ROME BUREAU CHIEF

Francia López, wearing a light blue face mask, before reading a prayer of the faithful during a Mass in San Luis, Argentina, on Aug. 25, 2020. (Credit: screen caption.)

IS IT WISE TO MIX POLITICS AND RELIGION? YES

UPDATED! 

The video is more powerful! Apart from Sister’s endorsement of President Tump, every Catholic Democrat And any Democrat of good will should give Sister a standing applause!

WOW! JUST WOW! YOU ROCK NICK SANDMAN!

This boy's parents as well as his Catholic High School certainly formed a fine young Catholic and so articulate too. I have to admit, that I believed the original story on the news and thought this guy was a brat. I think many other Catholics did too. But when the full extent of what happened, which was also on video, was revealed as well as the evil intent of the liberal, politically leftist media that did not mind destroying a 16 year old Catholic's life, perhaps as a warning to other orthodox Catholics, it all became clear how vicious, cruel, evil and exploitative the political left is in our country. They don't care whose lives they ruin for they have no common decency.

I don’t care if you are a Republican or not, support President Trump or not, but no matter who you support, as a Catholic, you must listen to this young man. I hope he runs for president one day!

CHINESE PROPAGANDA PROMOTED BY CNN AND NO ONE CALLS THEM OUT ON IT!

I actually saw this report on CNN as a video on Saturday afternoon! It is incredible! And the reporter was from China! What do you make of this. And CNN thought this was the greatest thing everrrr.

This news story led me to think, and this is only my most humble opinion, that the Chinese manufactured this virus as a part of a germ warfare strategy, in the lab in Wuhan and then also manufactured a vaccine for it. Then they unleashed it on their own population in Wuhan to see what would happen and allowed it to spread to Italy, Europe and finally the USA and other parts of the world.

Now Wuhan is recovered, as CNN reports throughout our country. Is it because they were given a vaccine to bring this about, a secret vaccine hidden from the world as it would make their germ warfare strategy void?

Inquiring minds want to know:

Wuhan hosts massive water park party as coronavirus concerns recede

By Nectar Gan, CNN

Updated 11:50 AM ET, Tue August 18, 2020 

Young boy who won't wear mask removed from flight

World's last Blockbuster on

CNN: It was ground zero in the coronavirus pandemic and underwent the world's first -- and arguably strictest -- lock down. 

Now, the central Chinese city of Wuhan appears to have moved on from the virus, as thousands of revelers gathered in an open air water park for an electronic 

The photos are recent and show young people without any masks or social distancing measures in sight.

Over the weekend, the Wuhan Maya Beach Water Park was filled with party goers in swimsuits bunched together shoulder to shoulder, waving to the beat of the music while cooling down in hip-high water; others relaxed on inflatable rubber tubes that packed the pool to the brim, with little space to float around.

Party goers stand shoulder to shoulder as they watch an electronic music performance at the Wuhan Maya Beach Water Park.

The crowded party scene remains unthinkable in many parts of the world still grappling with the deadly virus. More than 21 million people have been infected across the globe, with tens of thousands of new cases reported every day in the United States, Brazil and India.

But in Wuhan, life has gradually returned to normal since the metropolis of 11 million people in Hubei province lifted a stringent 76-day lock down in early April. The city hasn't reported any new cases since mid-May.

WHY DO SO MANY VIEW THIS WITH DERISION, SUSPICION AND HATRED? WHAT PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUE LURK UNDERNEATH ALL OF THAT?

I can't answer the question above, as I am but a most humble, poor priest, liberally educated in theology in the late 1970's in a very ultra liberal seminary. I am not a psychiatrist, so I wouldn't eve venture a guess. This photos are not posed but from Sunday's EF Mass. But have at it:

JUST MY MOST HUMBLE OPINION, BUT GIVEN POPE FRANCIS APPROVAL OF THE CDF'S STATMENT ON THE INVALIDITY OF BAPTISMS DONE WITH "WE" OR OTHER ILLICT FORMULARS, SHOULD WE NOT RETURN TO CONDITIONALLY BAPTISING ALL PROTESTANTS WHO CONVERT TO CATHOLICISM AS WE REALLY DON'T KNOW THAT THEIR MINISTER DID NOT IMPROVISE AS MANY OF THEM ARE PRONE TO DO?

So a deacon, and he isn't the only one, but thanks be to God, these improvising priests and deacons are in the minority, baptized a baby invaidly by using "We baptize you..." And that poor baby, invalidly baptized, goes on to be ordained a priest, but invalidly since you have to be validly baptized to receive subsequent sacraments!!

