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Old Roman Catholic Church, Hudson Florida

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Theological Concepts

Sermon for Ash Wednesday

February 26, 2020 By FrM

Lesson from the first letter of St. Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians
1 Cor. 13:1-13
Brethren: If I should speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have charity, I have become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. And if I have prophecy and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, yet do not have charity, I am nothing. And if I distribute all my goods to feed the poor, and if I deliver my body to be burned, yet do not have charity, it profits me nothing. Charity is patient, is kind; charity does not envy, is not pretentious, is not puffed up, is not ambitious, is not self-seeking, is not provoked; thinks no evil, does not rejoice over wickedness, but rejoices with the truth; bears with all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Charity never fails, whereas prophecies will disappear, and tongues will cease, and knowledge will be destroyed. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when that which is perfect has come, that which is imperfect will be done away with. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man, I have put away the things of a child. We see now through a mirror in an obscure manner, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know even as I have been known. So there abide faith, hope and charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Continuation ✠ of the Holy Gospel according to Luke

Luke 18:31-43
At that time, Jesus taking to Himself the Twelve said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that have been written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be delivered to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and scourged and spit upon; and after they have scourged Him, they will put Him to death; and on the third day He will rise again. And they understood none of these things and this saying was hidden from them, neither did they get to know the things that were being said. Now it came to pass as He drew near to Jericho, that a certain blind man was sitting by the wayside, begging; but hearing a crowd passing by, he inquired what this might be. And they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he cried out, saying, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! And they who went in front angrily tried to silence him. But he cried out all the louder, Son of David, have mercy on me! Then Jesus stopped and commanded that he should be brought to Him. And when he drew near, He asked him, saying, What would you have Me do for you? And he said, Lord, that I may see. And Jesus said to him, Receive your sight, your faith has saved you. And at once he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people upon seeing it gave praise to God.

On You Tube

Download .mp3

Filed Under: Baptismal Vocation, Sermons

Are you guys “valid” priests?

December 23, 2019 By FrM

Yes.  By both pre- Vatican II and post Vatican II history and criteria.

(We can argue licity or whether you should come to us as a separate point.  “Valid” refers to “do the sacraments HAPPEN, “licit” refers to: “Is it in accord with the law of the Church or MORE importantly: Is it pleasing to God?)

This “valid question” is always an interesting one because it can come from very different concerns/motivations and sources.  I’ll give you three examples of concerns/objections and answer each later below.

1. We have for example three sets of “snowbirds” who attend Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) chapels. Two of their priests know the history and are supportive and the third is suspicious- and understandably so, for reasons I will explain;

2. In another case we have a local guardian of a Traditional Catholic Shrine who thinks we’re invalid.  Her founding priest used to receive Holy Oils from Our bishop, so her objection and distrust is a bit bewildering; and

3. An office of the local mainstream diocese answered a concerned parishioner with information from Wikipedia (which is edited by anyone) though at least one canonist with their diocese briefed one of the local pastors correctly.  We had a very pleasant evening discussing it.   We obviously have a communication issue and a large part falls on US.

Our reply to the concerns:

First we’ll address our friends from SSPX and I mean this very sincerely whether every priest of the Society reciprocates the friendship or not.  Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, in my view, was perhaps the greatest of 20th C saints, and one day (unless Our Lord returns soon) will be recognized as such.

Every priest knows what is required for valid orders. Valid: form, matter and intention to do what the Church does.  In the case of Holy Orders our form is the EXACT one used by the Society, unbroken from a pre-Vatican II line of apostolic succession. Matter: we have an unbroken line of succession to the “mainstream” pre-Vatican II RC Church, I don’t think there’s a dispute there.  Intention: Our jurisdiction has the EXACT same intention of the Society.  Exact.  Right down to wanting full union juridically as well as administratively with Rome.  I think where some of the confusion comes up is that all manner of fruitcake claims the name of our jurisdiction (we didn’t trademark it and now we pay the price). So when good priests hear strange stories, they are understandably misinformed or confused.  To be clear: we hold and live all 20 doctrinal ecumenical councils of the Church and give Vatican II the assent, which is due, which mercifully is not much.  My jurisdiction is under Archbishop J.J. Humphreys. 

Most of the others using the name “Old Roman Catholic” only accept the first seven ecumenical councils, like the Orthodox.  All those who did not ordain women are valid but we have a spectrum of closeness to Rome and desire to be one, juridically/administratively, as we already are theologically.

