tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post7707382783125255666..comments2024-03-28T20:30:10.681-04:00Comments on southern orders: LET'S FACE IT, SOMETIMES WE PUSH AWAY PEOPLE WITH OUR "SMALL MINDED RULES"Fr. Allan J. McDonaldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16986575955114152639noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-40857856267692180462015-04-11T14:24:36.654-04:002015-04-11T14:24:36.654-04:00But to respect the Church and its teaching, which ...But to respect the Church and its teaching, which is based on a long tradition and also the word of God, we will not go so far as to bless. But that doesn't mean we reject." <br /><br />The teachings of God, His laws and precepts, correspond to His Essence, His Nature and His Holiness. It is the desire of God that we have a good relationship to Him and this can only come about by us by our will conforming ourselves to His Holy Will. We have a right relationship to fire by respecting its nature. The mercy of fire is that it provides heat and light, the justice of it is its power to burn and consume. So likewise God by His Nature is just and merciful.<br />Persons in a marriage must respect each other or the marital relationship between them will suffer and even cease to exist. Would a spouse stay in a relationship in which her marriage partner was in an aduleterous affair? Only if the affair ended and the person repented with a sincere resolution not to engage in that behavior again. Even with that it may well take a long time for things to heal and get back to where they once were. <br />Both in the Old and the New Testament, marriage is used to convey our relationship to God. We would do well to ponder that. <br /><br />The best part is what Carol Costello says at the end.<br /><br />"I can't wait to go church next Sunday. And, yes, I will bow my head and pray for forgiveness, and if I'm worthy, Christ's love."<br /><br />God call us from where we are at but He beckons us to come to where He is at. I hope an pray Ms Costello becomes a good Catholic.<br /><br />Georgenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-8563346737660741902015-04-11T12:47:16.073-04:002015-04-11T12:47:16.073-04:00It's a step in the right direction.
While pri...It's a step in the right direction.<br /><br />While priests are very busy, and are often overworked, I wish the answer of that parish secretary had been "Father's very busy, but I'll see what I can do." I do like JBS's answer: here, some counseling of the doubtful by anyone qualified at all until a priest is available-- if being able to speak to a priest is in fact necessary. <br /><br />I've been blessed to have many a priest be very patient with me, and far more than I deserve. One at another parish very graciously offered to hear my Confession recently "by appointment"; I was prepared for him saying "no," even though he knows me, given that I'm not a parishioner. But he did it anyway. That's a gift. Why shouldn't she have received the same? Persistence in faith has to start somewhere.<br /><br />Sometimes, the faithful do need to see that their priests are there for them, because they need to know that Christ means it when He says "I will be with you unto the end of the age." It can make all the difference, especially if they are having a crisis of faith: a crisis of faith is not a reason to turn away; it's an opportunity for growth. Nobody should expect a childish faith to sustain them as an adult. The Catholic imagination does matter, because the Catholic faith provides a way of seeing the world-- one that is counter-intuitive and counter-cultural, and one where everything is logically coherent and connected. So, whatever we can do to cultivate that imagination... <br /><br />Priests stand In Persona Christi, and no priests, no Eucharist. Most people don't make that connection. Not everybody is at the same place on the way to conversion, and most Catholics who graduate from Catholic school don't know how to connect the dots of the faith that they've received.<br /><br />It seems like this woman wasn't just badly catechized, but also wasn't spiritually mature then and still isn't. But it's not too late to start! Sloth is a problem here, as it is for many to most modern Catholics: it's great to notice that Pope Francis is merciful, but yet, one has to be repentant in order to receive that mercy. A lot of people don't seem to understand that connection, either.<br /><br />What I hope and pray for is that she will come to realize that the Francis that enthralls her and the Francis who "is still against what I passionately believe in" are one and the same-- in fact, the two go together. His emphasis on mercy would have no substance were it not for the "hard teachings," and the hard teachings would be a form of cruelty without the mercy and love that are at their very heart. Put another way: if you only pick and choose the stuff you like while jettisoning the stuff you find hard that you "don't like," you'll find that without the stuff you "don't like," the stuff you "like" will fall down.WSquarednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-7456275575000455502015-04-11T11:51:56.099-04:002015-04-11T11:51:56.099-04:00Like Bee, I think that Ms. Costello is under the a...Like Bee, I think that Ms. Costello is under the assumption that the Church will meet her half-way. From time to time, my husband turns on her show and the intensity she expresses toward those who hold different opinions is staggering. So I truly hope she finds her way back to the fullness of the faith and not some watered-down version that allows one to believe in grave. The biggest problem that I have seen so far during Pope Francis' papacy is the tendency of the Left to idolize him to such a degree that all common sense flies out of the window. Like other Supreme Pontiffs before him, the Holy Father is prayerful; and yet this is routinely portrayed by clerics and the media as some wholly new invention, resulting from his humility. Personally, I find aspects of his papacy troubling, especially in regard to the often flip remarks about Catholics who are more traditional in scope. That coupled with the chastisement and removal of Latin Mass-oriented prelates is really bothersome. The Holy Spirit is in charge so we will all see what He has in store for the ChurchAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-89263575273253647442015-04-11T10:58:47.054-04:002015-04-11T10:58:47.054-04:00"I always felt my church would reject me for ..."I always felt my church would reject me for committing the smallest of sins...like forgetting my chapel veil...supporting the use of contraception."