Saturday, July 21, 2012

And Now For Something Completely Different ... My 5 pm Vigil Mass at my New Novus Ordo Parish

Hello Everyone.

Well, some SSPX die-hard didn`t like my post and already sent me a comment. Kay, I`ll repeat this again. (1) read my blog rules back in the first post, August 2011. (2) No anonymous posting. You have to at least give me a pseudoname if you even want moderation. (3) I warned you I would delete anything uncharitable from both sides (liberal and conservative, St. Joseph`s loving AND SSPX loving) if it was `stupid`. You want to rant, do it at the very least with some clarity, logic, reasoning, or even essay style with evidence to support your points. That comment was stupid and inflammatory in calling me ``obnoxious``, so I deleted it. This is my last and final warning to everyone who views my last post. You don`t like my house, go stink up someone else`s blog where they share your mind or your views on any/or one or more of: the SSPX, women wearing pants as a "sin", liturgical dance, the new creation theology espoused by sister pantsuit, etc.

And Now For Something Completely Different ........

So I just got back from the 5pm vigil Mass at my new parish in my area. I left my old one (save finishing up summer lectoring commitments) because it was spiritually choking my soul and I do not agree with the liberal, spiritual direction of the pastor and the youth minister. While some of my friends I met there are sticking it out, I can`t in good conscience and without souring my soul and disposition and speaking out. Mass generally was lovely. The pastor says the black and does the red. I received much needed confession prior to Mass to receive the Eucharist happily. And the homily was much needed and relevant (see below ...)

Coming back from Mass there has inspired me to write this post. I`ll get to the meaty part of this first. Here`s the Gospel for today from the NRSV-CE translation, 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Sundays Year B, Novus Ordo Liturgical Calendar:

MARK 6:30-34
`The Apostles returned from their mission. They gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, `Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.` For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.
Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and  he began to teach them many things.`

So, the pastor gave the homily. His greatest strength is his passion and his strong spirituality and devotion to the Catholic Faith. You can tell he really wants the best for us, even if there are other things the parishioners don`t like or perceive about him.  The homily reflected Jesus calling the disciples away for a much needed rest. For one, he reflected briefly about Mass being a spiritual rest in life with the Eucharist (didn`t get the full point cause I had bad luck being behind an off-duty EMHC/EMHE(ucharist) with his wife and noisy toddler). The bulk of his homily centred around how we in our lived today are constantly immersing ourselves in our computers and wireless technology and televisions. We are not giving ourselves a "spiritual" rest as it were, and we are totally ignoring the beautiful work of God found in his creation. [Creation by the way, is one of God's two direct ways of Revelation to us. The first is His Word (including Jesus as the Word made flesh), the other is creation.] So Go! Go out and have a rest! Go take your family to a park and revel in God's creation! Go out for a walk! Get away from immersing yourselves in those 200 e-mails a day!

Also, he commented that it's also plaguing the young. This was so true to say. I was privileged to be in a trial period for their EDGE ministry (decision still pending), and the few weeks I was there, I witnessed this with the young tweens to some degree. The largest degree was seen in the first young woman I was able to know by name. I constantly witnessed her on her blackberry a lot, rather doing that than the icebreaker activities and some other things at times. Don't worry though she came every week to EDGE so it's not like she wasn't wanting to be there. I did ask her if she wanted to participate (thinking maybe she was shy or we should be inclusive), but she wasn't interested. So Father is not making this up or speaking as "that old guy." He's speaking the truth.

Father's point is applicable to all ages that by immersing ourselves constantly in this virtual life with out technologies, we are becoming one unto ourselves, inward, and isolated and alone. It is implied that this is become selfish and self-centred and depriving one's self of being healthy, mentally and spiritually. Sadly, many of our youth are doing this and likely contributing to decreased language and conversation skills, and even behaviour too. I'll also sheepishly admit I do this quite a bit too. I'm more of an introspective person (so says my Myers-Briggs personality test) and I don't make friends easily. I got other things too, but I don't have a wide calendar of social events. So well computer stuff is one way I relieve my work-day stress but also do as my past time. I definitely need to, as well as others, need to take Father's message to heart and make sure that I make my life not totally self-centred via my electronics.

A Nice Little Side Note on Youth and Modesty
Now, we don't get a lot of young people at the 5pm mass, so the ones that do I'm thankful to see at my parish. Today, wow it was interesting! The young adults that came, male or female, were modestly dressed, especially the women!

I did not see one set of those short shorts I've been seeing on women on my way to work, nor tight miniskirts or skirts above the knee or crop tops (Why are they back in fashion? They should have stayed in the 80's-90's!). Not one women had exposed shoulders or a top that was way too tight on the torso, and even respectable shoes (no flip flops!). As for the men, including myself, we were wearing at least decent jeans and a non-inflammatory top, and one guy even was semi-business dressed. (I assume he and his three female companions were at or going to some semi-casual social event before or after Mass). This was a good change to see today at the Mass, giving respect to our Lord in the Mass. Now, I don't know whether it was just coincidence or it's this parish's influence, but to me, it's just another small sign that I am finally in the right parish for me for the Novus Ordo.

