But Jesus Hid Himself

Originally published in 2016.

Today is the Fifth Sunday of Lent which begins Passiontide. If one attends Mass strictly in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite it is not generally apparent having been done away with as a time within Lent. In the traditional calendar, it is called the First Sunday of the Passion with the colloquial Palm Sunday being the Second Sunday of the Passion. There is a further stripping away of liturgical elements and embellishments which began at Septuagesima, 

From First Vespers last night until the Paschal Vigil, the Gloria Patri is not said after the Asperges on Passion Sunday or the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, Introit, Lavabo, and Communion Antiphonal Psalms. In the Office, it is eliminated from some of the Verses and Short Responsories. Jesus is losing his earthly glory. The readings and psalm antiphons reflect this in the Mass and Office. Those who hate him are now plentiful, as plentiful now, as when he walked. Those who seek his death are now coming to the fore. Those who seek the death of His Church are coming to the fore and are also within Her. Lent now takes a change in focus; -- while our penance continues, we now shift towards the passion of Our Blessed Lord and his saving work of redemption.

Abbot Gueranger writes:

"During the preceding four weeks, we have noticed how the malice of Jesus' enemies has been gradually increasing. His very presence irritates them; and it is evident that any little circumstance will suffice to bring the deep and long-nurtured hatred to a head."

His passion then has begun. His glory, as at Mount Tabor, is no longer apparent.

There is one element that remains in the modernist liturgy depending on the parish's own tradition. While it was once obligatory it is now optional and that is the veiling of the Crucifix and statues, though not Stations of the Cross or the imagery in windows. 

But why? From whence does this tradition come? 

It is thought to have begun around the 9^th century in Germany. When Lent began (which in most languages is a derivative of Quadregesimae, the Latin for forty days), a cloth called a hungertuch, or hunger cloth, was used to cover the altar. It was removed on the Tuesday of Holy Week during the reading of the Passion according to St. Mark when “The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.” The Gospels in the three-year cycle in the New Lectionary do not reflect the symbolism and beauty of Passiontide and the veiling. They are all from St. John’s Gospel and are in sequence – “I am the Resurrection and the Life;” … “If a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it bears much fruit;” and, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”

The change from the one-year Lectionary, in place from St. Gregory the Great, was a grievous error. The desires of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council could have been achieved without the assault on the whole Church tradition of readings. A Lesson could have been added to the Sunday liturgy. Weekdays could have had their own Mass texts whilst still acknowledging the Sanctoral cycle. Interestingly, the Advent readings in the new Lectionary are beautiful and are the one thing that perhaps, one day, be inserted into the old Lectionary.  could have had its own lectionary as in Lent in the traditional rite. The three-year Lectionary remains a problem. Mass is not a bible study and what is lost in the reading below is quite profound, as you will soon comprehend.

For the Mass on the Fifth Sunday of Lent according to the ancient use Roman Missal, the Gospel for no less than 1600 years until 1969 has been the following and it explains the veiling and why they killed Him.

GOSPEL ¤ John 8. 46-59 † A continuation of the holy Gospel according to St. John.

At that time Jesus said to the multitudes of the Jews: Which of you shall convince Me of sin? If I say the truth to you, why do you not believe Me? He that is of God heareth the words of God. Therefore you hear them not, because you are not of God. The Jews therefore answered and said to Him: Do not we say well, that Thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus answered: I have not a devil: but I honor My Father, and you have dishonored Me. But I seek not My own glory: there is One that seeketh and judgeth. Amen, amen, I say to you: If any man keep My word, he shall not see death for ever. The Jews therefore said: Now we know that Thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the Prophets: and Thou sayest: If any man keep My word, he shall not taste death for ever. Art Thou greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? and the prophets are dead. Whom dost Thou make Thyself? Jesus answered: If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing: it is My Father that glorifieth Me, of whom you say that He is your God, and you have not known Him: but I know Him: and if I shall say that I know Him not, I shall be like to you, a liar. But I do know Him, and do keep His word. Abraham your father rejoiced that he might see My day: he saw it and was glad. The Jews therefore said to Him: Thou art not yet fifty years old: and hast Thou seen Abraham? Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham was made, I am. They took up stones therefore to cast at Him: but Jesus hid Himself, and went out of the temple.

“But Jesus hid Himself.”

St. Augustine said that at this moment by virtue of His divine nature, Jesus became literally invisible.

“He hides not himself in a corner of the temple as if afraid or running into a cottage or turning aside behind a wall or column; but by His Divine Power making Himself invisible he passed through their midst.”

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we read the following:

205 God calls Moses from the midst of a bush that burns without being consumed: "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob."9 God is the God of the fathers, the One who had called and guided the patriarchs in their wanderings. He is the faithful and compassionate God who remembers them and his promises; he comes to free their descendants from slavery. He is the God who, from beyond space and time, can do this and wills to do it, the God who will put his almighty power to work for this plan.

"I Am who Am"

Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you', and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you'. . . this is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations."

CCC 206 In revealing his mysterious name, YHWH ("I AM HE WHO IS", "I AM WHO AM" or "I AM WHO I AM"), God says who he is and by what name he is to be called. This divine name is mysterious just as God is mystery. It is at once a name revealed and something like the refusal of a name, and hence it better expresses God as what he is - infinitely above everything that we can understand or say: he is the "hidden God", his name is ineffable, and he is the God who makes himself close to men.

CCC 207 By revealing his name God at the same time reveals his faithfulness which is from everlasting to everlasting, valid for the past ("I am the God of your father"), as for the future ("I will be with you").12 God, who reveals his name as "I AM", reveals himself as the God who is always there, present to his people in order to save them.

CCC 208 Faced with God's fascinating and mysterious presence, man discovers his own insignificance. Before the burning bush, Moses takes off his sandals and veils his face in the presence of God's holiness.13 Before the glory of the thrice-holy God, Isaiah cries out: "Woe is me! I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips."14 Before the divine signs wrought by Jesus, Peter exclaims: "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."15 But because God is holy, he can forgive the man who realizes that he is a sinner before him: "I will not execute my fierce anger. . . for I am God and not man, the Holy One in your midst."16 The apostle John says likewise: "We shall. . . reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything."

Jesus revealed to the Temple authorities, the leadership of Israel, who He was. He knew Abraham and did so in such a way that they would know with absolute clarity who He was. He had done it before, seven times.

1. I Am the Bread of Life: (John 6). 

2. I Am the Light of the World: (John 8). 

3. I Am the Gate of the Sheepfold: (John 10). 

4. I Am the Good Shepherd: (John 10). 

5. I Am the Resurrection and the Life: (John 11). 

6. I Am the Way, Truth, and Life: (John 14). 

7. I Am the True Vine: (John 15).

Note that Jesus, when the Jews questioned his age and Abraham, he did not say, "Before Abraham was made, I was made." Had he said this, they would have just thought him delusional. Rather, He said, "Before Abraham was made, I AM." They knew exactly what He meant. 

Now, he is hidden in our churches and chapels only to be unveiled when we recall His Crucifixion -- "Ecce lignum Crucis," -- "Behold the wood of the Cross on which hung the Saviour of the world, come let us adore him." If we hide Him we cannot abide the glory of His saints, therefore, they are also hidden. Christ is shamed. He is humiliated by those whom he came to save. The Jewish "deep state" betrayed Him, and we continue to betray Him today.

He declared Himself before all Israel to be the I AM of the Burning Bush; and for this, they would kill Him. They knew what He said, they knew what He meant. He confessed to them that he was the very Son of God, the very God Himself come to earth.

In the sermon below from 1846, we find an incredible dissertation on Jesus hiding Himself.  It is a sermon by an Anglican, but one would be hard-pressed to find a better sermon or homily said today on the subject from a typical Catholic pulpit. This was a period that led Saint John-Henry Newman home.

