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Tuesday 7 March 2017

"The False Church will be worldly, ecumenical, and global."

Let the reader discern.

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“[Satan] will set up a counterchurch which will be the ape of the [Catholic] Church … It will have all the notes and characteristics of the Church, but in reverse and emptied of its divine content.”

We are living in the days of the Apocalypse, the last days of our era. The two great forces – the Mystical Body of Christ and the Mystical Body of the anti-Christ – are beginning to draw battle lines for the catastrophic contest.

The False prophet will have a religion without a cross. A religion without a world to come. A religion to destroy religions. There will be a counterfeit Church.

Christ’s Church the Catholic Church will be one; and the false Prophet will create the other.

The False Church will be worldly, ecumenical, and global. It will be a loose federation of churches and religions, forming some type of global association.

A world parliament of Churches. It will be emptied of all Divine content, it will be the mystical body of the anti-christ. The Mystical Body on earth today will have its Judas Iscariot, and he will be the false prophet. Satan will recruit him from our Bishops.

The Antichrist will not be so called; otherwise he would have no followers. He will not wear red tights, nor vomit sulphur, nor carry a trident nor wave an arrowed tail as Mephistopheles in Faust. This masquerade has helped the Devil convince men that he does not exist. When no man recognizes, the more power he exercises. God has defined Himself as “I am Who am,” and the Devil as “I am who am not.”

Nowhere in Sacred Scripture do we find warrant for the popular myth of the Devil as a buffoon who is dressed like the first “red.” Rather is he described as an angel fallen from heaven, as “the Prince of this world,” whose business it is to tell us that there is no other world. His logic is simple: if there is no heaven there is no hell; if there is no hell, then there is no sin; if there is no sin, then there is no judge, and if there is no judgment then evil is good and good is evil. But above all these descriptions, Our Lord tells us that he will be so much like Himself that he would deceive even the elect–and certainly no devil ever seen in picture books could deceive even the elect. How will he come in this new age to win followers to his religion?

The pre-Communist Russian belief is that he will come disguised as the Great Humanitarian; he will talk peace, prosperity and plenty not as means to lead us to God, but as ends in themselves …

The third temptation in which Satan asked Christ to adore him and all the kingdoms of the world would be His, will become the temptation to have a new religion without a Cross, a liturgy without a world to come, a religion to destroy a religion, or a politics which is a religion–one that renders unto Caesar even the things that are God’s.

In the midst of all his seeming love for humanity and his glib talk of freedom and equality, he will have one great secret which he will tell to no one: he will not believe in God. Because his religion will be brotherhood without the fatherhood of God, he will deceive even the elect. He will set up a counterchurch which will be the ape of the Church, because he, the Devil, is the ape of God. It will have all the notes and characteristics of the Church, but in reverse and emptied of its divine content. It will be a mystical body of the Antichrist that will in all externals resemble the mystical body of Christ …

But the twentieth century will join the counterchurch because it claims to be infallible when its visible head speaks ex cathedra from Moscow on the subject of economics and politics, and as chief shepherd of world communism.


(Fulton J. Sheen, Communism and the Conscience of the West [Bobbs-Merril Company, Indianapolis, 1948], pp. 24-25)

They are multiplied above the hairs of my head, who hate me without cause.

Ps. 68: 1 Unto the end, for them that shall be changed; for David.

2 SAVE me, O God: for the waters are come in even unto my soul.

3 I stick fast in the mire of the deep: and there is no sure standing. I am come into the depth of the sea: and a tempest hath overwhelmed me.

4 I have laboured with crying; my jaws are become hoarse: my eyes have failed, whilst I hope in my God.

5 They are multiplied above the hairs of my head, who hate me without cause. My enemies are grown strong who have wrongfully persecuted me: then did I pay that which I took not away.

6 O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my offences are not hidden from thee:

7 Let not them be ashamed for me, who look for thee, O Lord, the Lord of hosts. Let them not be confounded on my account, who seek thee, O God of Israel.

8 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face.

9 I am become a stranger to my brethren, and an alien to the sons of my mother.

10 For the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up: and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.

11 And I covered my soul in fasting: and it was made a reproach to me.

12 And I made haircloth my garment: and I became a byword to them.

13 They that sat in the gate spoke against me: and they that drank wine made me their song.

14 But as for me, my prayer is to thee, O Lord; for the time of thy good pleasure, O God. In the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.

15 Draw me out of the mire, that I may not stick fast: deliver me from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.

16 Let not the tempest of water drown me, nor the deep swallow me up: and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.

17 Hear me, O Lord, for thy mercy is kind; look upon me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.

18 And turn not away thy face from thy servant: for I am in trouble, hear me speedily.

19 Attend to my soul, and deliver it: save me because of my enemies.

20 Thou knowest my reproach, and my confusion, and my shame.

21 In thy sight are all they that afflict me; my heart hath expected reproach and misery. And I looked for one that would grieve together with me, but there was none: and for one that would comfort me, and I found none.

22 And they gave me gall for my food, and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

23 Let their table become as a snare before them, and a recompense, and a stumblingblock.

24 Let their eyes be darkened that they see not; and their back bend thou down always.

25 Pour out thy indignation upon them: and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them.

26 Let their habitation be made desolate: and let there be none to dwell in their tabernacles.

27 Because they have persecuted him whom thou hast smitten; and they have added to the grief of my wounds.

28 Add thou iniquity upon their iniquity: and let them not come into thy justice.

29 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; and with the just let them not be written.