Of course his Catholic baptismal certificate presumed the deacon did a valid baptism. Only by way of a video of his baptism, did he realize, after the CDF's ruling, that he wasn't validly baptized. Thankfully he hasn't been ordained that long and it shouldn't be too difficult to get word out that he was not validly ordained when he celebrated Mass and Confessions. However, these two are of lesser concern, since Catholics go to other priests for additional Masses and Confessions. But Confirmations and Anointing of the sick are more of a concern, especially Confirmation. I presume his baptisms and marriages while perhaps illicit due to no fault of the priest himself, are still considered valid.

But what about Protestant baptisms. Prior to Vatican II when Protestants converted to Catholicism, they were at least "conditionally" rebaptized because there was some concern about the validity of their Protestant baptism. 

If some deacons and priest use invalid words, despite the fact they are told to use the correct words in fact it isn't optional, it is required by their ordination's obedience, how many more Protestant ministers improvise in prayer and baptismal forumulas and no one knows it even if a baptismal certificate is possible to obtain, which it isn't for some Protestant denominations?
I recommend now, that all Protestant be conditional baptized prior to be received into the full communion of the Catholic Church. 

HOW TO AVOID MASK SANCTIMONY AND SELF RIGHTEOUSNESS

Evidence-Based Guidelines to Celebrate Mass Safely Are Working

Catholic churches across the country have been open for up to four months since shelter-in-place orders were lifted. With approximately 17,000 parishes in America typically holding three or more weekend masses - and a greater number of daily masses - for the last 14 or more weeks - over one million public masses have been celebrated following guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus: in sum, follow the three W’s - watch your distance, wear your mask, and wash your hands. 

Read the rest there

My non sanctimous comments:

I encourage my parishioners to wear a mask at Mass to protect themselves from the coronavirus.

The reason I ask them to do so is to help them not to catch the virus in a public setting like a church building. Of course, the mask they wear should protect them and others. If  we are told that the mask is to help you not spread your virus out of love and concern for others in an altruistic way, that is great and certainly of a high morality. However, if the mask you are wearing doesn't protect you, more than likely, common sense tell you, the mask won't help others you are so desperation trying to protect. 

This is a very good and balanced article I post above. Read it. 

MORE ON MASK SACTIMONY

I am not opposed to the mandating of masks by local muncipalities, places of business or churches but I do oppose a national mandate for political purposes. Subsidiarity is important as some places are hot spots where others aren't.

I remember the Hong Kong flu epidemic of 1968. So many kids were sick that my high school was closed for a few days for a lack of students, not to flatten the curve. In those days we took for granted people would catch contagious diseases and some would die, especially the elderly, but I remember many kids, some I knew, dying of Rheumatic Fever (scarlet fever). There was no hysteria, although the household with the sick person had a quarantine sign outside their door.

And certainly I remember H1N1 pandemic a few years back, where for the first time, the common chalice was banned as well as the Sign of Peace. I knew of at least five people who died of it in Macon who knew my parishioners or were relatives. No masks, though, were mandated or was there a shut down.

Even though Catholics have always been dispensed from Sunday Mass if they were sick (a common cold though, not qualifying) we have always had sick people at Mass, with hacking coughing that is distracting, sneezing and everyone going to Holy Communion and the priest/minister touching tongues and hands while distributing, not to mention all the contagious people drinking from the common, pandemic spreading, chalice. And no one was hysterical or demanded that the chalice cease to be given. We trusted, wrongly of course, that sick people with contagion would not drink from the chalice. Yes, right!

I also remember being intentionally exposed to a friend with chicken pox when I was 4 years old so that I would get it and I got it with a vengeance. I still remember how sick I was, how itchy the pox were and that I was not allowed to scratch the pox.

And yes, children died of measles, chicken pox, mumps and other childhood contagions, especially polio.

If masks work, people who fear catching a contagious should wear an effective one and wear it effectively. If the mask protects them, they should not then make a moral issue in a self righteous, sanctimonious way, about those who don't wear them and have no symptoms although they may be asymtomaatic.

That's my problem. If masks work, the one wearing it should have some degree of confidence they won't get Covid-19 from a person near them. 

THESE PHOTOS WERE POSED AFTER THE CATHEDRAL BASILICA'S 12TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST MASS

These photos were posed after Sunday's EF Mass. Which do you prefer, versus populum or ad orientem. I'd prefer my bald spot not to be there. By the way, I did not intend the look of ecstasy on my face, but after all, I had just finished celebrating the EF High Mass. Just saying...

And speaking about hair, I have given myself my own haircuts since the pandemic shut down and saved so much money, I decided to keep cutting it myself--not! By the way, since the reopening of churches, the Cathedral Basilica's EF Mass has seen an increase in those who attend. Not sure why but that is the case. And again, so many young people and families with many young children.