Would that we could hear preaching like this today.

Vox.

+ + +

SERMONS FOR SUNDAYS AND OTHER LITURGICAL OCCASIONS

CONTRIBUTED BY

BISHOPS AND OTHER CLERGY OF THE CHURCH.

EDITED BY THE REV. ALEXANDER WATSON, M.A., 

CURATE OF ST. JOHN'S, CHELTENHAM.

Second Series.  VOL. I.

OXFORD: J. H. PARKER. CAMBRIDGE: T. GREEN.

MDCCCXLVI. (1846)

Then took they up stones to cast at Him."

Thus are we brought down from the whole Gospel for the day to that portion of it which will engage our chief attention during the brief remainder of this morning's service. "But Jesus hid Himself, and went out of the Temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by."

1. Jesus "hid Himself," as man, in prudence: according to the will of His Heavenly Father. As He had been born in "the fullness of time," so it was at an appointed hour that He was to die. But "His hour was not yet come ": and He therefore avoided whatever might unduly quicken the course of events, or put forward the grand horologe of time. And this He did in obedience to the Will of His Heavenly Father. This obedience was the mainspring of His conduct throughout His earthly sojourn. "Lo I come to do Thy will, O God," was His motto from first to last; and never was it more fully translated into action than in all He did with regard to His final suffering and departure.

When that hour of mingled humiliation and glory, which compressed eternal interests within the compass of a few passing minutes; when that everlasting hour arrived, the holy and obedient Jesus yielded Himself at once into the power of His enemies. Thus, when Satan had entered into Judas Iscariot, Jesus said to the traitor, "What thou doest, do quickly." When Judas came to Him in the garden with men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, "Jesus, knowing all things that should come upon Him, went forth and said unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered Him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said unto them, I am He." And when the impetuous Peter—the first to defend, the first to deny his Master—drew his sword and cut oft" the right ear of Malchus, the High Priest's servant, "then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?" When Pilate would fain have released Him, and sought for some pretext for so doing in the replies of Jesus to his interrogatories, "Jesus gave him no answer." And at the last, when He saw that all was "finished,"—prophecy fulfilled, types realised, the preparations for His sacrificial Death complete, His Father's will wrought out,—He bowed His head, and gave up the ghost."

But until the arrival of that hour, His conduct was marked throughout by unexampled prudence. While He wrought His miracles before the multitude, and taught openly in the Temple, and in secret did nothing; while He boldly confuted and reproved the Pharisee, the Sadducee, and the Herodian, regardless of the enmity He thereby incurred; He carefully shunned the precipitation of His end. He had a mission of vast pregnancy and moment to discharge; and until this was done, He would not lay down that life which the Father had put into His power. Whenever danger became imminent, He withdrew Himself from the presence of those who sought to lay hands on Him and destroy Him. Thus, on the occasion immediately before us, when the infuriated Jews took up stones to cast at Him, "Jesus hid Himself, and went out of the Temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by." 

On a previous occasion, when the Pharisees held a council how they might destroy Him, Jesus “withdrew Himself from thence." On a subsequent occasion, similar to that of the text, when the Jews again sought to take Him, "he escaped out of their hand, and went away again beyond Jordan." When the Sanhedrim, after the official prophecy of the unconscious Caiaphas, took counsel together to put Him to death, "Jesus walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with His disciples." Thus, throughout His whole earthly career, our Blessed Lord exercised a prudence of the highest order; enforcing by His own example the precepts He gave to His first disciples: "Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves ;"—" When they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another ." And these precepts, supported by this supreme example, and adapted to the exigencies of Christians at the present day, apply also to us. "As men may not be too tenacious, so neither may they be too profuse and lavish of life and the comforts of it," says Dean Stanhope; "lest, besides their present hardships, they find at last an indiscreet zeal returned, with a 'Who hath required these things at your hands?' Love indeed is apt and desirous to give over-measure, where it can: but still this must not be the effect of passion alone. Prudence should temper and direct it." 

"It is an office of prudence," says Bishop Taylor, "to serve God So that we may at the same time preserve our lives and our estates, our interest and reputation, for ourselves and our relations, so far as they can consist together. For Christian religion, carrying us to heaven, does it by the ways of a man; and by the body it serves the soul, as by the soul it serves God; and therefore it endeavours to secure the body and its interest, that it may continue the opportunities of a crown, and prolong the stage in which we are to run for the mighty prize of our salvation; and this is that part of prudence which is the defensative and guard of a Christian in the time of persecution: and it hath in it much of duty."

Thus far we have endeavoured to consider the conduct of our Blessed Lord, on the occasion under review, on its human side; as an exhibition of prudence and discretion. But it has a sublimer aspect than this; to which we now with reverence will turn.

Jesus “hid Himself," as God, in majesty; the majesty of displeasure. "He did not hide Himself," says St. Augustine, "in a corner of the Temple, as if He were afraid; or take refuge in a house, or run behind a wall, or a pillar; but, by His heavenly power making Himself invisible to His enemies, He went through the midst of them." Just before, He had said, "Before Abraham was I Am"; with evident reference to the Name revealed by the Lord to Moses, as recorded in the First Lesson for this morning's service; when He appeared to him in the burning but unconsumed bush, as he was keeping the flock of Jethro, the Priest of Midian, near the base of Mount Horeb. On that occasion, when Moses would have drawn nigh to see that great sight, the Lord forbad his nearer approach, and commanded him to unsandal his feet, because they were standing on holy ground. He, who required this reverence towards an inferior manifestation of Himself, would not permit the rude hand of violence to invade His incarnate glory. He "hid Himself" in the secret depths of His invisible Godhead.

There is, doubtless, a mystery in this; and we cannot fully understand why He, who submitted on so many occasions to endure the contradiction of sinners against Himself, refused on other occasions to undergo the indignities that wicked hands would have put upon Him. But a like mystery invested the whole of His earthly career. The darkest shades of humiliation were never permitted altogether to obscure His glory; while yet, that glory was so far hidden, that men despised Him and esteemed Him not. Great, however, as was the mystery of His commingling of glory and shame, the mystery of the manifestation of His glory alone was greater. He might have flashed forth devouring lightnings from the dark and surcharged cloud. He might have kindled into supernatural and overwhelming brightness the splendours of His Divine and resistless Presence. But He did none of these things. He manifested forth His glory by hiding Himself. When the Lord, in the days of old, would preserve righteous Lot and His prophet Elisha from the hand of violence, He smote their enemies with blindness; and so He might have done on this occasion: but, as the threatened indignity was greater, so was the punishment wherewith He visited it. "He hid Himself."

Awful are the exhibitions of Divine glory, when the Lord is raised up out of His holy habitation, and comes forth from His unseen depths to punish the ungodly. But these are as nothing when compared with the hidings of His face. When the Lord would denounce the severest judgments against Israel of old, He said to Moses, "Mine anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us?" And when, on the other hand, He would confer upon His repentant people the greatest possible blessing, He said by the mouth of Ezekiel, "Neither will I hide My face from them any more: for I have poured out My Spirit upon the house of Israel."

The hidings of Jesus, in the days of His flesh, were yet more majestic and awful. He came into the world for the express purpose, among others, of manifesting the glory and the grace of God: so that to hide Himself was, as it were, to revoke His mission with regard to those from whom He thus withdrew. He abandoned them to the evil of their own hardened and unbelieving hearts, and left them to be filled with their own ways.