I don’t think our weak point is validity.  I think if I were to question whether a mainstream Roman Catholic should attend one of our Masses, my question of greatest concern would be “schism”. 

The other day I had a visitor ask “Are you schismatic”?   And I surprised her when I answered: “It depends”.

Are you talking theologically or are you talking CIC 1983 (Canon Law)?   If you are talking theologically, absolutely not.  Both the pre-Vatican II Church and post Vatican II church recognized that Valid Orders with the INTENT to do what the Church does is what is shared by ONE CHURCH.  (cf. Dominus Jesus, n.17).  That’s why Polish National Church and Old Roman Catholics were considered valid but administratively separated.  They are still part of the ONE Catholic Church BUT there is a dispute about the Anglican orders because of a change in both form and stated intention.  So there you have valid line of succession prior to the Anglican break but a dubium about the subsequent form and intention.  We are not directly subject to the CIC 1983, therefore we are not justly canonically schismatic either, but that is a different topic.

Cardinal Burke and Cardinal Muller have not been fans of the Society of Pius X (and if they don’t like the Society they certainly won’t like us).  The irony of ironies is that Pope Francis has shown more welcome.  So, I once in a Traditional priest’s online forum growled about Card Burke saying the Society was “schismatic”. When it was clear that this was NOT so.  And the answer that came back to me from traditional mainstreamers was that he is a guardian of the current canon law and by that assessment all that is not administratively aligned with Francis is by definition “schismatic”.  Well ok. I guess it depends on how you use the word.  So now when I get the question about schism- I ask do they mean 1983’s Canon law or do they mean theologically.  We do not INTEND or PRESUME to replace the Catholic hierarchy, we do not deny the Petrine Office or its primacy, therefore we are not schismatic.


It matters, because we all seek to do the Divine Will.  If we are in THEOLOGICAL schism then it is a sin to be a part of our community and we should disband.

If on the other hand we are one of the preservers of the Catholic Faith (a different organ of the One True body) in a time of darkened intellect and will, then we should be supported.

I once gently corrected a “conservative” mainstream RC person on the Catholic Answers website who defined Catholic as meaning in full administrative union with Francis.  He said SSPX and independents were “Protestant” and I quoted his own church documents to him. If you have valid succession, you’re part of the One True Church founded by Our Lord. Period.  It’s not union with Francis   Did they answer?  No.  They deleted the WHOLE POST.  Which is unfortunately typical among the “Vatican II was awesome but hijacked” crowd.  They can’t win the argument so they ignore, delete or deflect the questions.

“Thy Will be Done” is what the Our Father says and hopefully will continue to do so after the attempted edits….

And also Our Lord Himself tells us how to judge true from false teacher:  By their fruits.

So at the beginning, I listed two other examples which I have now partially addressed because really any dispute about VALIDITY is about form, matter and intention.

 There seems to be a phenomenon among Traditional Catholics to show initial hostility to priests.  It’s a very uncatholic attitude.  “I’m going to check you out”.  Yes, you do that- and I shall check you out.  It’s the tone I find more amusing than the words.

We have this new phenomenon where some Traditionals are traditional in terms of wanting the 1950 liturgy and custom but having a Baptist or other protestant ecclesiology.  So they have these boards that interview priests.  But they are getting it ALL WRONG.  Where the bishop is, is the Church.  You need a  bishop not a vagus (priest w/o a bishop) priest.

Now before you think I’m being mean or too critical let me start by saying “I GET IT” you’ve had the Faith of Our Lord and the Saints ripped from us and priests going nuts in both doctrine and moral praxis.  PLUS what if people put their hard earned resources into building a Church and have some fruitcake steal it?  Also a priest can start out very good and “lose it”.  This is why you need a jurisdiction.  A Catholic Society or a prelature with defined Roman Catholic beliefs. If one priest turns ineffective or bad you petition his superior, his ordinary for another. 

What is Roman Catholic???  I’ll tell you my working definition: 1) Believes in all 20 doctrinal ecumenical Councils (The last being Vatican I); 2) preserves valid succession; 3) In the Western Latin rite: Preserves the Gregorian Mass/ Mass of St Pius V as NORMATIVE and never to be abrogated; 4) Acknowledges the Petrine ministry and submits completely juridically/administratively to it when it aligns with the Doctrinal Councils.  We cannot obey what is unjust/illicit to do.  The idolatry (Pachamama etc), the moral praxis (ie lack of acceptance of Churches teaching on contraception and other moral issues where the “book” says one thing and the clergy and people believe another), the syncretism (errors on the nature of allah, and “God willing a diversity of religions”), the irreverence (novus ordo clown masses, Pope Francis refusing to kneel before the monstrance but kissing muslim feet).  We’re not following any of that.  If that makes some fool call us “invalid” or “schismatic” so be it.  God bless and help you.  God knows the heart and reality.