30 But I am poor and sorrowful: thy salvation, O God, hath set me up.

31 I will praise the name of God with a canticle: and I will magnify him with praise.

32 And it shall please God better than a young calf, that bringeth forth horns and hoofs.

33 Let the poor see and rejoice: seek ye God, and your soul shall live.

34 For the Lord hath heard the poor: and hath not despised his prisoners.

35 Let the heavens and the earth praise him; the sea, and every thing that creepeth therein.

36 For God will save Sion, and the cities of Juda shall be built up. And they shall dwell there, and acquire it by inheritance.


37 And the seed of his servants shall possess it; and they that love his name shall dwell therein.

Monday 6 March 2017

Their throat is an open sepulchre: they dealt deceitfully with their tongues

Ps. 5: Verba mea auribul. A prayer to God against the iniquities of men.

[1] Unto the end, for her that obtaineth the inheritance. A psalm of David. [2] Give ear, O Lord, to my words, understand my cry. [3] Hearken to the voice of my prayer, O my King and my God. [4] For to thee will I pray: O Lord, in the morning thou shalt hear my voice. [5] In the morning I will stand before thee, and will see: because thou art not a God that willest iniquity.

[6] Neither shall the wicked dwell near thee: nor shall the unjust abide before thy eyes. [7] Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity: Thou wilt destroy all that speak a lie. The bloody and the deceitful man the Lord will abhor. [8] But as for me in the multitude of thy mercy, I will come into thy house; I will worship towards thy holy temple, in thy fear. [9] Conduct me, O Lord, in thy justice: because of my enemies, direct my way in thy sight. [10] For there is no truth in their mouth; their heart is vain.


[11] Their throat is an open sepulchre: they dealt deceitfully with their tongues: judge them, O God. Let them fall from their devices: according to the multitude of their wickedness cast them out: for they have provoked thee, O Lord. [12] But let all them be glad that hope in thee: they shall rejoice for ever, and thou shalt dwell in them. And all they that love thy name shall glory in thee: [13] For thou wilt bless the just. O Lord, thou hast crowned us, as with a shield of thy good will.

Sacred Music restoration? Please forgive my cynicism!

A conference has been held in Rome on sacred music to which even Pope Francis gave a supportive address. The whole report, and over 200 signatories, many well-known, some known to me personally, can be found at this link to the New Liturgical Movement.

Pardon my cynicism and the declaration to the signors that it is all for nought; but w
e've heard it all before. 

I well remember St. John Paul II's "Chirograph on Sacred Music" to celebrate the great Tra le sollecitudini of St. Pius X.

This conference was held on the same date to mark Musicam Sacram of March 5, 1967. It is like getting together to remember the sinking of the Titanic because that is what that terrible document was, liturgically speaking.


The "graduated solemnity" and the permission to substitute dubious hymns and "songs" for the Proper antiphons which did not even need to be recited after 1967, is the most singular occurrence in the destruction of the liturgy. This was 1967 and we were dealing with the "Tridentine" Mass in its vernacular form with simplified rubrics, and for the most part, facing the people. The Novus Ordo Missae was still nearly three years away. I was a young boy and that document allowed, or at least was interpreted to allow, Let it Be, Bridge Over Troubled Water and Hey Jude to be used at Mass. I know. I was there.


The disaster of Musicam Sacram can only be fixed by its complete abrogation and replacement.


I have no hope that this will happen. It did not happen under John Paul II notwithstanding his Chirograph, it did not happen under Pope Benedict XVI from whom we expected it with his "Reform of the Reform" vision, notwithstanding his "full, complete and universal jurisdiction," to do it. Notwithstanding the words of Pope Francis to the conference can we expect that he will actually bring about the change?  


No, it will not happen because no Pope has the desire to make it happen because they know that it won't be carried out. 


The dictatorship of the music publishers and guitarists and incompetent, ignorant, ill-trained church musician throughout the world will prevent it. There is too much money tied up in bad church music. Too many pastors don't want the headache and confrontation with the liturgical fascists. I know of one pastor who wanted to make changes at the parish who was told, "Don't expect me to be one of Benedict's men." Another who was threatened with serious collection plate problems if he did not remove the Reform of the Reform Director of Music. Ergo, the problem. There are many more examples.

No, it will not change. The Novus Ordo is irredeemable and there is only one future for the Holy Mass and it is back to It. It is the Missal of 1962 at a minimum and 1949, pre Bugnini if ever possible, but at least for 1962, the music and chant was not effected. And yet, that in itself is not enough. We need to read again Tra le Sollecitudini, Mediator Dei and Sacra Musicae and De Musica Sacra Et Sacra Liturgia and consider possible adaptations from there. Everything that came after was, and remains a disaster.


The Church in the not too distant future will abrogate the Missal of Paul VI. It will repent for it to God. It is a liturgy that is "banal" and "on the spot manufactured product," as Cardinal Ratzinger wrote. 


I've been told by more than one priest that the modernist Rite "will not convict the sinner" and "it will not covert souls."   


It's time we got back to that.




http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2017/03/international-declaration-on-sacred.html

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“CANTATE DOMINO CANTICUM NOVUM”
A Statement on the Current Situation of Sacred Music

We, the undersigned — musicians, pastors, teachers, scholars, and lovers of sacred music — humbly offer this statement to the Catholic community around the world, expressing our great love for the Church’s treasury of sacred music and our deep concerns about its current plight.

