BEAUTIFUL CHURCHES, VESTMENTS AND LITURGY: WHY DO SO MANY 1970’S TYPES SAY VATICAN II BANNED ALL OF THAT IN FAVOR OF UGLY SIMPLICITY, PURITANICAL ICONOCLASM?

The parish where I grew up in and eventually left to go to seminary in Baltimore, Maryland was a 1950’s a-frame building. It’s pre-Vatican II look had a unity to it, a lovely altar with six tall candles sticks and smaller ones, all of which mimicked the exposed a-frame beams. Everything was simple but lovely and in good taste.

Vestments were the gothic style, even prior to the Council. These were made of silk or some other precious fabric and had the traditional ophries.  

Then I went to St Mary’s Progressive Seminary in Baltimore for major theology in 1976. For the first time I saw blah vestments with no designs on them and the stole placed over the chasuble. Some priests only wore the stole with no chasuble. In small group Masses, no vestments what so ever were used. 

The so-called “chalices” that were used were called “cups” and looked like terracotta planters! 

I asked a seminary professor why these were used rather than beautiful accoutrements for Mass. He said Vatican II called for noble simplicity. The chasuble itself is the symbol not added symbols or artwork placed upon them. Thus these should be solid in color with cheap materials, like polyester and burlap to mimic the stark simplicity of the manger in which God was born!!!

Today, there are still those who long for the 1970’s ideology about ugly simplicity that Vatican II taught and mandated. Just like Vatican II banned Latin, ad orientem, chanting the propers, kneeling for Holy Communion and altar railings and promoted girls doing everything that boys do in a transsexual way. 

One such person longing for the 1970’s and pushing it successfully in 2024 is the Archbishop of Paris who wanted the ugliest and most simple altar, ambo, cathedra and tabernacle for the restore Cathedral of Norte Dame. 

This is what the National Catholic Register reports about the iconoclastic altar, ambo, and cathedra:

The resulting furnishings, including the altar, baptismal font, Tabernacle, ambo and cathedra (chair of the bishop), have been controversial. Despite this, the artist, Guillaume Bardet, has maintained that the furnishings are humble and “centered on the eternal,” following the Archbishop of Paris’s directive that these furnishings were to have “noble simplicity” and respect “the spirit of the Catholic liturgy, according to the meanings and norms established following the Second Vatican Council.”  

Here are photos of the TLM I celebrated in Savannah’s Sacred Heat Church on Sunday, December 29th. Please note the beautiful chasuable I am wearing (not mine but the parish’s).

These are in random order:

HOW DO YOU SPELL HIGH ALTAR?

 

THESE MUST BE SELLING LIKE HOTCAKES MADE FOM REALLY SOUR DOUGH

 I’m getting mine today! Not!

WOW! THIS IS WHEN THE CHURCH TRIUMPED IN THE RESURRECTION AND THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST THE KING! 👑

The Silk Damask Hangings of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome

Press title for more spectacular photos!

PERHAPS WE SHOULD NOT CALL IT THE REFORM OF THE REFORM OUT OF CONCERN FOR SENSITIVE PROGRESSIVES, BUT RATHER A RETURN TO REVERENCE, SANITY, SANCTITY AND BEAUTY…

 These are photos from my former parish of St. Anne Church in Richmond Hill, Georgia (Diocese of Savannah). It is their Midnight Mass celebrated at Midnight, a novel idea these days.

It is a thoroughly Modern Mass in the vernacular, yet reverence, traditional piety and sanctity exude in ritual expression. Kudos to Saint Anne Church and their pastor Fr. Dawid Kwiatkowski. 

Photos not in order:

CHRISTMAS PAST 2012–POPE BENEDICT’S LAST CHRISTMAS MASS AT NIGHT…

 If only….

I PREFER CHANUKAH! HOW ABOUT YOU?

 

Chanukah - Hanukkah 2024-2025

THE HOLY YEAR HAS BEGUN THIS CHRISTMASTIDE; WHAT WILL THE HOLY YEAR BRING TO THE CHURCH, NEW VIGOR?

 

MERCY OR JUSTICE OR BOTH?

 I am not completely sure that President Joe Biden is cognizant enough to have pardoned so many death row criminals in federal prisons. But it is what it is.

What drives me crazy about progressives is the lack of logic they possess when it comes to the respect for human life. The Democrat party is a prime and horrible example as it promotes the death penalty for unwanted children in the womb of their mother right up to birth but cries crocodile tears for convicted murderous felons on death row. It make no sense. 