So returning to a lay person or board assessing my or any other priest’s validity. 

As a former staffer at Ecclesia Dei (the department under John Paul II and Benedict XVI that dealt with the usage of the Traditional Mass in the new Church) says: “Lay people do NOT get to assess the validity of priest’s orders.” No, they don’t.  Nor do priests w/o legitimate authority.

You may correctly and prudently QUESTION- and once you receive a reasonable answer- judge accordingly.  But rushing to judgement without the facts isn’t justice. You know it, I know it; God knows it.  People interested in facts pray, question and contemplate before judgement- correct?

It was the same Ecclesia Dei official I sought out when I investigated the very jurisdiction I serve.  (He was a former professor at my seminary.)

A third kind of quandary/phenomena we have is our dealing with the mainstream Church.  One of our jurisdictions has enjoyed FULL recognition by a mainstream diocese, though quietly.  In another jurisdiction, we have a traditional but mainstream incardinated priest serving one of our parishes.  My understanding is with the tacit approval of his bishop.  Formerly the old abbot of a mainstream RC monastery extended the same thing- now under new leadership, that same monastery REFUSED to let the mainstream diocesan exorcist of another diocese say Mass in the chapel without a many paged set of documents certified from the chancery.  Let alone us. It’s crazy. 

I have met and sat down with three different priests of the local mainstream RC church and attended a funeral offered by another.  Three of those priests offered warm welcome and the other was very respectful.  One of those priests and I have exchanged resources and referred people to one another that would find our respective communities more spiritually fruitful.  

One of those priests said he had me “checked out” with a canonist of the diocese and the answer was “He’s valid but not juridically regular, so in danger of death you may help one another with sacraments but not concelebrate”.  And I answered,” Your canonist shares our understanding, and we as traditional Catholic priests do not concelebrate so there is no awkwardness there”.  [Fun fact: a traditional priest only concelebrates on the day of his ordination. Each day we offer our own Mass]

Our constitution allows visiting clergy from different jurisdictions to sit in choir and we have had some mainstream RC clergy do just that.  They join us in prayer for alignment of the institutional Church with the Faith they know. 

There are good priests and bishops in the mainstream.  Our local mainstream bishop is by all accounts a holy and wise man.  He has our prayers and acknowledgment of his authority as diocesan bishop.  We are a subset of the People of God who seek the Old Mass, the Old Faith and Catholic moral praxis. We mean no disrespect to any legitimate authority but must insist on our mission and resist the political machinations of today’s institutional Church which in practice is concerned more about social issues than the salvation of souls.

I have made reference to people and places without names and I will happily furnish the full stories if there is a real need to know- but I am not exposing folks to administrative rebuke or danger which is all too common in these times.  Just ask Fr Vaughn Treco about how that machine can work.


Related Items:

Video of Fr Hess Explaining Validity in the context of Novus Ordo vs Tradition but the principles discussed are very relevant to this question.

Father Z “Are novus ordo priests valid?”

To be clear, our priests are ordained according to the pre-Vatican II rite but the concepts discussed are related.

Facebook Post by Father Meikle on the subject.

Filed Under: Faith, FAQs and Q & A, Fr Meikle, Holy Mass, Theological Concepts, Vatican II

Idolatry in Rome – It Breaks Your Heart

December 5, 2019 By FrM

Accusations of Idolatry in Catholic practice

Nearly 30 years ago when I was in seminary I used to engage in apologetic discussions with “Bible Christian” acquaintances. Many of our disagreements proved to be based on misunderstandings and were resolved. Sometimes the disagreements were more serious but we could “agree to disagree” (for example on the doctrine of the Real Presence). In the end both “sides” found the other to be logical and reasonable but having different starting points (premises).

One of the weird things I would encounter with these folks is they would sometimes have been poisoned with the falsehoods of the likes of Jack Chick- deliberate misrepresentations of Catholic doctrine to fool the less educated (Catholics worship Mary, believe in a “wafer god” etc. etc.).

Friends, not a single one of those falsehoods and insults can match what is going on in Rome today. The greatest enemies of the Church Our Lord founded are within our very gates.