<br /><br />Something is missing here, either a) Catechesis or b) Honesty<br /><br />Forgetting your chapel veil does not equal supporting contraception.<br /><br />Though the media would have you believe otherwise, the terms "sin" and "sinner" are not interchangeable. The Church rejects sin, particularly unrepentant sin. But the Church is full of sinners! Brimming with sinners! But all sinners are welcome who confess and repent of their sin. Submit to the Church's authority to define sin and repent, confess, and make an effort to work on your sins and you're in!<br /><br />StevenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-77691994141240109692015-04-11T09:50:22.308-04:002015-04-11T09:50:22.308-04:00She must take up a search for Faith and study the ...She must take up a search for Faith and study the Church's teachings to prevent falling away again when we get a new Pope. I pray that she finds her Faith regardless of who is talking to her. rcghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09131930849106490711noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-5703538005761575132015-04-10T22:14:04.228-04:002015-04-10T22:14:04.228-04:00I kind of don't like these sorts of half-heart...I kind of don't like these sorts of half-hearted "return to faith on my own terms" kinds of opinion pieces. It is almost like, gee, if the Church could only meet me half way, I could come back.<br />I noted she, as do many in the media, quoted Francis about the homosexual priest out of context, as if he said, "(active) gay is okay as long as the person is searching for God and has good will." Of course that's what the world wants to hear, but it isn't what was said. So basing a hope on that, isn't that going to lead to a further disappointment when she realizes what she thought was said was not said, and what she thought was Catholic teaching, which she could not agree with, actually is Catholic teaching?<br />This isn't a reversion of repentance. It's a reversion of maybe the Church sees things my way after all. <br />Remember in the Gospel's those who just couldn't follow Jesus because he spoke of eating His flesh and drinking His blood? There are those of us who will be willing to do as He says even if it sounds horrible, and those whose own minds tell them they cannot do as He says, they will not do as He says. <br />Perhaps her's is a case of a smoldering wick not being extinguished. I sincerely hope so, and will say a prayer for her.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-30865756267615570872015-04-10T19:17:31.903-04:002015-04-10T19:17:31.903-04:00No comments from me on the Pope Francis love fest ...No comments from me on the Pope Francis love fest in the article.<br /><br />But, her last words are wonderful. "go to Church and pray for forgiveness"<br /><br />She is deserving of Christ's love and I am so happy that is, I hope and pray, on the road back to the Church.<br /><br />So many times I hear people like her tell me how they seem to have had one bad experience and then they decide to quit the Church or stop believing in God. I think most if not all of those folks have already been suffering some crisis of faith already. Then, they have the "issue" and then they are done. <br /><br />I will say that I hope and pray that not only does she go to Church on Sunday but goes to confession. The angels and saints would rejoice!newguy40https://www.blogger.com/profile/07691117339629857830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-25447067801237207222015-04-10T17:54:26.840-04:002015-04-10T17:54:26.840-04:00She seems to have been badly catechised from the s...She seems to have been badly catechised from the start and blamed everyone else for her own spiritual sloth. I don't feel sorry for her at all. Vox Cantorishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16987049370515084083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-17560341555391492832015-04-10T16:54:50.188-04:002015-04-10T16:54:50.188-04:00Parishes receive many telephone calls for a wide v...Parishes receive many telephone calls for a wide variety of reasons. Occasionally, the reason is urgent and requires a priest. Usually, it is not urgent, and a qualified deacon or lay minster, or even just the secretary, can handle it. Therefore, there must be some means of determining whether the request is for an urgent pastoral need requiring a priest, or a less urgent need that can be addressed in another way or at another time. Rood Screenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09816036539243214384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7846189835239594160.post-59603786978338588592015-04-10T15:22:04.312-04:002015-04-10T15:22:04.312-04:00Thanks for this article Father. I highlighted it o...Thanks for this article Father. I highlighted it on my blog, Servimus Unum Deum. Servimus Unum Deumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12521042317656015840noreply@blogger.com