I FEEL YOUR COGNITIVE DISSONANCE BISHOP MARTIN! THERE IS HELP THOUGH! THE GRACE OF GOD AND HIS REORIENTING LOVE

Just in time for Christmas, the Diocese of Charlotte’s bishop mocks altar railings and bans kneeling for Holy Communion! Cognitive dissonance here anyone????

When it comes to Bishop Martin’s liturgical dissonance in 2025, we can only say it comes from his early seminary life as a Conventual Franciscan and a priest formed in the dissonant 1970’s and 80’s by liturgical theologians “gone off the rails” and focused on all the wrong liturgical actions to the detriment of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen our only Savior and Source of unity! 

Keep in mind that Conventional Franciscans associated with the term “good liturgy” is an oxymoron! They are one step below the Jesuits in this regard!

This is more than likely how Bishop Martin’s liturgical dissonance was created and formed by liturgists of the 1970’s and 80’s:

1. Instead of focusing on transubstantiation and that the “accidents” of bread and wine, become the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of the Crucified and Risen Lord, let’s focus just on the accidents—meaning making it easier for Catholics to believe that they are actually receiving bread, that looks like bread, tastes like bread and chews like bread. And of course, they must receive good quality wine, that has a full body, fruity flavor and pleasant to the nostrils. 

2. Instead of focusing on Christ who processes to us at the altar railing, as He always comes to us first and enables us to respond, let’s focus on our procession to Christ, our walking, our movement and while we are at it, let’s stand like the East does and priests do to receive Holy Communion to tear down the walls of clericalism and let’s focus on standing as a sign of our being raised up in Christ. Let’s focus on changing time-tested kneeling for Holy Communion at an altar railing and receiving on the tongue to being new and improved. Let’s move our focus from Christ to what we do in a new and improved way. 

3. Let us sing boisterously as we make our way to Holy Communion, walking together and finding our unity not in Christ, but our song! Our singing at Holy Communion is the best sign of our unity, not our reverently receiving our Lord Who alone is our unity!

4. Let us find our liturgical unity at Holy Communion in our common posture, that of standing, rather than kneeling (although allowed) rather than in Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, who alone is our source of true unity. 

Wouldn’t it be better for the good Bishop Martin to focus in on the “worthy reception” of Holy Communion rather than marginalizing the worthy reception of Holy Communion by kneeling and while he’s at it, not make it comfortable or safe for communicants to kneel—a grotesque inhospitality! Wouldn’t it be better to find out how many Catholics in his parishes actually believe what the Church teaches about transubstantiation and to see the differences in this in his various parishes and which parishes are more faithful to what Holy Communion actually is and where our true unity is?

The last thing that Bishop Martin and I were indoctrinated with in the late 70’s and into the 80’s was this meme that we should afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. 

That has led to the afflicting of a lot of good Catholics who just want to be left in liturgical peace and desire that their bishops and priests  promote true peace  by focusing on Jesus Christ and His salvation!

I recommend to Bishop Martin as a corrective role model, the Archbishop-elect of New York City, Archbishop-elect Ron Hicks is a truly evangelical Catholic who focuses in on Jesus Christ and His salvation of us from the fires of hell. 

He knows that our communion is in Christ, Crucified and Risen and His splendor of Truth.