Hope you enjoyed my change for today. Pax. YCRCM.

Stuff from this week: SSPX Crankypants, A Heretical Parish in Ottawa, and FSSP Priest training for Low Mass

Hello All,

I've been paying the piper at work for taking a whole weekend off and not being called in before or after a family member's wedding. So my blogging has gone by the wayside. Finally today a day off so I'm just going to post about what's been peeking my interest of my feeds.

1) Vox Cantoris exposes a gay-pride loving, liturgically sacrilegious, hedonistic and evil "catholic" parish in Ottawa called St. Joseph's in Ottawa. The post is here: http://voxcantor.blogspot.ca/2012/07/st-joes-is-vibrant-diverse-and-ever.html. WARNING!!! Some disturbing content within. If you are uber sensitive to liberal stuff and homosexual movements, you may want to take some hyperactivity-reducing and blood pressure meds because this post will get you angry and wanting to burn the heretics at the stake. They also committed a grave liturgical violation in the past by having a layperson give the homily. GIRM states no body but the deacon or higher reads the Gospel, and/or gives the homily. Somebody please alert the Bishops or better (cause they don't really care in Canada about this as they themselves are weak with heterodoxy) the Vatican. At least they every once in a while Benedict issues personal or institutional bans, like recently they stripped a Peruvian university of the words "Pontifical" and "Catholic" from the title after repeated attempts for them to play nice (see here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deaconsbench/2012/07/no-longer-catholic/). Oh, and did I forget to mention they have a liturgical dance team ... REALLY, FOR 20 STINKING YEARS????? "Carndinal Arinze is not amused with your amature theology," and he said "NO liturgical dance". Disgusting. I wonder how many vocations from that parish have arisen? I'd bet 0. 

2) Hey all you extraordinary form people, and priests if you happen to read this too. The FSSP is issuing a cool training session in the USA for clergy who want to serve the Low form of the Mass. If you know someone who might be interested, or are a clergy member yourself interested, please pass this on. The link is  here: http://fssptraining.org/index.html. Please get more priests to do this. Help restore the liturgy in the Church and give Joe Catholic something not banal to attend on Sundays or any day of the week.


3) Well, it seems the the SSPX are being a bunch of naughty idiots and Benedict will have to launch the Vatican Obliterati Sattelite Cannon in their faces. They just had their annual chapter meeting and while it seems all went well and they issued some statement that is ambiguous and as usual insults the Vatican if you read between the lines, It seems like they are going to pull a repeat of 1988 and get themselves schismatic again. Why? Well some fool (or secret saint if they really are that bad) released a "confidential" document sent by the Secretary of State for them that even said internally they weren't supposed to release this on the internet or blogs. It contains conditions, to the Vatican, where they will accept canonical status only if the top 3 are filled, with the other 3 desired.

Here's the summary of their conditions in French: http://www.riposte-catholique.fr/summorum-pontificum-blog/informations/les-conditions-de-la-fraternite-saint-pie-x

The full letter can be found in French here: http://tradinews.blogspot.fr/2012/07/abbe-thouvenot-fsspx-lettre-circulaire.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+Tradinews+(TradiNews)

Now, using the almighty Google Translator, here's what they are asking for:
"... "Finally, he stated the conditions that the Society of St. Pius X was needed in dealing with authorities Roman:
Preconditions that the fraternity is required and it demands of the Roman authorities before considering a canonical recognition:
 1. Freedom to maintain, transmit and teach sound doctrine of the Magisterium of the Church constant and unchanging Truth of Tradition divine freedom to protect, correct, resume, even publicly, the makers of any errors or innovations of modernism, liberalism , Vatican II and its consequences;
 2. Exclusively use the liturgy of 1962. Keep the sacraments that we currently have (including: orders, confirmation, marriage);
 3. Guarantee of at least one bishop.
 Desirable conditions:
 1. Own ecclesiastical courts of first instance;
 2. Exemption of the houses of the Society of St. Pius X in relation to diocesan bishops;
 3. Pontifical Commission for Tradition in Rome in dependence of the Pope, with majority of members and chair for the Tradition."
OK, there are some big ass problems here. Let's start with the desirables and go to the main course.
On the desirables:
1) No bloody way.  Why the heck do you think you guys can have your own courts within the Church? This would be stupid. Would you persecute other Catholics not with the SSPX with them? The Church, sacramentally and politically, must maintain some semblance of order and it will not give you guys your own courts. Heck your courts (e.g. annulments) and other sacraments outside the Eucharist aren't even valid at all because you aren't under an Ordinary's/Bishops permission and jurisdiction to do so.