It is impossible to conceive anything more dreadful than the condition of the man from whom Jesus has hid Himself. Such a man sinks at once into a state of moral stupidity: he sins on without aim or purpose. Until Jesus hid Himself, the unbelieving Jews had an object against which to direct their malignant attacks; but when He could be no longer seen, their malice, though as virulent as ever, became wholly impotent and senseless. And so, when Jesus hides Himself from sinners of the present day,—who insult His majesty because it is concealed to the-eye of sense or mere reason (though not to the eye of faith), beneath mean and simple accidents,—He leaves them to perish as brute beasts. The force of argument and moral suasion having been tried upon them in vain, together with all other manifestations of the true and holy Jesus, He will no longer expose Himself to the rash temerity and blinded insolence of their invasions, but hides Himself, going through the midst of them, and so passes by.

The abstract contemplation of such a subject is too awful for man to dwell upon at any length; and we will therefore now consider it, (so hastening to a conclusion,) under its practical aspects and bearings.

But is it possible, men may ask, for persons at the present day to commit acts of insult and injury towards the Divine Jesus, akin to that of the blaspheming Jews when they took up stones to cast at Him? Alas, it is but too possible. "Certainly we cannot commit such open blasphemy; but it is another matter whether we cannot commit as great. For, often sins are greater, which are less startling; insults more bitter, which are not so loud; and evils deeper, which are more subtle." Although Christ is no longer on earth in bodily presence, He is here by His Spirit: and it is quite possible for men to repeat the offence of the blaspheming Jews by casting stones, so to speak, against either the Church, which is His Body; or the Sacraments, which are His Presence; or the Poor, who are His Brethren.

The Church is the Body of Christ, "the fullness of Him That filleth all in all:" and they who resist or blaspheme or persecute Her, do in effect resist and blaspheme and persecute Him. And such are not only, nor even chiefly, the openly wicked and profane; whose offences are of a different description: but those who deny the Divine authority of the Church, rejecting her principles for the opinions of men and the maxims of the world; those who deny her Apostolicity, treating her as a merely human and secular institution; those who invade her constitution, legislating for her on grounds of political expediency, and not according to the laws of Christ. "Verily, I say unto you, they have their reward." They refuse to acknowledge the Body of Christ in His corporate members; and He hides it from them. They are no longer permitted to behold the tokens of her presence. She becomes to them what they would have her be. In their eyes she has no form nor comeliness, although she is all-glorious within. But with these hidings of her beauty and this withdrawal of her presence, there comes not only an apparent abdication of her authority; leaving men to live as they list, according to the broad measures of the world, instead of the straight and narrow lines of eternity: but also the utter loss of her intercession and benediction. She no longer stands between the living and the dead. A silent curse spreads over the land she has abandoned to itself. The rulers have forsaken Christ, and Christ has forsaken them. The people would have it so, and their house is left unto them desolate.

"Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings:

Be learned, ye that judges of the earth.

Kiss the Son, lest He be angry,

And so ye perish from the right way,

If His wrath be kindled, yea but a little.

Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him."

Again, the Sacraments are the Presence of Christ. In the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, He is present by His Spirit, Who, in answer to the prayers of the congregation, is given by our Heavenly Father to infants, when baptized, that they may be born again and be made heirs of everlasting salvation. In the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, He is really and spiritually present, being taken and received by the faithful as their heavenly food and divine life. 

Whoever, therefore, despises the Sacraments, despises Christ. Whoever denies their saving power, denies the Presence of the Saviour in them. Whoever in effect casts stones at these, as by cavils or contumely or neglect, does in reality thus cast stones at Christ. And then does the Son of God hide Himself from them in the majesty of displeasure; and Sacraments become to these persons what, in their rationalistic unbelief, they would have them be. 

Baptism, when administered by schismatics and pretenders to Holy Orders, fails to regenerate; and their own theory, that Baptism admits only to an outward union with a nominal church, is, in their own case, verified. The Communion is reduced to a formal commemoration of an absent Saviour. In both cases, as regards their own mere outward show of Sacraments, they are right. They have taken up stones to cast at the spiritually-present Jesus; and He has hidden Himself, going through the midst of them, and so passing by.

Lastly: the Poor are the Brethren of Jesus. They are so even in respect of their mere poverty; although it must not be concealed that the poor man who is a wilful sinner is severed from this communion and fellowship. But he, who is at once poor in this world and poor in spirit, is united by the closest bonds to the lowly Son of Mary. This is strikingly shown in the parable of the Sheep and the Goats, wherein the Judge declares that whatsoever is done unto the least of the Hungry, the Thirsty, the Stranger, the Naked, the Sick, the Imprisoned,—being "the poor of this world," but " rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom," —is done unto Himself. Now, we all know how apt men are to "despise the poor." "There are kinds of distress founded on the passions, which, if not applauded, are at least admired in their excess, as implying a peculiar refinement of sensibility in the mind of the sufferer. 

Embellished by taste, and wrought by the magic of genius into innumerable forms, they turn grief into a luxury, and draw from the eyes of millions delicious tears. But no muse ever ventured to adorn the distresses of poverty or the sorrows of hunger. Disgusting taste and delicacy, and presenting nothing pleasing to the imagination, they are mere misery in all its nakedness and deformity." And therefore the many "despise the Poor." But in so doing, they despise Christ; and what is their punishment in consequence? Jesus might rend aside the veil of His humanity, and reveal Himself as God. He might put off the sordid dress of poverty, and clothe Himself with light as with a garment. But He inflicts a severer punishment than this—He hides Himself. The Poor no longer visibly bear upon them "the marks of the Lord Jesus "; and secular legislation, at once blind and self-confident, sets itself to relieve their distress by increasing their degradation. It brands the Poor Man as a Pauper, and consigns him to contempt and shame. Jesus has hidden Himself in majestic displeasure: and men of the world little dream that He will reveal Himself again at the Last Day, and avenge the cause of the poor and the oppressed!

"Oh, how much are they to be pitied, in whatever sphere they move, who live to themselves, unmindful of the coming of their Lord. When He shall come, and shall not keep silence; when a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him; every thing, it is true, will combine to fill them with consternation: yet, methinks, neither the voice of the Archangel, nor the trump of God, nor the dissolution of the elements, nor the face of the Judge itself, from which the heavens will flee away, will be so dismaying and terrible to these men as the sight of the poor members of Christ; whom, having spurned and neglected in the days of their humiliation, they will then behold with amazement united to their Lord, covered with His glory, and seated on His throne! How will they be astonished to see them surrounded with so much majesty! How will they cast down their eyes in their presence! How will they curse that gold, which will then eat their flesh as with fire, and that avarice, that indolence, that voluptuousness, which will entitle them to so much misery! You will then learn that the imitation of Christ is the only wisdom: you will then be convinced it is better to be endeared to the cottage than admired in the palace; when to have wiped the tears of the afflicted, and inherited the prayers of the widow and the fatherless, shall be found a richer patrimony than the favour of princes."

H. H.

 https://books.google.ca/books?id=xogEAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&output=text

THE VATICAN TOMORROW - DEMOS

One may recall a letter under the pseudonym, Demos, about the state of the papacy. It was apparently written by a Cardinal whom it is thought was the late George Cardinal Pell. 

A Memorandum on the Next Conclave Is Circulating Among the Cardinals. Here It Is - Settimo Cielo - Blog - L’Espresso (archive.org)

A "Demos II" has issued another.

My post below questioned the wisdom and relevance of both Vatican I and Vatican II and that both need to be thrown into the dustbin of history. The whole concept of "infallibility" has been used as a cudgel against the faithful. Save your commentary and accusations on this point, I have no time, nor patience for your inanity. Both of those Councils gave us Francis. Some day, the Church will need to send Vatican II to the dustbin of history and the absurd parts of Vatican I that have allowed a Francis to take place and causes continuous estrangement with the Orthodox.

The Cardinal has remained anonymous. We know well what Bergoglio will do and that is to strip him of his red. This is why they remain silent. Bergoglio will not listen and they must be at the next conclave to ensure, we hope, that any Francis II is jettisoned. 