Introduction

Cantate Domino canticum novum, cantate Domino omnis terra (Psalm 96): this singing to God’s glory has resonated for the whole history of Christianity, from the very beginning to the present day. Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition alike bear witness to a great love for the beauty and power of music in the worship of Almighty God. The treasury of sacred music has always been cherished in the Catholic Church by her saints, theologians, popes, and laypeople.

Such love and practice of music is witnessed to throughout Christian literature and in the many documents that the Popes have devoted to sacred music, from John XXII’s Docta Sanctorum Patrum (1324) and Benedict XIV’s Annus Qui (1749) down to Saint Pius X’s Motu Proprio Tra le Sollecitudini (1903), Pius XII’s Musicae Sacrae Disciplina (1955), Saint John Paul II’s Chirograph on Sacred Music (2003), and so on. This vast amount of documentation impels us to take with utter seriousness the importance and the role of music in the liturgy. This importance is related to the deep connection between the liturgy and its music, a connection that goes two ways: a good liturgy allows for splendid music, but a low standard of liturgical music also tremendously affects the liturgy. Nor can the ecumenical importance of music be forgotten, when we know that other Christian traditions — such as Anglicans, Lutherans, and the Eastern Orthodox — have high esteem for the importance and dignity of sacred music, as witnessed by their own jealously-guarded “treasuries.”

We are observing an important milestone, the fiftieth anniversary of the promulgation of the Instruction on Music in the Liturgy, Musicam Sacram, on March 5, 1967, under the pontificate of Blessed Paul VI. Re-reading the document today, we cannot avoid thinking of the via dolorosa of sacred music in the decades following Sacrosanctum Concilium. Indeed, what was happening in some factions of the Church at that time (1967) was not at all in line with Sacrosantum Concilium or with Musicam Sacram. Certain ideas that were never present in the Council’s documents were forced into practice, sometimes with a lack of vigilance from clergy and ecclesiastical hierarchy. In some countries the treasury of sacred music that the Council asked to be preserved was not only not preserved, but even opposed. And this quite against the Council, which clearly stated:

The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason for this pre-eminence is that, as sacred song united to the words, it forms a necessary or integral part of the solemn liturgy. Holy Scripture, indeed, has bestowed praise upon sacred song, and the same may be said of the fathers of the Church and of the Roman pontiffs who in recent times, led by St. Pius X, have explained more precisely the ministerial function supplied by sacred music in the service of the Lord. Therefore sacred music is to be considered the more holy in proportion as it is more closely connected with the liturgical action, whether it adds delight to prayer, fosters unity of minds, or confers greater solemnity upon the sacred rites. But the Church approves of all forms of true art having the needed qualities, and admits them into divine worship. (SC 112)

The Current Situation

In light of the mind of the Church so frequently expressed, we cannot avoid being concerned about the current situation of sacred music, which is nothing short of desperate, with abuses in the area of sacred music now almost the norm rather than the exception. We shall summarize here some of the elements that contribute to the present deplorable situation of sacred music and of the liturgy.

1. There has been a loss of understanding of the “musical shape of the liturgy,” that is, that music is an inherent part of the very essence of liturgy as public, formal, solemn worship of God. We are not merely to sing at Mass, but to sing the Mass. Hence, as Musicam Sacram itself reminded us, the priest’s parts should be chanted to the tones given in the Missal, with the people making the responses; the singing of the Ordinary of the Mass in Gregorian chant or music inspired by it should be encouraged; and the Propers of the Mass, too, should be given the pride of place that befits their historical prominence, their liturgical function, and their theological depth. Similar points apply to the singing of the Divine Office. It is an exhibition of the vice of “liturgical sloth” to refuse to sing the liturgy, to use “utility music” rather than sacred music, to refuse to educate oneself or others about the Church’s tradition and wishes, and to put little or no effort and resources into the building up of a sacred music program.

2. This loss of liturgical and theological understanding goes hand-in-hand with an embrace of secularism. The secularism of popular musical styles has contributed to a desacralization of the liturgy, while the secularism of profit-based commercialism has reinforced the imposition of mediocre collections of music upon parishes. It has encouraged an anthropocentrism in the liturgy that undermines its very nature. In vast sectors of the Church nowadays there is an incorrect relationship with culture, which can be seen as a “web of connections.” With the actual situation of our liturgical music (and of the liturgy itself, because the two are intertwined), we have broken this web of connection with our past and tried to connect with a future that has no meaning without its past. Today, the Church is not actively using her cultural riches to evangelize, but is mostly used by a prevalent secular culture, born in opposition to Christianity, which destabilizes the sense of adoration that is at the heart of the Christian faith.

In his homily for the feast of Corpus Christi on June 4, 2015, Pope Francis has spoken of “the Church’s amazement at this reality [of the Most Holy Eucharist]. . . An astonishment which always feeds contemplation, adoration, and memory.” In many of our Churches around the world, where is this sense of contemplation, this adoration, this astonishment for the mystery of the Eucharist? It is lost because we are living a sort of spiritual Alzheimer’s, a disease that is taking our spiritual, theological, artistic, musical and cultural memories away from us. It has been said that we need to bring the culture of every people into the liturgy. This may be right if correctly understood, but not in the sense that the liturgy (and the music) becomes the place where we have to exalt a secular culture. It is the place where the culture, every culture, is brought to another level and purified.