WOW, ANOTHER VATICAN II COMPLETE WASTE OF THE LAITY’S MONEY ON MULTIPLE RENOVATIONS OF A ONCE SPECTACULAR CATHEDRAL IN PATTERSON, NEW JERSEY

UPDATED WITH VIRTUAL TOUR HERE AND VIDEO AT THE END.

The Deacon’s Bench blog had a story on permanent deacons ordained on Saturday at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Patterson, New Jersey. This is the photo that accompanied the story:

To me, while far from ugly, it appeared that a modern look was imposed on a classic Gothic cathedral. Thus I googled for more photos of the cathedral and found these:

The original look:

But then, I discovered a 1970’s debacle of a renovation, typical for that period, a very, very, very costly that more than likely alienated and anger a goodly number of laity in that diocese. It is kind of like, but not as bad, as the debacle of a renovation disgraced Rembert Weakland visited upon Milwaukee’s Cathedral: Here it is:

But then, there was a realization how horrible this 70’s renovation was and thus even more money was used to kind of restore it in the last two years or so. The result is more traditional to say the least. This photo, compared to the deacon ordination one, shows the new baldacchino which was not envisioned in the original look of the cathedral, but is stunning:

But which is nicest and would it have been better to leave good enough alone and just worry about upkeep and maintenance of a building of this nature:

Before:

After:

After and After again:

Dear God, how much did all of this cost compared to simply maintaining the original and perhaps tweaking it here and there?

Here is a nicely done video of the cathedral today and you can see the choir loft and organ are restored. The rector is certainly engaging and personable, but at Mass I would find him too distracting. At the Ordinary Form of the Mass, celebrants think they must be charming, good looking, engaging and even in ritual overpower it with all of those "qualities." The rector seems to do this. It comes from the Sulpician late liturgist, Fr. Eugene Walsh. He did more to corrupt the Mass and architecture than most any other liturgist. I knew him personally, and he fit the bill of  a liturgist being a terrorist but the difference being, you could negotiate with a terrorist. God rest Fr. Walsh's soul.

WORDS DO MATTER!

 

This is from Rorate Carlisle:

Invalid baptism leads to an avalanche of invalid sacraments

A rogue "permanent deacon" in the Archdiocese of Detroit, Mark Springer, administered invalid baptisms for 13 years. One of them was to someone who would eventually be "ordained" a priest in 2017 -- only to learn he was never validly baptized himself.

Post-Vatican II vernacular baptism book

To his credit, the priest -- Father Matthew Hood -- watched a video of his baptism and heard the word "We" instead of "I" used in the vernacular formula, "I baptize thee in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost." According to a statement issued by the Archdiocese of Detroit today he immediately contacted the chancery.  Hood was then validly baptized, and then all of his other sacraments had to be validly administered, since they required a valid baptism to be valid themselves.

That was the easy part.

Now the archdiocese must find every Catholic who received sacraments from Father Hood, as they were administered by a non-Catholic layman!

And, the archdiocese must do the same for all who thought they were baptized by Deacon Springer, as none of those poor people have received any valid sacraments themselves.

What a mess.  The use of the vernacular in the Catholic Church's sacraments has yet again proven to be an absolute failure.  It is yet another reminder of the importance of Summorum Pontificum, which grants permission to all clergy for the use 1962 books for all sacraments.  In Latin.

One positive thing can be seen in this sacramental disaster: a priest and an archbishop (Allen Vigneron) did the right thing upon learning of the invalid baptism on video.  How many priests -- and how many bishops -- would have looked the other way?

MY RANTING COMMENT:

One of the major, major, major problems with Vatican II’s ethos or spirit, is that so many bishops, and it has to be local bishops, do not demand their priests to say the black and do the red. Often they themselves lead the way in improvising on the vernacular. 

Improvising on the vernacular is easy to do for one who knows his native tongue. And certainly narcissism and pride has led many people to think their version of the vernacular Mass is an improvement over the official version. How many priests or deacons have you heard improvise the vernacular thinking their version is superior? 

Now, a deacon who say “we” baptize you instead of “I” baptize you leads to a poor young priest not being validly baptized, thus nullifying an other attempted sacraments he received to include Holy Orders.

How many babies did that deacon baptize? Was he ever reported to the bishop? Did the bishop ever intervene with the threat of suspension if the deacon did not do the red and read the black?

And yes, most priests and deacons cannot improvise on the Latin. Perhaps where the right words are necessary for validity of a sacrament, Latin should be mandated. Just a novel thought.