Here is the text:

A profile of the next Pope, writes Cardinal - Daily Compass (newdailycompass.com)

The Vatican Tomorrow 

In March 2022, an anonymous text appeared – signed “Demos” and titled “The Vatican Today” – that raised a number of serious questions and criticisms regarding the pontificate of Pope Francis. Conditions in the Church since that text appeared have not materially changed, much less improved. Thus, the thoughts offered here are intended to build on those original reflections in light of the needs of the Vatican tomorrow. 

The concluding years of a pontificate, any pontificate, are a time to assess the condition of the Church in the present, and the needs of the Church and her faithful going forward. It is clear that the strength of Pope Francis’ pontificate is the added emphasis he has given to compassion toward the weak, outreach to the poor and marginalized, concern for the dignity of creation and the environmental issues that flow from it, and efforts to accompany the suffering and alienated in their burdens. 

Its shortcomings are equally obvious: an autocratic, at times seemingly vindictive, style of governance; a carelessness in matters of law; an intolerance for even respectful disagreement; and – most seriously – a pattern of ambiguity in matters of faith and morals causing confusion among the faithful. Confusion breeds division and conflict. It undermines confidence in the Word of God. It weakens evangelical witness. And the result today is a Church more fractured than at any time in her recent history.

The task of the next pontificate must therefore be one of recovery and reestablishment of truths that have been slowly obscured or lost among many Christians. These include but are not limited to such basics as the following:  (a) no one is saved except through, and only through, Jesus Christ, as he himself made clear; (b) God is merciful but also just, and is intimately concerned with every human life, He forgives but He also holds us accountable, He is both Savior and Judge; (c) man is God’s creature, not a self-invention, a creature not merely of emotion and appetites but also of intellect, free will, and an eternal destiny; (d) unchanging objective truths about the world and human nature exist and are knowable through Divine Revelation and the exercise of reason; (e) God’s Word, recorded in Scripture, is reliable and has permanent force; (f) sin is real and its effects are lethal; and (g) his Church has both the authority and the duty to “make disciples of all nations.” The failure to joyfully embrace that work of missionary, salvific love has consequences. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:16, “woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel.”

Some practical observations flow from the task and list above. 

First: Real authority is damaged by authoritarian means in its exercise. The Pope is a Successor of Peter and the guarantor of Church unity. But he is not an autocrat. He cannot change Church doctrine, and he must not invent or alter the Church’s discipline arbitrarily. He governs the Church collegially with his brother bishops in local dioceses. And he does so always in faithful continuity with the Word of God and Church teaching. “New paradigms” and “unexplored new paths” that deviate from either are not of God. A new Pope must restore the hermeneutic of continuity in Catholic life and reassert Vatican II’s understanding of the papacy’s proper role.

Second: Just as the Church is not an autocracy, neither is she a democracy. The Church belongs to Jesus Christ. She is his Church. She is Christ’s Mystical Body, made up of many members. We have no authority to refashion her teachings to fit more comfortably with the world. Moreover, the Catholic sensus fidelium is not a matter of opinion surveys nor even the view of a baptized majority. It derives only from those who genuinely believe and actively practice, or at least sincerely seek to practice, the faith and teachings of the Church. 

Third: Ambiguity is neither evangelical nor welcoming. Rather, it breeds doubt and feeds schismatic impulses. The Church is a community not just of Word and sacrament, but also of creed. What we believe helps to define and sustain us. Thus, doctrinal issues are not burdens imposed by unfeeling “doctors of the law.” Nor are they cerebral sideshows to the Christian life. On the contrary, they’re vital to living a Christian life authentically, because they deal with applications of the truth, and the truth demands clarity, not ambivalent nuance. From the start, the current pontificate has resisted the evangelical force and intellectual clarity of its immediate predecessors. The dismantling and repurposing of Rome’s John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family and the marginalizing of texts like Veritatis Splendor suggest an elevation of “compassion” and emotion at the expense of reason, justice, and truth. For a creedal community, this is both unhealthy and profoundly dangerous. 

Fourth: The Catholic Church, in addition to Word, sacrament, and creed, is also a community of law. Canon law orders Church life, harmonizes its institutions and procedures, and guarantees the rights of believers. Among the marks of the current pontificate are its excessive reliance on the motu proprio as a tool for governance and a general carelessness and distaste for canonical detail. Again, as with ambiguity of doctrine, disregard for canon law and proper canonical procedure undermines confidence in the purity of the Church’s mission. 

Fifth: The Church, as John XXIII so beautifully described her, is mater et magistra, the “mother and teacher” of humanity, not its dutiful follower; the defender of man as the subject of history, not its object. She is the bride of Christ; her nature is personal, supernatural, and intimate, not merely institutional. She can never be reduced to a system of flexible ethics or sociological analysis and remodeling to fit the instincts and appetites (and sexual confusions) of an age. One of the key flaws in the current pontificate is its retreat from a convincing “theology of the body” and its lack of a compelling Christian anthropology . . . precisely at a time when attacks on human nature and identity, from transgenderism to transhumanism, are mounting. 

Sixth: Global travel served a pastor like Pope John Paul II so well because of his unique personal gifts and the nature of the times. But the times and circumstances have changed. The Church in Italy and throughout Europe – the historic home of the faith – is in crisis. The Vatican itself urgently needs a renewal of its morale, a cleansing of its institutions, procedures, and personnel, and a thorough reform of its finances to prepare for a more challenging future. These are not small things. They demand the presence, direct attention, and personal engagement of any new Pope. 

Seventh and finally: The College of Cardinals exists to provide senior counsel to the Pope and to elect his successor upon his death. That service requires men of clean character, strong theological formation, mature leadership experience, and personal holiness. It also requires a Pope willing to seek advice and then to listen. It’s unclear to what degree this applies in the Pope Francis pontificate. The current pontificate has placed an emphasis on diversifying the college, but it has failed to bring cardinals together in regular consistories designed to foster genuine collegiality and trust among brothers. As a result, many of the voting electors in the next conclave will not really know each other, and thus may be more vulnerable to manipulation. In the future, if the college is to serve its purposes, the cardinals who inhabit it need more than a red zucchetto and a ring. Today’s College of Cardinals should be proactive about getting to know each other to better understand their particular views regarding the Church, their local church situations, and their personalities – which impact their consideration of the next pope. 

Readers will quite reasonably ask why this text is anonymous. The answer should be evident from the tenor of today’s Roman environment: Candor is not welcome, and its consequences can be unpleasant. And yet these thoughts could continue for many more paragraphs, noting especially the current pontificate’s heavy dependence on the Society of Jesus, the recent problematic work by the DDF’s Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, and the emergence of a small oligarchy of confidants with excessive influence within the Vatican – all despite synodality’s decentralizing claims, among other things. 

Exactly because of these matters, the cautionary reflections noted here may be useful in the months ahead. It is hoped that this contribution will help guide much needed conversations about what the Vatican should look like in the next pontificate. 

Demos II

Thomas Tallis: O Nata Lux - the Choir of Trinity College, Cambridge

Ultramontanism has led to this moment

The sooner we fix the excesses of Vatican I and II and throw this ultramontanist papolatry into the toilet, the better. You all know it. It is what has gotten us to where we are today. It's all good when the pope is the servant of the servants of God and a Catholic. It all falls apart when he is not. 

Former papal confidant says prelates who 'criticize' Pope Francis are a threat to Church 'unity' - LifeSite (lifesitenews.com)

The Timothy Dolan Whore Mass. But the traditioal Latin Mass is the problem?

I have some words for all of you bishops and effete priests. I can't use them here. 