3. There are groups in the Church that push for a “renewal” that does not reflect Church teaching but rather serves their own agenda, worldview, and interests. These groups have members in key leadership positions from which they put into practice their plans, their idea of culture, and the way we have to deal with contemporary issues. In some countries powerful lobbies have contributed to the de facto replacement of liturgical repertoires faithful to the directives of Vatican II with low-quality repertoires. Thus, we end up with repertoires of new liturgical music of very low standards as regards both the text and the music. This is understandable when we reflect that nothing of lasting worth can come from a lack of training and expertise, especially when people neglect the wise precepts of Church tradition:
On these grounds Gregorian Chant has always been regarded as the supreme model for sacred music, so that it is fully legitimate to lay down the following rule: the more closely a composition for church approaches in its movement, inspiration and savor the Gregorian form, the more sacred and liturgical it becomes; and the more out of harmony it is with that supreme model, the less worthy it is of the temple. (St. Pius X, Motu Proprio Tra le Sollecitudini)
Today this “supreme model” is often discarded, if not despised. The entire Magisterium of the Church has reminded us of the importance of adhering to this important model, not as way of limiting creativity but as a foundation on which inspiration can flourish. If we desire that people look for Jesus, we need to prepare the house with the best that the Church can offer. We will not invite people to our house, the Church, to give them a by-product of music and art, when they can find a much better pop music style outside the Church. Liturgy is a limen, a threshold that allows us to step from our daily existence to the worship of the angels: Et ídeo cum Angelis et Archángelis, cum Thronis et Dominatiónibus, cumque omni milítia cæléstis exércitus, hymnum glóriæ tuæ cánimus, sine fine dicéntes...

4. This disdain for Gregorian chant and traditional repertoires is one sign of a much bigger problem, that of disdain for Tradition. Sacrosanctum Concilium teaches that the musical and artistic heritage of the Church should be respected and cherished, because it is the embodiment of centuries of worship and prayer, and an expression of the highest peak of human creativity and spirituality. There was a time when the Church did not run after the latest fashion, but was the maker and arbiter of culture. The lack of commitment to tradition has put the Church and her liturgy on an uncertain and meandering path. The attempted separation of the teaching of Vatican II from previous Church teachings is a dead end, and the only way forward is the hermeneutic of continuity endorsed by Pope Benedict XVI. Recovering the unity, integrity, and harmony of Catholic teaching is the condition for restoring both the liturgy and its music to a noble condition. As Pope Francis taught us in his first encyclical: “Self-knowledge is only possible when we share in a greater memory” (Lumen Fidei 38).

5. Another cause of the decadence of sacred music is clericalism, the abuse of clerical position and status. Clergy who are often poorly educated in the great tradition of sacred music continue to make decisions about personnel and policies that contravene the authentic spirit of the liturgy and the renewal of sacred music repeatedly called for in our times. Often they contradict Vatican II teachings in the name of a supposed “spirit of the Council.” Moreover, especially in countries of ancient Christian heritage, members of the clergy have access to positions that are not available to laity, when there are lay musicians fully capable of offering an equal or superior professional service to the Church.

6. We also see the problem of inadequate (at times, unjust) remuneration of lay musicians. The importance of sacred music in the Catholic liturgy requires that at least some members of the Church in every place be well-educated, well-equipped, and dedicated to serve the People of God in this capacity. Is it not true that we should give to God our best? No one would be surprised or disturbed knowing that doctors need a salary to survive, no one would accept medical treatment from untrained volunteers; priests have their salaries, because they cannot live if they do not eat, and if they do not eat, they will not be able to prepare themselves in theological sciences or to say the Mass with dignity. If we pay florists and cooks who help at parishes, why does it seem so strange that those performing musical activities for the Church would have a right to fair compensation (see Code of Canon Law, can. 231)?

Positive Proposals

It may seem that what we have said is pessimistic, but we maintain the hope that there is a way out of this winter. The following proposals are offered in spiritu humilitatis, with the intention of restoring the dignity of the liturgy and of its music in the Church.

1. As musicians, pastors, scholars, and Catholics who love Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony, so frequently praised and recommended by the Magisterium, we ask for a re-affirmation of this heritage alongside modern sacred compositions in Latin or vernacular languages that take their inspiration from this great tradition; and we ask for concrete steps to promote it everywhere, in every church across the globe, so that all Catholics can sing the praises of God with one voice, one mind and heart, one common culture that transcends all their differences. We also ask for a re-affirmation of the unique importance of the pipe organ for the sacred liturgy, because of its singular capacity to elevate hearts to the Lord and its perfect suitability for supporting the singing of choirs and congregations.

2. It is necessary that the education to good taste in music and liturgy start with children. Often educators without musical training believe that children cannot appreciate the beauty of true art. This is far from the truth. Using a pedagogy that will help them approach the beauty of the liturgy, children will be formed in a way that will fortify their strength, because they will be offered nourishing spiritual bread and not the apparently tasty but unhealthy food of industrial origin (as when “Masses for children” feature pop-inspired music). We notice through personal experience that when children are exposed to these repertoires they come to appreciate them and develop a deeper connection with the Church.