If you are going to be pro-life be it consistently! It is a graver evil to give the innocent unborn the death penalty than it is to give the death penalty to those guilty of murderous crimes. 

Both Saint Pope John Paul II and our current Pope Francis were/are opposed to the death penalty in almost all cases. However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church still allows for the death penalty in order to protect society. St. John Paul II thought that modern prisons and life sentences were sufficient to protect society. I disagree. Today with social media, criminals in prison, especially those of political ideologies or mafia, can still order death and chaos through social media devices while in prison. 

The danger of what President Joe Biden's pardon of death row criminals and with the encouragement of Pope Francis, is that it comes across to family members of those murdered as showing more mercy and kindness to the criminal than to them.

This is a particularly dangerous situation for the Catholic Church in light of the clergy sex abuse scandal where bishops were more concerned about accused priests than their victims and protecting the image or reputation of the institutional Church.

I am conflicted when it comes to the death penalty as I know it is important to have a consistent pro-life position. I had a parishioner on death row for 13 years executed when I was his pastor and I offered his requiem Mass. The man executed was not the same person who committed three murders 13 years earlier and even family members of the victims were ambivalent about his execution. 

Offering mercy and pardon to convicted killers without warning the victims' families is not the way to go and adds injury to injury.

If the Church supports this kind of thing it confirms to many Catholics the Church is more concerned about criminals rather than their victims and the victims' families. 

At any rate, these criminals while taken off death row still  will spend the rest of their lives in prison. Justice is still being carried out but in a less severe way or is it?

THE MUST READ DOCUMENT THAT ALL THE CARDINALS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ARE READING AS I TYPE THIS!

Two prominent conservative journalists are getting kudos from all the cardinals of the Church as they voraciously consume what Edward Pentin of the National Catholic Register and Diana Montagna of the Catholic Herald collaborated to produce. 

I had dinner with one of the cardinals from the peripheries in Pakistan. He told me that the cardinals do not know each other as Pope Francis has not facilitated meetings where they could gather and chat and create friendships and connections. Thus other means are now being utilized for the cardinals to get to know each other especially in light of the approaching conclave to elect the new pope.

Here it is, the "College of Cardinals Report," Press the title for the most read collaboration!

IMPOSING POST VATICAN II LITURGICAL GUIDELINES IN THE MOST PRE-VATICAN II AUTHORITARIAN WAY…

Communion Time Hospitality:

Communion Time Inhospitality:

I think even progressive Catholics who like liturgical creativity and discontinuity will agree that under Pope Benedict and Summorum Pontificum, the liturgy wars had a negotiated end. There was peace at last, thank God Almighty, there was peace at last.

While the TLM flourished among a small minority of Catholics, mostly young, non-nostalgic Catholics, who simply saw the old Mass as “new and improved” to them, many parishes started to implement certain liturgical postures from the TLM into the Modern Mass, such as more Latin, kneeling for Holy Communion and ad orientem.

Parishes with multiple Masses made sure that at least one Mass was either ad orientem or facing the nave.

Cardinal Cupich has (along with Pope Francis, by the way) in the most ugly way, with pre-Vatican II authoritarianism, reignited the liturgical wars’ anger that traditional/orthodox Catholics have toward popes, bishops and priests in the Church that impose a rigid uniformity upon them during the Mass, often outside the traditional, organic development of liturgical guidelines. 

I can remember in the 1970’s, bishops and priests removing kneelers from church pews because some liturgists thought it denigrated the laity to kneel during Mass when the priest was standing—there should be a common posture for all “celebrants” meaning laity and clergy and that posture is standing. The same for Holy Communion’s reception. The priest historically stood to consummate the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Jesus at his Holy Communion, why shouldn’t the laity!

The problem with Communion time in 2024 is that many young people and some older ones want to kneel to receive Holy Communion in continuity with what the Church has approved over the centuries and during the papacies of John Paul II and Benedict XVI! 

Yet the clericalism of some bishops and priests have either forced them to stand or no kneeler is provided for the person to comfortably and safely kneel, thus they drop to the hard floor on both knees without a support to kneel or stand again!

THAT IS CALLED INHOSPITALITY!

PROVIDE A GOSH DARN KNEELER FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO KNEEL AND THERE WON’T BE ANY ACCIDENTS, ESPECIALLY BY THE PERSON BEHIND THE ONE KNEELING. TRIPPING WILL BE REDUCED!