As Benedict XVI said “In the end God wins” and He already has the Victory. Do not despair or be discouraged, but do not remain asleep or indifferent to the sacrilege and blasphemy in your midst.

The idolatry I am about to describe is a “fruit” not a seed. In other words, it is as a result of the gradual abandonment of the True Catholic Faith on a trajectory toward a syncretist one world religion of brotherhood. One that has man (Christian humanism) at its center not that of God- the True Triune God (The “nuReligion” spreads the nonsense and lie of other religions sharing the worship of the same God/god. We share our Creator but those who deny the Triune God, the Incarnation and the decent of the Holy Spirit DO NOT know Him).

The Seriousness of Idolatry

The Catholic Encyclopedia describes idolatry as “…the greatest of mortal sins. For it is, by definition, an inroad on God’s sovereignty over the world, an attempt on His Divine majesty, a rebellious setting up of a creature on the throne that belongs to Him alone. Even the simulation of idolatry, in order to escape death during persecution, is a mortal sin, because of the pernicious falsehood it involves and the scandal it causes.”

This idolatry did not come from “out of the blue” but as a result of the Church’s reorientation from God to man via aggiornamento (surrender/compromise to the “wisdom” of the world (“Christian” humanism). In this model we seek “inclusion” and “unity” as more important that the Truth.

The idolatry of these days is the result of a prolonged process that inevitably led to replacing God with things made by man. The matter of Pachamama is an accurate x-ray of the situation in the Church at this dramatic moment. Idolatry does not suddenly happen like lightning out of the blue. It is preceded by a prolonged process that begins with the loss of faith, with a silent and pragmatic atheism that grows like a larva and takes the form of an almost general apostasy. We have become atheists without realizing it while believing we are representing the interests of the Gospel in an ever-changing world.

Fr. Serafino M. Lanzetta at Lifesite News

The idolatrous worship of Pachamama and the concurrent display of the demon Moloch are events that would shock even many “liberal” Catholics who nonetheless seek to love Our Lord Jesus.

Pachamama

Pachamama is the Andean deity of “Mother Earth”/ a fertility goddess. She accepts sacrifice of various fruits of the earth as well as llama embryos and human children. She would have been one of the false gods that Christian missionaries would have exhorted the people to abandon for the sake of their souls.

Current Devotion/Followers

Far from being a dead religion, prominent figures such as the former president of Bolivia Evo Morales is a worshiper of Pachamama.

President Morales presents Pope Francis with Our Lord crucified on a communist “hammer and sickle”.

Veneration in Rome

On October 4th, 2019 in the presence of Pope Francis Bergoglio and other prelates the false goddess/demon Pachamama was venerated and/or worshiped. This news came almost beyond the capacity for we Catholics to absorb or believe.

A petition of protest was written and as a summary I have reproduced their charges here:

  • “On October 4, Pope Francis attended an act of idolatrous worship of the pagan goddess Pachamama.
  • “He allowed this worship to take place in the Vatican Gardens, thus desecrating the vicinity of the graves of the martyrs and of the church of the Apostle Peter.
  • “He participated in this act of idolatrous worship by blessing a wooden image of Pachamama.
  • “On October 7, the idol of Pachamama was placed in front of the main altar at St. Peter’s and then carried in procession to the Synod Hall. Pope Francis said prayers in a ceremony involving this image and then joined in this procession.
  • “When wooden images of this pagan deity were removed from the church of Santa Maria in Transpontina, where they had been sacrilegiously placed, and thrown into the Tiber by Catholics outraged by this profanation of the church, Pope Francis, on October 25, apologized for their removal and another wooden image of Pachamama was returned to the church. Thus, a new profanation was initiated.
  • “On October 27, in the closing Mass for the synod, he accepted a bowl used in the idolatrous worship of Pachamama and placed it on the altar.”

Bizarro: The Breast Feeding of Weasels/swine

Concurrent to this idolatry nonsense was a display seeking to show how “we are all connected”, but which is activity that mocks the dignity of humanity and reality of the Incarnation.

Unacceptable. Especially when showcased in a Catholic Church.

Fallout from the event

A young Catholic named Alexander Tschugguel of Vienna, Austria threw the statues into the Tiber River. Pope Francis Bergolio condemned this act and confirms the images were of the demon Pachamama.

Since these horrible events occurred in the context of the Amazonian Synod some of the attending bishops reportedly announced they would refuse to attend the closing Mass if Pachamama was present.

Some traditional groups remained silent. The Society of St. Pius X correctly condemned the horror. Some see in these events apocalyptic signs.