3. If children are to appreciate the beauty of music and art, if they are to understand the importance of the liturgy as fons et culmen [source and apex] of the life of the Church, we must have a strong laity who will follow the Magisterium. We need to give space to well-trained laity in areas that have to do with art and with music.  To be able to serve as a competent liturgical musician or educator requires years of study. This “professional” status must be recognized, respected, and promoted in practical ways. In connection with this point, we sincerely hope that the Church will continue to work against obvious and subtle forms of clericalism, so that laity can make their full contribution in areas where ordination is not a requirement.

4. Higher standards for musical repertoire and skill should be insisted on for cathedrals and basilicas. Bishops in every diocese should hire at least a professional music director and/or an organist who would follow clear directions on how to foster excellent liturgical music in that cathedral or basilica and who would offer a shining example of combining works of the great tradition with appropriate new compositions. We think that a sound principle for this is contained in Sacrosanctum Concilium 23: “There must be no innovations unless the good of the Church genuinely and certainly requires them; and care must be taken that any new forms adopted should in some way grow organically from forms already existing.”

5. We suggest that in every basilica and cathedral there be the encouragement of a weekly Mass celebrated in Latin (in either Form of the Roman Rite) so as to maintain the link we have with our liturgical, cultural, artistic, and theological heritage. The fact that many young people today are rediscovering the beauty of Latin in the liturgy is surely a sign of the times, and prompts us to bury the battles of the past and seek a more “catholic” approach that draws upon all the centuries of Catholic worship. With the easy availability of books, booklets, and online resources, it will not be difficult to facilitate the active participation of those who wish to attend liturgies in Latin. Moreover, each parish should be encouraged to have one fully-sung Mass each Sunday.

6. Liturgical and musical training of clergy should be a priority for the Bishops. Clergy have a responsibility to learn and practice their liturgical melodies, since, according to Musicam Sacram and other documents, they should be able to chant the prayers of the liturgy, not merely say the words. In seminaries and at the university, they should come to be familiar with and appreciate the great tradition of sacred music in the Church, in harmony with the Magisterium, and following the sound principle of Matthew 13:52: “Every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

7. In the past, Catholic publishers played a great role in spreading good examples of sacred music, old and new. Today, the same publishers, even if they belong to dioceses or religious institutions, often spread music that is not right for the liturgy, following only commercial considerations. Many faithful Catholics think that what mainstream publishers offer is in line with the doctrine of the Catholic Church regarding liturgy and music, when it is frequently not so. Catholic publishers should have as their first aim that of educating the faithful in sane Catholic doctrine and good liturgical practices, not that of making money.

8. The formation of liturgists is also fundamental. Just as musicians need to understand the essentials of liturgical history and theology, so too must liturgists be educated in Gregorian chant, polyphony, and the entire musical tradition of the Church, so that they may discern between what is good and what is bad.

Conclusion

In his encyclical Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis reminded us of the way faith binds together past and future:
As a response to a word which preceded it, Abraham’s faith would always be an act of remembrance. Yet this remembrance is not fixed on past events but, as the memory of a promise, it becomes capable of opening up the future, shedding light on the path to be taken. We see how faith, as remembrance of the future, memoria futuri, is thus closely bound up with hope. (LF 9)

This remembrance, this memory, this treasure that is our Catholic tradition is not something of the past alone. It is still a vital force in the present, and will always be a gift of beauty to future generations.  “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel” (Is 12:5–6).

Sunday 5 March 2017

For he hath delivered me from the snare of the hunters: and from the sharp word



The First Sunday of Lent features the longest Tract in the Gregorian repertoire from the Liber Usualis. The Second Sunday of the Passion, or Palm Sunday's Deus, Deus meus is of similar length and is of the same Mode II. It is as if they are book-ends from the beginning of Lent to the Holy Week. While both can be sung in psalm-tone, if it can be managed, they should be sung as above.

Here below, it is sung in the manner in which it would have sounded before the end of the first millennium and the change in style of western chant. The chant at this time was not written down, there were no neums, no staff to put them on. The Cantor would have followed those little red markings, as above, to give him his cues but you can imagine that it was much more fluid and free-wheeling, almost letting the real Spirit, lead him. Note the sound, it is Latin text sung "as the Easterns do," but it is not Byzantine, it is Syriac. The one above, which I and others will chant today, is in the version below. You can hear it smoothed out and structured in the Old Roman Chant.


Now, imagine this. The sound you hear below is the closest thing we know to what Our Most Blessed Lord would have heard in the Temple in Jerusalem and sung Himself.




To those of you trapped in the Nervous Disorder, the great liturgical error of the Church from which She will most surely repent, this is what you should have also heard today.


In 1974, under the orders of the Pope, the Monks of Solesmes published the revised Graduale Romanum for the new calendar. Over 30 years ago, I was told by the late Emeritus Archbishop of Ottawa, that "those who long for Gregorian chant suffer from nostalgia neurosis." Well, that is not what the Second Vatican Council's document on the sacred liturgy had to say, but I digress.


Many of the Mass chants remained intact, others were reordered with different Introits or Communion antiphons for the three-year lectionary, as they often theme with the Gospel. Yet, on this day, and for all of Lent, they are the same. The option of the "Gospel Acclamation" is only an option, it is the Tract that is meet and proper. 

And if you heard "On Eagles Wing's in the nervous disorder today, then you need to find a new parish.