RORATE CÆLI: The “Whore Funeral” in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral: The Inevitable End Game of Vatican II and the Ideological Novus Ordo Rite (rorate-caeli.blogspot.com)

And Ann.

Luciferian faggot, Timothy Dolan, Cardinal Archbishop of New York, allowed an overtly satanic rite to be performed in St. Patrick’s Cathedral in NYC by transvestite prostitutes. | Barnhardt

Emendemus in melius (William Byrd)

The imprudent and impudent Pope!

Exit the Pope? - Crisis Magazine

Imprudence like: after finding the synod insufficiently open to the blessing of same-sex couples deciding to impose it on the Church by ukase. (That is the word for the decrees of the autocratic czar of all Russia.) 

Imprudence like: placing in the dicastery of doctrine a man whose writings would no doubt make him “non idoneous” to be a bishop, let alone a cardinal entrusted with an essential curial post. 

Imprudence like: taking the pushback of Fiducia Supplicans as a personal insult to which he pretends to give profile in courage and claim to be suffering for the truth. This from a person most free with insults (e.g., EWTN is “diabolical”). 

Imprudence like: making the bishops know that he will not tolerate criticism, as he has shown in his scandalous treatment of even the most pious dissent (e.g., Bishop Strickland). This came before Fiducia and had an effect on our own bishops’ conference.

Imprudence like: allowing a “spontaneous, private, fifteen-second” blessing become a piece in The New York Times and not reacting to the priest’s gloss that “he was waiting a long time to be able to bless” a couple.

Imprudence like: pretending to allow an “exception” of the non-acceptance of Fiducia in Africa as due to “cultural” issues and not “religious” principles that are grounded in the Bible and Tradition.

Imprudence like: using every media opportunity to present the false narrative that opposition to Fiducia is a denial of the Church’s duty to sanctify the faithful. It is not a question of denying to pray for (bless) individuals but of refusing to give the impression of endorsing what is explicitly contrary to Bible teaching, the Catechism, and traditional pastoral practice. He who is not with the pope is therefore against the grace and mercy of God. That is a false dichotomy that is deeply embarrassing.

Bergoglio thinks we're stupid

The psychological projection and gaslighting continue from Bergoglio. If you read the below you will find he makes a comparison between blessings. "No one is scandalized if I bless an entrepreneur who exploits people, while it happens if he is a homosexual. It's hypocrisy." 

Does he think we are stupid?

If a priest blessed the entrepreneur he does not assume that the man exploits people or makes lousy products. He gives a blessing. If an individual man or woman attracted to the same sex comes for a blessing, they receive a blessing. If they come as a couple, that is a completely different thing.

He thinks we are stupid. We are not. 

But we know what he is.

Pope Francis: "No one is scandalized if I bless an entrepreneur who exploits people, while it happens if he is a homosexual. It's hypocrisy" - La Stampa

VATICAN CITY. He speaks of priests, the style they should avoid and the attitude they should have: "We clerics sometimes live in comfort. We need to see the work and the suffering of the people." And he expresses himself on openness towards gay people: "No one is scandalized if I bless an entrepreneur who exploits people, while it happens if he is a homosexual. It's hypocrisy." It is a confident and open-hearted Pope Francis that emerges in an in-depth interview given exclusively, for the first time, to the weekly Credere - the periodical of the San Paolo Publishing Group - in the issue on newsstands from tomorrow. Answering the questions of the newspaper's editor-in-chief, Fr. Vincenzo Vitale, the Bishop of Rome retraces the years of his pontificate between personal confidences and highly topical issues, from the blessing of homosexual people, to the Jubilee, to the involvement of young people. In this regard, he emphasizes: "There are pastoral experiences that speak to simple people (...) There are also 'sophisticated' realities that do not arrive, movements that are a bit 'exquisite' and that tend to form an 'ecclesiola', of people who feel superior," the Pontiff lashed out.

The interview also focuses on the role of women in the Church: "Opening up work in the Curia to women is important. In the Roman Curia there are now several women and there will be more, because they do better than us men in certain positions. The governor, for example, Sister Raffaella Petrini, is doing beautiful things. Even the women who are in the dicastery to elect bishops... These are all places that need women. There is an ongoing process in this. There are several secretaries, think of Sister Alessandra Smerilli at the Dicastery for Integral Human Development, others at the Dicastery for Evangelization, of Religious..."

The Pope then reassures about his state of health: "The Church is governed with the head, not with the legs."

The response to the controversy that arose after the "Trust Supplicans" declaration was also clear: "No one is scandalized if I give my blessing to an entrepreneur who perhaps exploits people: and this is a very serious sin. While he is scandalized if I give it to a homosexual.... This is hypocrisy! The heart of the document is welcoming." Francis adds: "But I don't bless a 'homosexual marriage', I bless two people who love each other and I also ask them to pray for me. Always in confessions, when these situations arise, homosexual people, remarried people, I always pray and bless. The blessing is not to be denied to anyone. Everybody, everybody, everybody. Be careful, I'm talking about people: those who are capable of receiving Baptism."

The Pontiff desires a Church that is more capable of being close to people: "People give me joy! When I'm with people, I'm happy. When I'm with the administration, yes I do what I have to do, but when I'm with the people, it's something else... I would like to be able to go on the street freely, but it is not possible. I've done it a few times, to go to the optician or to go buy records, but secretly. I learn from people! When you find a father of a family with a monthly income at the limit, who comes to confession and tells you that when he comes home he is tired and cannot be with his children because they are already asleep and in the morning he gets up before they wake up; And then he confesses to you that his pleasure, on Sundays, is playing with his children... That's where you learn! People suffer so much... We clerics sometimes live in comfort... You have to see the work, the suffering of the people..."

He recounts two episodes that he carries in his heart: "One here in Rome, one in Argentina. At a hearing two years ago, a lady beckoned me to come over and called me, I went. An elderly peasant woman was 87 years old, but she didn't show them. I asked her what she ate to stay like this: ravioli, she replied, ravioli that she made... And he gave me the recipe for ravioli. I asked her to pray for me. He assured me that he would, but told me to be careful. So I asked her if she prayed for me or against me. And he said: "No, Your Holiness, you are not mistaken, they pray against you in there." The wisdom, the courage of the elderly! The other episode was in a slum in Buenos Aires, where I went to celebrate Mass. During the trip, it became known that John Paul II had died. With the simple people of the slums they talked about the election of the new Pope. An elderly woman asked me if I could become Pope. Yes, I told her. So he gave me a piece of advice: to buy me a little dog. I asked her why. "Before eating, give the dog food and wait a bit..."

More than ten years after the foundation of the newspaper, born on the occasion of the election of Pope Francis in 2013, Credere wishes to continue to tell the story of the faith, privileging the choice of proposing and motivating good news. The weekly - distributed throughout Italy with 60,000 copies and 200,000 readers - has chosen to remain firmly in paper format in order to continue to be a tool to be used during the week, as is already the case, in the family, in schools, in groups, in movements and in ecclesial associations.

Punxsutawney Phil or Wiarton Willie - pretty poor pagan substitutes for the real Light of lights

I originally wrote this in 2016.  My view has not changed - the groundhog ritual is a mockery of Candlemas. The groundhog is afraid of the light and goes back into his hole. Our friends in Wiarton and Punsutanawney are looking for light in all the wrong places. 