Some have linked the event to the abomination of desolation spoken of in the book of Daniel.

Understandably many in the Catholic world were upset about these reports, including Fr. Mitch Pacwa, SJ of EWTN/

Of particular concern is the usual political weaselry; when questioned by the Catholic media the Vatican representative present lied. They didn’t fool anyone who didn’t want to be fooled.

Some priests have already offered Masses and prayers of reparation. To date six cardinals and bishops have condemned the Pachamama event.

Moloch

Moloch on Vatican controlled grounds.

Moloch was the god of the Phoenician and Carthaginian religions who also demanded child sacrifice. A statue of Moloch was displayed on grounds separate from the Vatican but on land controlled by the Vatican concurrent to the Pachamama idolatry. On the very spot Christians were martyred for their Faith.

Coincidence or Direct Link?

You may have noted the coincidence that child sacrifice figures prominently but did you know that the John Paul II Academy of Life was gutted of its life appointed members (appointed via JPII and Benedict XVI) and replaced with a number of characters opposed to the teaching of the Church.

Abortion is the Secular West offering of Child Sacrifice

It is saddening that the institutional church is attempting a “redefinition” of Pro-Life as they are trying to spin their trajectory towards syncretism and one-world religion based on fraternity and cultural Marxism, rather than on a central uncompromising, un-accommodating focus on the ONE True Triune God, a focus on Our True Lord and King: Jesus Christ.

Why do many bishops and priests ignore the Faith of their Christian ancestors and the people whom they shepherd?

Link to Our Lady of Akita?

As many of our readers know. Our Lady of Akita is a Church approved Marian apparition.

It has been reported that the messenger of Akita, St Agnes Sasagawa who has been silent from public life, I believe since 1976, spoke out on the very same day the Amazon synod opened.

The message to her was:
“Put on sackcloth and pray a Rosary for repentance every day.”

What Can You/I do about it?

Join us for the Mass of Reparation and future such events.
Sign up to our notification list on the sidebar here.

Pray, Pray, Pray for the restoration of Holy Mother Church, for the replacement of bad bishops and other clergy and for an increase of clarity and fever in our own hearts.

  1. Say the Rosary;
  2. Take on some form of penance, such as fasting, abstinence and other forms of mortification;
  3. Offer prayers to the Sacred Heart, such as the Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (see below);
  4. Other acts, such as attending a Holy Hour or Mass, offering them for this intention.



God Bless and Protect You. Thank you for your time in reading this.
– Fr. Meikle

As you can see from the banner at the header of this post, we announced our Mass and prayers of reparation in union with other concerned Catholics.

Filed Under: Heresies, Idolatry, New World Order, Theological Concepts

Q&A: Are Christians supposed to be Pacifist?

April 7, 2019 By FrM

Christian violence is in some cases not only acceptable but required, because it follows God’s direction and example.

Reasons and examples include self-defense/defense of those unable to protect themselves (cf. Luke 22:36 and much of the Old Testament); Our Lord beating and whipping the money changers in the Temple because they profaned a holy space- in other words God Himself used human violence against another human for disrespect of the Father. Battle of the Milvian Bridge, The Battle of Lepanto, the story of Jeanne D’Arc and other Divinely assisted military actions in post New Testament times. Finally the defense of the innocent is at times a required duty. A short time ago there was a school shooting in Florida. The police remained hiding behind their vehicles while children were slaughtered. This is an example where failure to use violence is a grave sin.

Pacifism is your right and in many cases is willed by God (think of the nuns of the Vendee, or St Francis walking into a muslim camp) but sometimes it covers a cowardice or dereliction. We are judged by what we do with what we are given. Pacifism that impacts only your life is one thing- pacifism that is contempt of the lives of others is another matter. God knows and judges the heart.

Filed Under: Christian Pacifism, FAQs and Q & A, Moral Reasoning

Jim Caviezel on the Love of God, the Value of Suffering, True Freedom and a Call against Indifference.

April 7, 2019 By FrM

Jim Caviezel, acted in “Person of Interest”, “Count of Monte Christo”, “Passion of the Christ” and now “Paul, Apostle of Christ”.

The story here is very interesting and reveals some of the real weird suffering he had during the filming of “Passion”.

But the real treasure here is the story of a man who “gets it”. He gets Christianity. A powerful message for us all, in particular the folks who have long forgotten or dismissed the Faith of their grandparents and ancestor saints.

I hope you find it encouraging.

Jim Caviezel

Filed Under: Theological Concepts, Video

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