Psalm 90 (91)


1 Laus cantici David Qui habitat in adiutorio Altissimi in protectione Dei caeli commorabitur          
The praise of a canticle for David. He that dwelleth in the aid of the most High, shall abide under the protection of the God of Jacob.
2 Dicet Domino susceptor meus es tu et refugium meum Deus meus sperabo in eum    
He shall say to the Lord: Thou art my protector, and my refuge: my God, in him will I trust.
3 Quoniam ipse liberabit me de laqueo venantium et a verbo aspero     
For he hath delivered me from the snare of the hunters: and from the sharp word.
4 Scapulis suis obumbrabit te et sub pinnis eius sperabis               
He will overshadow thee with his shoulders: and under his wings thou shalt trust.
5 Scuto circumdabit te veritas eius non timebis a timore nocturno            
His truth shall compass thee with a shield: thou shalt not be afraid of the terror of the night.
6 A sagitta volante in die a negotio perambulante in tenebris ab incursu et daemonio meridiano               
Of the arrow that flieth in the day, of the business that walketh about in the dark: of invasion, or of the noonday devil.
7 Cadent a latere tuo mille et decem milia a dextris tuis ad te autem non ad propinquabit              
A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand: but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Verumtamen oculis tuis considerabis et retributionem peccatorum videbis      
But thou shalt consider with thy eyes: and shalt see the reward of the wicked.
9 Quoniam tu Domine spes mea Altissimum posuisti refugium tuum       
Because thou, O Lord, art my hope: thou hast made the most High thy refuge.
10 Non accedent ad te mala et flagellum non ad propinquabit tabernaculo tuo  
There shall no evil come to thee: nor shall the scourge come near thy dwelling.
11 Quoniam angelis suis mandabit de te ut custodiant te in omnibus viis tuis       
For he hath given his angels charge over thee; to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 In manibus portabunt te ne forte offendas ad lapidem pedem tuum
In their hands they shall bear thee up: lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
13 Super aspidem et basiliscum ambulabis et conculcabis leonem et draconem 
Thou shalt walk upon the asp and the basilisk: and thou shalt trample under foot the lion and the dragon.
14 Quoniam in me speravit et liberabo eum protegam eum quia cognovit nomen meum              
Because he hoped in me I will deliver him: I will protect him because he hath known my name.
15 Clamabit ad me et exaudiam eum cum ipso sum in tribulatione eripiam eum et clarificabo eum            
He shall cry to me, and I will hear him: I am with him in tribulation, I will deliver him, and I will glorify him.
16 Longitudine dierum replebo eum et ostendam illi salutare meum       
I will fill him with length of days; and I will shew him my salvation. 

Friday 3 March 2017

Hold your peace

Holy your peace with me,
and let me speak.
Then let come to me what may.
Come what may.
Why do I take my flesh
in my teeth?
And put my life in His hands.

For He shall be
My life and my salvation.

And though he slay me.
Though he slay me.
Yet, shall I trust.
Yet, shall I trust.
Yet shall I trust.
In Him.

A lament written in two parts for soprano and bass based on Job and the Psalms

Thursday 2 March 2017

For David himself

Ps. 34 Judica, Domine, nocentes me. David, in the person of Christ, prayeth against his persecutors: prophetically foreshewing the punishments that shall fall upon them.

[1] For David himself. Judge thou, O Lord, them that wrong me: overthrow them that fight against me. [2] Take hold of arms and shield: and rise up to help me. [3] Bring out the sword, and shut up the way against them that persecute me: say to my soul: I am thy salvation. [4] Let them be confounded and ashamed that seek after my soul. Let them be turned back and be confounded that devise against me. [5] Let them become as dust before the wind: and let the angel of the Lord straiten them.

[6] Let their way become dark and slippery; and let the angel of the Lord pursue them. [7] For without cause they have hidden their net for me unto destruction: without cause they have upbraided my soul. [8] Let the snare which he knoweth not come upon him: and let the net which he hath hidden catch him: and let the net which he hath hidden catch him: and into that very snare let them fall. [9] But my soul shall rejoice in the Lord; and shall be delighted in his salvation. [10] All my bones shall say: Lord, who is like to thee? Who deliverest the poor from the hand of them that are stronger than he; the needy and the poor from them that strip him.

[11] Unjust witnesses rising up have asked me things I knew not. [12] They repaid me evil for good: to the depriving me of my soul. [13] But as for me, when they were troublesome to me, I was clothed with haircloth. I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer shall be turned into my bosom. [14] As a neighbour and as an own brother, so did I please: as one mourning and sorrowful so was I humbled. [15] But they rejoiced against me, and came together: scourges were gathered together upon me, and I knew not.

[16] They were separated, and repented not: they tempted me, they scoffed at me with scorn: they gnashed upon me with their teeth. [17] Lord, when wilt thou look upon me? rescue thou my soul from their malice: my only one from the lions. [18] I will give thanks to thee in a great church; I will praise thee in a strong people. [19] Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: who have hated me without cause, and wink with the eyes. [20] For they spoke indeed peaceably to me; and speaking in the anger of the earth they devised guile.

[21] And they opened their mouth wide against me; they said: Well done, well done, our eyes have seen it. [22] Thou hast seen, O Lord, be not thou silent: O Lord, depart not from me. [23] Arise, and be attentive to my judgment: to my cause, my God, and my Lord. [24] Judge me, O Lord my God according to thy justice, and let them not rejoice over me. [25] Let them not say in their hearts: It is well, it is well, to our mind: neither let them say: We have swallowed him up.