Today is Candlemas, the official end of the Christmas Season according to ancient tradition. The Christmas cycle ends today. While the pagan secularists are out celebrating a couple of rodents, be they in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania or Wiarton, Ontario, we Catholics are blest to know that the groundhog is but a beautiful creature of God, it is not a god that can predict

anything. Even in jest, it is a mockery of the One True God and His First Commandment - to even joke that an animal can predict the weather, other than by its Creator growing it a longer coat, it is the sin of divination. I see the groundhog ritual as a satanic mockery of Christ and the Blessed Mother, not just an old pagan practice. Of course, it's just a little fun in the midst of winter, except we need to look deeper. If the rodent sees the sun, he goes back into his hole. Satan sees the Light of Christ, which he runs from. Candlemas is just one more example of how the pagan secular world has perverted Catholic feasts and traditions, from All Hallows to Christmas and St. Valentine and the Easter bunny. How many Catholic churches today celebrate the feast with a procession or a sung liturgy? How many Catholics even know what the Feast is and its culmination of the Christmas cycle?

This poem from Germany seems to be the origin of the weather prediction, but I see no rodent. 

If Candlemas be fair and bright,

Come, Winter, have another flight;

If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,

Go Winter, and come not again.

For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day,

So far will the snow swirl until May.

This feast - solemnity recalls the day when our Blessed Mother - Mary being a Jewess and forty days after giving birth to her first-born Son, the Messiah; presented herself in the Temple as Orthodox Jewish women still do today for a mikvah, or Purification. In the Roman Missal of 1962, they actually changed the name to the Presentation of the Lord, which it is of course. Prior to that, it was the Purification of Mary. Common folk, not liturgists, called it Candlemas because, "we bless candles" as Father Z says, and we receive blest candles and take them home. Father Hunwicke has some thoughts on this and how "purification" does not fit with our modern sensibilities of a woman being, "unclean."

Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the temple on this day. The Holy Spirit had revealed to the just and devout Simeon that he should not die before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. In the temple the old man glimpsed Jesus in Mary's arms and blessed God, knowing that at last he had seen the Savior, "a light of revelation to the Gentiles and a glory of Thy people Israel."

But only after the Savior's Passion and Crucifixion would the light win for men the final victory over bodily and spiritual death. Simeon therefore said to Mary, the co-redeemer of mankind, "Thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed" (Luke 2:35). May we, too, after having shared the redemptive sufferings of Christ attain the final grace of presentation in the holy temple of God's glory.

(from a Missal introduction to today's Mass)

What the Novus Ordo took from you:

Blessing of Candles

V. The Lord be with you.

R. And with thy spirit.

Let us pray. O Holy Lord, Father almighty, everlasting God, who hast created all things out of nothing, and by Thy command hast caused this liquid to become perfect wax by the labor of bees: and who, on this day didst fulfill the petition of the righteous man Simeon: we humbly entreat Thee, that by the invocation of Thy most holy Name and through the intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin whose feast is today devoutly observed, and by the prayers of all Thy Saints, Thou wouldst vouchsafe to bless ✠ and sanctify ✠ these candles for the service of men and for the health of their bodies and souls, whether on land or on sea: and that Thou wouldst hear from Thy holy heaven, and from the throne of Thy Majesty the voices of this Thy people, who desire to carry them in their hands with honor, and to praise Thee with hymns; and wouldst be propitious to all that call upon Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

R. Amen. 

Let us pray. O almighty and everlasting God, who on this day didst present Thine only-begotten Son in Thy holy temple to be received in the arms of holy Simeon: we humbly entreat Thy clemency, that Thou wouldst vouchsafe to bless ✠ and sanctify ✠ and to kindle with the light of Thy heavenly benediction these candles, which we, Thy servants, desire to receive and to bear lighted in the honor of Thy Name: that, by offering them to Thee our Lord God, being worthily inflamed with the holy fire of Thy most sweet charity, we may deserve to be presented in the holy temple of Thy glory.

Through the same Jesus Christ, thy Son, Our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

R. Amen. 

Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, the true Light who enlightenest every man that cometh into this world: pour forth Thy blessing ✠ upon these candles, and sanctify ✠ them with the light of Thy grace, and mercifully grant, that as these lights enkindled with visible fire dispel the darkness of night, so our hearts illumined by invisible fire, that is, by the splendor of the Holy Spirit, may be free from the blindness of all vice, that the eye of our mind being cleansed, we may be able to discern what is pleasing to Thee and profitable to our salvation; so that after the perilous darkness of this life we may deserve to attain to neverfailing light: through Thee, O Christ Jesus, Saviour of the world, who in the perfect Trinity, livest and reignest, God, world without end.

R. Amen. 

Let us pray. O almighty and everlasting God, who by Thy servant Moses didst command the purest oil to be prepared for lamps to burn continuously before Thee: vouchsafe to pour forth the grace of Thy blessing ✠ upon these candles: that they may so afford us light outwardly that by Thy gift, the gift of Thy Spirit may never be wanting inwardly to our minds.

Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

R. Amen. 

Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, who appearing on this day among men in the substance of our flesh, wast presented by Thy parents in the temple: whom the venerable and aged Simeon, illuminated by the light of Thy Spirit, recognized, received into his arms, and blessed: mercifully grant that, enlightened and taught by the grace of the same Holy Ghost, we may truly acknowledge Thee and faithfully love Thee; Who with God the Father in the unity of the same Holy Ghost livest and reignest, God, world without end.

R. Amen. 

The Distribution of Candles

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, according to Thy word in peace.

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

Because mine eyes have seen Thy salvation.

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

Which Thou hast prepared, before the face of all peoples.

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ant. A light for the revelation of the Gentiles: and for the glory of Thy people Israel.

 

Ant. Arise, O Lord, help us and deliver us for Thy Name's sake.

We have heard, O God, with our ears: our fathers have declared to us.

V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.

R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ant. Arise, O Lord, help us and deliver us for Thy Name's sake.

Let us pray.

We beseech Thee, O Lord, hearken unto Thy people, and grant that by the light of Thy grace, we may inwardly attain to those things which Thou grantest us outwardly to venerate by this yearly observance. Through Christ our Lord.

R. Amen

The Procession

V. Let us go forth in peace.

R. In the Name of Christ. Amen.

Ant. Adorn thy bridal-chamber, O Sion, and welcome Christ the King: with loving embrace greet Mary who is the very gate of heaven; for she bringeth to thee the glorious King of the new light: remaining ever a Virgin yet she bearest in her arms the Son begotten before the day-star: even the Child, whom Simeon taking into his arms, declared to the peoples to be the Lord of life and death, and the Saviour of the world.

Ant. Simeon received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord; and when they brought the Child into the temple, he took Him into His arms, and blessed God, and said: Now dost Thou dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, in peace.

V. When His parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, he took Him into His arms.

V. They offered for Him to the Lord a pair of turtle doves, or two young pigeons: * As it is written in the Law of the Lord.

V. After the days of the purification of Mary, according to the law of Moses, were fulfilled, they carried Jesus to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord. * As it is written in the Law of the Lord.

V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.

R. As it is written in the Law of the Lord.

Followed by the Mass.

 INTROIT Ps. 47:10-11

We have received Your kindness, O Lord, within Your temple. As Your name, O God, is known to the ends of the earth, so also shall Your praise be voiced to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is just in all things.

Ps. 47:2. Great is the Lord, and worthy of all praise in the city of our God, upon His holy mountain.

V. Glory be . . . 

COLLECT

Almighty and Eternal God, we humbly ask that we may be presented to You with purified souls just as Your only-begotten Son was presented this day in the temple after He had taken on the substance of our flesh. Through Our Lord . . . 

LESSON Mal. 3:1-4

Thus says the Lord God: Behold I send my angel, and he shall prepare the way before my face. And presently the Lord, whom you seek, and the angel of the testament, whom you desire, shall come to his temple. Behold, he cometh, saith the Lord of hosts. And who shall be able to think of the day of his coming? and who shall stand to see him? for he is like a refining fire, and like the fuller's herb: And he shall sit refining and cleansing the silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and shall refine them as gold, and as silver, and they shall offer sacrifices to the Lord in justice. And the sacrifice of Juda and of Jerusalem shall please the Lord, as in the days of old, and in the ancient years, says the Lord almighty. 