PROVIDING A KNEELER FOR KNEELING AT HOLY COMMUNION IS ABOUT GENEROUS HOSPITALITY!!

A GREAT RESTORATION AND THE PROPER WAY TO DO AWAY WITH DOUBLE ALTARS PLACED BACK-TO-BACK

Before and After: St. Mary's Catholic Church in Aspen, Colorado

 I like the restoration, although my personal taste is not to have things too busy and eye-dizzying. But apart from that, this is a good job.

Especially wonderful is the way they got rid of the old free standing altar and have one altar unified with its backdrop, reredos. As you will note, Mass can be celebrated ad orientem or facing the nave. No need for double altars that clutter the Sunday Mass sanctuary! Well done!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

BOMBSHELL: INDIAN CARDINAL BANS ALTAR GIRLS BUT WAS IT A SYNODAL DECISION?

 

The poor non-synodal cardinal thinks that altar boys are the way to recruit future priests and girls can’t become priests in a non-synodal church! And so pre-Vatican II!

FROM CRUX:

ROME – Nearly two months after it was written, a letter has been published by Sri Lankan Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith of Colombo banning girls from serving as altar servers in his archdiocese, on grounds that it is a pathway to the priesthood.

In an Oct. 22, 2024, letter to the priests of his diocese, Ranjith said, “It has been brought to my knowledge that several parishes in the Archdiocese of Colombo have appointed girls as altar servers.”

“In this context, I wish to reiterate, what I stated at the presbyteral meeting held on Oct. 21, 2024, that no girls should be invited to serve at the altar, as altar servers in the archdiocese,” he said.

Ranjith insisted that “it should always be young boys” who take on the role of altar server, “because this is one of the main sources of vocations to the priesthood in Sri Lanka and it will affect the number of candidates entering the seminaries, which risk we cannot take.”

READ IT THERE

CARDINAL CUPICH'S BACKWARD DIRECTION TO THE 1970'S AND GASLIGHTING TRADITIONAL CATHOLICS OVER SO-CALLED LITURGICAL RENEWAL

 

 

You know you are being gaslighted when you are being told that everything you believed as a Catholic prior to Vatican II was wrong and that you are the problem for not accepting everything that the discontinuity implementation of Vatican II has wrought as being good. 

In the 1970's and well into the 1980's, for a Catholic to call another Catholic pre-Vatican II, was the greatest insult that could be hurled! It was like the "n" word but acceptable in ecclesial circles of that time and in some places still today!

Liturgically, but also in other ways, Catholics were being gaslighted when they heard:

1. They were so pre-Vatican II if they liked Latin

2. They were so pre-Vatican II if they liked the Traditional Latin Mass

3. They were so pre-Vatican II if they liked to kneel to receive Holy Communion, on the tongue and from a priest

4. They were so pre-Vatican II if they would not chew the Host because our Lord is food that must be chewed!

There are others, of course, but if you preferred any of the four things I listed, you were marginalized, mocked and ridiculed by the clericalism of the clergy, religious and laity of that period. 

And now, the dying breed of 1970's Catholics, dinosaurs of this age, are longing for this 1970's liturgical gaslighting once again. They are nostalgic to say the least!

For anyone to receive Holy Communion by kneeling, they are drawing attention to themselves, disrupting the liturgical flow and unity of receiving Holy Communion. This is what Cardinal Cupich, with the utmost hubris, is promoting in the Year of our Lord 2024!!!!! Is he serious???,

If all the evidence points to the disaster that the "discontinuity" implementation of Vatican II has been for the Church over the past 60 years and you still have popes, bishops, priests, deacons, religious and laity saying it has been a grand success, despite the actual evidence that it hasn't been, you are being gaslighted by these clericalist, backwardist Catholics. 

They either believe what they are saying or prefer a different church than what Jesus' founded! And you are the problem if you don't go along with their proselytizing! 

The Deacon's Bench has a very insightful article on the silliness and hubris of Cardinal Cupich and his 1970's liturgical agenda:

When it comes to receiving Holy Communion, kneeling isn’t the problem

It's time to go backwards but not as far at the 1970's. We need to listen again to Pope Benedict's Christmas speech to the Curia about "Renewal in Continuity" not discontinuity. That is the common sense forward!

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
TO THE ROMAN CURIA
OFFERING THEM HIS CHRISTMAS GREETINGS

Thursday, 22 December 2005