[26] Let them blush: and be ashamed together, who rejoice at my evils. Let them be clothed with confusion and shame, who speak great things against me. [27] Let them rejoice and be glad, who are well pleased with my justice, and let them say always: The Lord be magnified, who delights in the peace of his servant. [28] And my tongue shall meditate thy justice, thy praise all the day long.

Have the perverts of the St. Gallen Mafia turned on their own man, Bergoglio?

How wonderful that every occurrence in life and in the Church is explained somewhere in Holy Writ by the Prophets. Holy Isaiah in the forty-ninth chapter of his Book at the twenty-sixth verse tell us that the Lord said to him: 


And I will feed thy enemies with their own flesh: and they shall be made drunk with their own blood, as with new wine: and all flesh shall know, that I am the Lord that save thee, and thy Redeemer the Mighty One of Jacob.

Yes, the devil eats his own.

A report is making the news today apparently based upon a post by Antonio Socci referring to some thinking that those who put Bergoglio into the papal seat are now fearful that he is leading the Church into schism.

From his insults to the faithful to the heresy in Amoris Laetitia to the rumours of a blasphemous ecumenical "mass" and women deacons, Berogolio who mused, that he could "split the Church," is falling under enormous pressure. 

Featured ImageNow, even the man who was to clean-up the Church's perverts, when it was really Pope Benedict XVI, has now been shown to be nothing but a fraud with the reinstatement of sodomites and the resignations of laity from his Commissions of investigation.

Even LifeSiteNews has now reported that the mafia gave Bergoglio "four years" to makeover the Church, something reported repeatedly on this blog. It is good to see others waking up to what this writer has been saying since last year.

http://voxcantor.blogspot.ca/2016/04/who-was-cardinal-mccarricks-friend-and.html

Do not trust the men that now want Pope Francis to be removed. They were evil enough to put him in there in the first place. They are sly foxes and devils, after all, they put him there in the first place.

Friends, we are on the verge of schism. A schism that may, in fact, by our liberation!

Deus vult!


The London Times reports:


http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/anti-reform-cardinals-want-the-pope-to-quit-z3h75h22v

A group of cardinals who supported the election of Pope Francis are worried that his controversial reforms are leading the Catholic church towards a schism and are planning to appeal to him to step down, a leading Vatican watcher has claimed.
“A large part of the cardinals who voted for him is very worried and the curia . . . that organised his election and has accompanied him thus far, without ever disassociating itself from him, is cultivating the idea of a moral suasion to convince him to retire,” Antonio Socci wrote in the Italian newspaper Libero.
The conservative Catholic author and journalist said that the election four years ago of Jorge Mario Bergoglio had been backed by progressive German cardinals and a curia faction impatient with the rule of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.
It was the latter faction who now believed that the Pope should resign and who would like to replace him with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, Mr Socci said. He believed that the group numbered around a dozen, “but the importance of the members counts more than their number”.
“Four years after Benedict XVI’s renunciation and Bergoglio’s arrival on the scene, the situation of the Catholic church has become explosive, perhaps really on the edge of a schism, which could be even more disastrous than Luther’s [who is today being rehabilitated by the Bergoglio church],” Mr Socci wrote.
What was significant, he said, was that the doubters were not the conservative cardinals who had been in open opposition to the Pope since early in his reign.
Putting pressure on a pope to resign is a crime punishable under canon law, Mr Socci added, so it was unclear how the moral suasion might be exercised. “The cardinals are worried that the church could be shattered as an institution. There are many indirect ways in which the pressure might be exerted.”
The Pope’s openings to modernity on sexual morality, communion for remarried Catholics and friendly relations with other religions have opened a gulf between progressives and traditionalists.
“A good number of the majority that voted for Bergoglio in 2013 have come to regret their decision,” one expert on the Vatican said, “but I don’t think it’s plausible that members of the hierarchy will pressure the Pope to resign. Those who know him know it would be useless. [He] has a very authoritarian streak. He won’t resign until he has completed his revolutionary reforms, which are causing enormous harm.”
Antonio Pelayo, a Catholic priest who covers the Vatican for Spanish television, said that there were between ten and twenty conservative cardinals openly opposed to the Pope’s reforms, but only two or three who had voted for him and who now regretted it.
• Marie Collins, an Irish abuse victim, resigned from the Pope’s commission for child protection yesterday, citing institutional resistance to reform from within the Vatican curia. She said there were “fine words in public and contrary actions behind closed doors” and appeared to criticise the Pope for a decision to reduce sanctions against a perpetrator.

Coccopalmerio convicts himself of heresy - implicates Pope Francis

Image result for coccopalmerioWhere does one even begin to deal with the heresy and apostasy of this Francesco Cardinal Coccopalmerio of the Holy Catholic Church? In former days, the Pope would have called him in to the Papal Apartment, made him kneel before him and strip him of his red hat and send him off to a monastery. Today, we have neither a Pope that respects his Office and Apartment, nor the Truth of the Faith in order to defend it from a heresiarch such as this.

Not only has this man now attempted to defend the heresy of his "book" on Holy Communion for those in adultery, but he implicates Pope Bergoglio by association and doubles-down with an attack on the very nature of the priesthood itself.