GRADUAL Ps. 47:10-11, 9

We have received Your kindness, O Lord, within Your temple. As Your name, O God, is known to the ends of the earth, so also shall Your praise be voiced to the ends of the earth.

V. As we had heard, so we have seen in the city of our God, upon His holy mountain.

V. The old man bore the Child, but the Child was the old man's King; Allelúja. 

The candles are held lighted during the Gospel, and from the Sanctus to the Communion.

 GOSPEL Luke 2:22-32

At that time, when the days of Mary's purification, according to the law of Moses, were accomplished, they carried him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord: As it is written in the law of the Lord: "Every male opening the womb shall be called holy to the Lord": And to offer a sacrifice, according as it is written in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons"

And behold there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon: and this man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Ghost was in him. And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. And he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when his parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law, He also took him into his arms and blessed God and said, "Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, O Lord, according to thy word in peace: Because my eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples: A light to the revelation of the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel." 

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 44:3

Grace is poured out upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever and for all ages. 

SECRET 

O Lord, graciously hear our prayers and in Your mercy help us so that our offering may be worthy of Your majesty. Through Our Lord . . . 

The Preface for Christmas is said. 

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Luke 2:26

Simeon received an answer from the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. 

POSTCOMMUNION

O Lord Our God, may this sacred rite, which You instituted to protect us in our new life of grace, bring us healing now and forever through the intercession of the Blessed Ever-Virgin Mary. Through Our Lord . . .

In the great Responsory to the Antiphons during the Procession, we sing, repeatedly after each verse:

After the days of Mary 's purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord

 

aa

Our Blessed Mother and St. Joseph went up to Jerusalem "according to the law of Moses." They followed the Law, and they loved the Law. They did not mock the Law, they did not feel that the Law kept them from grace. They were not "rigid." They were not "hiding" anything.

A few weeks ago, right after Epiphany and for the first time, the Creche and Christmas Tree in St. Peter's Square were removed. It was then, after all, "Ordinary Time." As I sit and write this, the Christmas Tree, (cut ourselves in early December and left outside until the 23rd) is still alighted. It actually has new growth, never losing its water supply and tricked into thinking it was Spring, it is only now starting to drop a few needles. The house is still decorated with the manger and holly and boxwood and pine. Fox and I will still use our Christmas mugs for this morning's coffee. Tonight, for Vespers followed by Holy Mass, it will be lit for the last time until next Christmas, the Lord willing. 

Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, according to Thy word in peace; Because my eyes have seen Thy salvation, Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples: A light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel.

Here is an old poem giving insight into the beautiful tradition when our ancestors would mark the changing of time and seasons and think of simpler things, and God.

1. Down with the rosemary and bays,

Down with the mistletoe ;

Instead of holly, now up-raise

The greener box, for show.

Refrain:

Thus times and seasons oft do shift; each thing his turn doth hold ;

New thoughts and things now do succeed, as former things grow old.

2. The holly hitherto did sway ;

Let box now domineer

Until the dancing Easter day,

Or Easter's eve appear. Refrain

3. Then youthful box which now hath grace

Your houses to renew ;

Grown old, surrender must his place

Unto the crisped yew. Refrain

4. When yew is out, then birch comes in,

And many flowers beside ;

Both of a fresh and fragrant kin

To honour Whitsuntide. Refrain

5. Green rushes, then, and sweetest bents,

With cooler oaken boughs,

Come in for comely ornaments
To re-adorn the house. Refrain

Joe Biden, devout Catholic

 Not that our Justin is any better, mind you. Another stupid Catholic.

Bergoglio and his Tucho "Cardinal" Fernández Orgasmic Theology

Oh my. How would he know?

Stinking pervert.

Francis and Fernández Can't Get Enough Orgasms – Gloria.tv

Francis and Fernández Can't Get Enough Orgasms

The more Francis' chief ideologue Tucho Fernández lies, the more he gets entangled in his web of lies. When the scandal over his 1995 book “Sáname con tu boca. El arte de besar” (Heal me with your mouth. The art of kissing) broke, Tucho dismissed the book as a one-off sin of youth.

But then his 1998 orgasm book “La pasión mística” was discovered. Tucho again presented it as a singular mistake of his youth. But he was 36 years old.

Now, LaNuovaBq.it has discovered that at least three publications which Tucho produced after 1998 also indulge in fantasies about orgasms and fetishes, proving that Francis' right-hand man is a sexual exhibitionist.

In his 2004 book “Para liberarte de la ansiedad y de la impaciencia”, Tucho writes:

"When our whole being is unified in one direction, then we come to true encounter, fusion, perfect union, even if only for a few minutes. It is not necessarily a matter of physical stillness, because this experience can also occur in the midst of the excitement of a very intense activity. This happens, for example, in the orgasm between two people who love each other.”

In the 2004 essay “Teología espiritual encarnada : profundidad espiritual en acción”, Tucho writes that “the moments of life and joy - including sexual ones - are experienced as a participation in the full life of the Resurrection” and then continues:

“These moments of shared pleasure, with all their potential for communication, offering, and loving expression, can be prepared and then lived in gratitude in moments of shared prayer. They cannot be separated from the relationship with God, as if they were simply a permitted sin. The mystery of the Incarnation, which makes marriage a sacrament, an efficacious sign of the grace accomplished in genital union, shows how God, by becoming [celibate] man, also entered into human flesh, transforming corporeality into the mediation of grace. Therefore, if the union of the bodies was a true expression of love, it must be celebrated in prayer.”

Tucho then invited his readers to “relax the body” by giving “full attention” to the various organs: “It is more a question of ‘feeling’ them, of perceiving them with sensitivity. It is a matter of experiencing the sensations of each organ calmly, without judging whether these sensations are good or bad, but trying to make that organ relax.” Among the organs, he mentions are “the pelvis, the buttocks, the genitals”.

His conclusion: “At every point on the body we should feel some sensation (of heat, burning, pleasure). No part of the skin is insensitive, even if the sensations are very subtle. Finally, it is important to try to grasp the totality of the organism, to become aware of the whole body and to feel it for a while.”

One wonders, who Tucho is writing this for. Perhaps for himself?

In his 2002 book “Por qué no termino de sanarme?” he philosophises about clothing that “awakens sensuality by highlighting interesting shapes of the body.” His examples: “The naked neck is made more sensual by wearing a necklace on it.”

And: “If we add to this a certain amount of imagination on the part of the viewer, and in a moment of dissatisfaction, when he needs to be moved or to enjoy something, then a body can appear as something impressive, wonderful, indispensable.”

Tucho even explains to the bored reader his personal preferences for body features: “At some moments in my life I am attracted to certain types of charm, but at another moment other details begin to attract me: sometimes the sensitivity of the moment attracts me to fine, white hands; at other times I am more attracted to fleshy, warm hands, and these fine hands are no longer enough for me.”

He agrees that the solution to this problem is not to use others and leave them when I no longer need them, but to use the imagination, which “can make what is limited, like all the creatures on this earth, appear as something divine”.

Hey boys, thanks for covering me up for surrounding myself with perverts and the fact that I cover up for them.

 Yes, he said this.

Holy and Humble Francis welcomes and praised globalist fascist Klaus Schwab and the WEF!

Bergoglio writes of "building a better world," but without Jesus Christ. "Fraternity," is once again his masonic word. The "process of globalisation... has a fundamentally moral dimension."

I'm sure the popesplainers will all be on board. 

Messaggio del Santo Padre al Presidente Esecutivo del “World Economic Forum” (vatican.va)

Pubblichiamo di seguito il Messaggio che il Santo Padre Francesco ha inviato al Prof. Klaus Schwab, Presidente Esecutivo del World Economic Forum, in occasione del meeting annuale in corso a Davos, in Svizzera, dal 15 al 19 gennaio 2024:

Messaggio del Santo Padre

To the Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum

This year’s annual meeting of the World Economic Forum takes place in a very troubling climate of international instability. Your Forum, which aims to guide and strengthen political will and mutual cooperation, provides an important opportunity for multi-stakeholder engagement to explore innovative and effective ways to build a better world. It is my hope that your discussions will take into account the urgent need to advance social cohesion, fraternity, and reconciliation among groups, communities, and states, in order to address the challenges before us.

Sadly, as we look around, we find an increasingly lacerated world, in which millions of persons – men, women, fathers, mothers, children – whose faces are for the most part unknown to us, continue to suffer, not least from the effects of prolonged conflicts and actual wars. These sufferings are exacerbated by the fact that “modern wars no longer take place only on clearly defined battlefields, nor do they involve soldiers alone. In a context where it appears that the distinction between military and civil targets is no longer respected, there is no conflict that does not end up in some way indiscriminately striking the civilian population” (Address to Members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, 8 January 2024).

The peace for which the peoples of our world yearn cannot be other than the fruit of justice (cf. Isaiah 32:17). Consequently, it calls for more than simply setting aside the instruments of war; it demands addressing the injustices that are the root causes of conflict. Among the most significant of these is hunger, which continues to plague entire regions of the world, even as others are marked by excessive food waste. The exploitation of natural resources continues to enrich a few while leaving entire populations, who are the natural beneficiaries of these resources, in a state of destitution and poverty. Nor can we disregard the widespread exploitation of men, women and children forced to work for low wages and deprived of real prospects for personal development and professional growth. How is it possible that in today’s world people are still dying of hunger, being exploited, condemned to illiteracy, lacking basic medical care, and left without shelter?

The process of globalization, which has by now clearly demonstrated the interdependence of the world’s nations and peoples, thus has a fundamentally moral dimension, which must make itself felt in the economic, cultural, political and religious discussions that aim to shape the future of the international community. In a world increasingly threatened by violence, aggression and fragmentation, it is essential that states and businesses join in promoting far-sighted and ethically sound models of globalization, which by their very nature must entail subordinating the pursuit of power and individual gain, be it political or economic, to the common good of our human family, giving priority to the poor, the needy and those in the most vulnerable situations.

For its part, the world of business and finance now operates in ever broader economic contexts, where national states have a limited capacity to govern rapid changes in international economic and financial relations. This situation requires that businesses themselves be increasingly guided not simply by the pursuit of fair profit, but also by high ethical standards, especially with regard to the less developed countries, which should not be at the mercy of abusive or usurious financial systems. A farsighted approach to these issues will prove decisive in meeting the goal of an integral development of humanity in solidarity. Authentic development must be global, shared by all nations and in every part of the world, or it will regress even in areas marked hitherto by constant progress.

At the same time, there is an evident need for international political action that, through the adoption of coordinated measures, can effectively pursue the goals of global peace and authentic development. In particular, it is important that intergovernmental structures be able effectively to exercise their functions of control and guidance in the economic sector, since the achievement of the common good is an objective beyond the reach of individual states, even those that are dominant in terms of power, wealth and political strength. International organizations are also challenged to ensure the achievement of that equality which is the basis of the right of all to participate in the process of full development, with due respect for legitimate differences.

It is my hope, then, that the participants in this year’s Forum will be mindful of the moral responsibility that each of us has in the fight against poverty, the attainment of an integral development for all our brothers and sisters, and the quest for a peaceful coexistence among peoples. This is the great challenge that the present time sets before us. And if, in the pursuit of these goals, “our own days seem to be showing signs of a certain regression”, it remains true that “each new generation must take up the struggles and attainments of past generations, while setting its sights even higher… Goodness, together with love, justice and solidarity, are not achieved once and for all; they have to be realized each day” (Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum, 34).

With these sentiments, I offer my prayerful good wishes for the deliberations of the Forum, and upon all taking part I willingly invoke an abundance of divine blessings.

From the Vatican, 15 January 2024

FRANCIS

[00106-EN.01] [Original text: English]

[B0051-XX.01]

What was that? Something about Hell?

 Recall the words of St. Padre Pio, paraphrased.

"You don't believe in Hell? You will when you get there!"

Tucho says that Bergoglio knew of his perversion. Does that include the 16 year old girl? Is Pope Francis an accomplice to sexual abuse?

Cardinal Tucho "Pervert" Fernández states that Pope Francis knew about his book. Well surprise, surprise, surprise. Of course he did. He was his archbishop! It's no doubt to this writer that it is one of the reasons he was appointed to the DDF and as a cardinal, it is the agenda of Bergoglio and another attempt by him to mock the faith and the faithful. There are no coincidences.

Pervert Fernández interviewed a sixteen year old girl in the book. That, in any country, is a crime. Aside from being a crime for a man it is totally repugnant, sinful and unacceptable for it to have been a priest. He even goes so far as to compare himself with Pope John Paul II and St. Hildegard of Bingen! 

If I, or any priest, were to have written anything like this, we would likely be removed from ministry and sent away for evaluation, and rightly so,” Msgr. Charles Pope, pastor at Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian parish in Washington, D.C., told the Register Jan. 8. “For priests or religious to discuss such matters violates proper discretion and boundaries; it is wholly inappropriate and understandably shocks the faithful.” 

EWTN commentator Father Gerald Murray told the Register it was the work of “a troubled priest” who has an “unseemly fascination with the specific details of sexual relations” and who promotes a “false and degraded spirituality that is sickening.”

Worse, it implicates Jorge Mario Bergoglio in a sexual crime. Bergoglio needs to answer for this. What did he know and when did he know about the sexual conversation with a sixteen year old girl?

https://www.ncregister.com/news/cardinal-fernandez-says-pope-francis-and-the-vatican-were-aware-of-his-erotic-mystical-passion-book

JamesMartinType Blessings coming in St. Peter's Basilica

Remember the bowing down to a demon idol in the Vatican Gardens and parading it into St. Peter's Basilica/ Even worse was the bowl of greens and a red flower at the "offertory" placed on the Altar. At that moment, Bergoglio offered to Satan an "abomination of desolation." Marini is a coward, he should have dropped the demon. "Oops, sorry, Your Holiness!" What a wuss.

Stay away from St. Peter's Basilica, the same rector that canceled all Masses, Novus, and Vetus at the side Altars is now preparing to bless JamesMartinTypes over the bones of St. Peter on the Holy Altar of God. Blasphemous. Abominable. Deplorable.

Why do I say "stay away?" Do you not think this place will be destroyed and wicked deaths to those who did this? A meteor? A terror strike? God will not be mocked.

Vatican official says St. Peter's Basilica will bless homosexual 'couples' - LifeSite (lifesitenews.com)

The Pope Francis End-Time Apostasy - Jonathan Cahn

I can't remember the last time I posted anything from a protestant or evangelical that would be critical of a pope or the Church. Jonathan Cahn is a Messianic Jew. From the few times I have heard or read his work I have found him doctrinally sound on Our Lord Jesus Christ and on fire for Christ. My wife's sister gave her his book, "The Return of the Gods" for Christmas. His research is sound. Just after Christmas a priest and deacon were over for dinner. I showed them the book and said, "This man is not wrong, he has come to Christ but he has only come part way, he needs to come all the way, but why would he? He's not lost his mind, we have!" So, I ask you and in particular, any priest reading here, "Why would this man become a Catholic today?"

Cahn rebukes Bergoglio with logic, clarity, and scripture. I can't disagree.

This was two days ago. What is Cahn thinking now after yesterday's comments on Marxism?

How is Jonathan Cahn wrong in what he says here?