Can there be any doubt now, dear Catholics, how bad the situation really is? Even Phil Lawler at Catholic Culture has now written calling this, The Disastrous Papacy

Edward Pentin, arguably the most credible and well-informed and widely-read Catholic journalist today has conducted an interview with Coccopalmerio. Mr. Pentin asks the very questions you and I would ask including about St. Thomas More to which the Cardinal clearly becomes uncomfortable.

It is must reading on your list today.

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/cardinal-coccopalmerio-explains-his-positions-on-catholics-in-irregular-uni

Coccopalmerio is a heretic. He is an enemy of Our Lord Jesus Christ. He is a Judas, an agent of Satan, He is your enemy and he is mine.

May he be converted by the Holy Ghost, lest he deceive more or may the Lord send his angels to confound him and to smite him and carry out divine justice.

Wednesday 1 March 2017

The Fraud of Pope Francis' and Vatican's concern for victims of sexual crimes of priests

Image result for pope francis pope benedict white box
While most, the overwhelming majority of sexual rape and abuse by priests has been committed by sodomites against young teens between 13 and 17 years of age, it has also happened to young women. 

Marie Collins, of Ireland, is one of those and was appointed to a commission by Pope Francis. She has now realised the futility of the work and without directly criticising Pope Francis, reading between the lines, it is quite obvious that it is his doing, or lack thereof that has lead to this.


The Bishop of Rome as "full, immediate and universal jurisdiction" over the Church. If a curial office is not carrying out his supposed instruction, as it seems in this case, then it is within his power and duty to force it to.

Clearly, Bishop of Rome Bergoglio has failed in his committment as we have recently seen; all in the name of false mercy.



RESIGNATION FROM THE PONTIFICAL COMMISSION FOR THE PROTECTION OF MINORS
I sent my letter of resignation (copied to Cardinal O’Malley), from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, to Pope Francis on the 9th February 2017 to have effect from 1st March 2017.
Since the beginning of the Commission in March 2014 I have been impressed with the dedication of my colleagues and the genuine wish by Pope Francis for assistance in dealing with the issue of clerical sexual abuse.  I believe the setting up of the Commission, the bringing in of outside expertise to advise him on what was necessary to make minors safer, was a sincere move.
However, despite the Holy Father approving all the recommendations made to him by the Commission, there have been constant setbacks. This has been directly due to the resistance by some members of the Vatican Curia to the work of the Commission.  The lack of co-operation, particularly by the dicastery most closely involved in dealing with cases of abuse, has been shameful. 
This is a condemnation of Pope Francis. He has the power to instruct the dicastery to do its job. The Vatican is infested with sodomites and perverts and the Pope is responsible or it and for not dealing with it. Francis talks a lot and says nothing unless he is throwing insults. This is his baby now and he will wear the fact that the perverts, under his "mercy" will get away with their crimes. Well, they will on this side of eternity. Vox
Late last year a simple recommendation, approved by Pope Francis, went to this dicastery in regard to a small change of procedure in the context of care for victims/survivors. In January I learned the change was refused.   At the same time a request for co-operation on a fundamental issue of Commission work in regard to safeguarding was also refused.  While I hope the Commission will succeed in overcoming this resistance, for me it is the last straw.
Cardinal Sean O’Malley has invited me to continue to be part of training projects including those for the Curia and new bishops and I am happy to accept.  This will be the area on which I will now concentrate.
I wish my colleagues on the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors the very best for the future.
Marie Collins1st March 2017
http://www.mariecollins.net/news.html

The Statement from the Commission and Cardinal O'Malley can be found at the following link. 

A disgrace. A pathetic and vile disgrace of filthy perverted men and weak men who care more about their positiosn than the evil done to hundreds of thousands.

http://www.protectionofminors.va/content/tuteladeiminori/en/press-and-media_section/press-releases_page/press-statement_01032016.html

In this our Lent of Forty Days

Thus it begins. Our Lent of 40 days.

Our journey to the Cross of Calvary and the glorious resurrection of Our LORD and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He is the real Messiah; He is the real Saviour, not some trumped-up, media created, false messiah politician or Hollywood god. False gods and false messiahs are all around us and they are leading "many astray." Some of them wear clerical garb and have letters after their name that pretend to be of a society dedicated to Jesus.

Many believe that the Church on earth is now in Gethsemane. It is night, and the Church has been deserted. Many Catholics have fallen asleep and will be lost; and many more have taken the easy path and have looked for an earthly kingdom, Many remain and they have already and continue to betray the Holy Church, His bride; and as Judas, they do so with a kiss. In Her they remain, they corrupt, they lie, they deceive and "they lead many astray."

In their lack of faith and loyalty, like the apostles in Gethsemane, most have "fallen asleep" and like the one who would deny Our LORD some ointment, they betray her "with a kiss."

Yes, the Church is in Gethsemane and there with her, I shall remain.

We shall journey soon, very, very soon through Gethsemane to the Sanhedrin. When we are called "rigid," are we not already there? Let us go then, let us go singing as the three children did in the fiery furnace as described by the Prophet Daniel.

Let us sing, "Parce Domine, parce populo tuo, ne in aeterum irascaris nobis!"

Let us go singing psalms and canticles chanting as King David did  as wretched as he was; he conspired, lusted, fornicated in adultery, and murdered, and then he repented; and then he wrote this:

Miserere. The repentance and confession of David after his sin. The fourth penitential psalm.