2) Fine. I get why you want this because many of them stink of liberalism and heterodoxy and are a smack in the face to Christ. And they sure as hell hate tradition and want to shut you down. However, you will be under someone's purview, be it diocesan, or the Pope himself, who is a bishop BTW. Even under the free-roaming ordinate structure, e.g. Anglican Use, you will still be overseen by a bishop. And hey if I were the Pope, I sure as heck would not want you guys running free and loose anyways. You`d probably cause more internal division in the Church over your `holier than thou` attitudes.

3) Hey I`m all for the pontifical commission in Rome for Tradition, but I wouldn`t want most or all the members of that to be SSPX. It`d better have a combo of a few of them, FSSP, ICKSP, and diocesan priests/bishops/Cardinals favourable to tradition with the Pope as head and final arbiter of decisions.

Now the Main points:
1) Good on everything, save the Vatican II bit. Hey I'm not favourable to it, though I still maintain that V-II was hijacked by liberals who mis-applied the documents and the true spirit of the Council. However, were the Pope to allow their "Vatican II is evil" message and acknowledge it, it could violate the order of the Church. All councils when declared are guided by the Holy Spirit right? so one wasn't? Further, if the Pope were to admit such an error, this could (a) possibly bring on criticism that he is fallible, so how can we trust the Holy Father on anything, even faith and morals? (b) if a. were to occur, this would violate the doctrine of infallibility declared at Vatican I, and (c) we'd have a free for all in the Church b/c "hey if we can chastise Vatican II, we can chastise anything theological in the Church". The Holy Father is not going to allow complete anarchy to happen in the Church just to please a small sect of practising Catholics in the huge worldwide body. Besides, Tradition is taking off without them being around and more TLMs are popping up worldwide gradually, but it's happening. They aren't essential to that cause, though it would quicken things and give another bunch of validly, CANONICAL AND LEGAL options for trad-catholics in cities and towns where the SSPX do have a foothold, and more TLM resources worldwide.

2) No Contest here. It's a simple statement with no strings attached.

3) Well ... alright. Fine I understand they want someone in their court, BUT, This reeks of 1988. It's history repeating itself. If they think they can pull this same crap again and get it the 2nd time around, if it's not a valid bishop of the "regular" Church of Benedict's choosing, they are dreaming way to high.

Honestly everyone, I'm just about to give up on the SSPX. They are now acting just as stubborn and stupid as they were back then under Lefevbre, and there's no way that Benedict, with ALL he has done and given them this time around, even more so than JPII, will easily give them what they want. Worse, now that this is out in the open, they have shot themselves in the foot. They are really now going to have to retract this and accept whatever Benedict gives them, because time is running out, and the Holy Father's patience is wearing thin. He is tired of playing games, and if they are going to continue to be a stubborn little child that won't listen to his parent, he's going to get an ass-spanking that will hurt a long time. Also, we don't know what the next pope will bring. Some people think weird things like we are going to get an anti-pope or a pope unfavourable to tradition (which is likely possible with the pool of cardinals available) and well, that pope also will likely NOT be a child of Vatican II (not born during the time or, or at the council) so will not understand things, or be further infected with the "fruits of the council". Boys or girls, if any of you see this or someone who will live, breathe, and die for these people, gets this, you'd better tell them they should accept. This is their last good offer, and if it's not now, it's likely going to be never.

However what's YCRCM's final take with them? Basically you guys are being prideful pricks, and if you want to be that pig-headed, you can take your pre-Vatican II mindset and societies, seminaries, and schools, and adherents, and leave the Church alone. Go ahead and be schismatic and separate with only 1 sacrament to deal with. I'm going to stay right here, under the Barque of Peter, receiving all 7 Sacraments validly and licitly, and going to Diocesan TLMs that I know are said by VALID AND LICIT priests so I have no doubt that I am receiving valid sacraments and participating in valid masses and my soul will be ok. As for the souls of you and your adherents, may Christ have mercy on them, cause I don't know what will happen to them come their deaths under a soon-to-be schismatic sect of Catholicism. However, if you do get canonical recognition in spite of everything, welcome home, and please save the liturgy with the TLM and give your servers and priests to us  (on loans of course, never permanently) to help us grow more TLMs everywhere and make priests around you actually adhere to the Magisterium and not preach heretical teachings. 


Alright. That's it for me for now. Pax. YCRCM. 


P.S. I will be monitoring the combox and my e-mail. Don't try anything stupid from either side, be you on the St. Joseph's article (Vox broke the story anyways, not me) or the SSPX issue. It'll just go in my trashbin. 


NEW UPDATE FROM WITNESS BLOG ON ST' JOSEPH'S EXPOSE . 3:00pm EST, July 21, 2012


HOLY SHhhhh...... well, just, damn. A convicted, diocesan-lacized priest is in residence there????? Barona at Witness found this gem, courtesy of some witch (pervert priest) hunter, Sylvia. See the post and the links here: http://torontocatholicwitness.blogspot.ca/2012/07/why-is-convicted-child-molester-on.html



Friday, July 6, 2012

Quickpost: The Anchoress and Why We should Have Beautiful Churches

Hey everyone.

Wow I can't believe the number of hits I'm getting from my last post on that EF priest from Vancouver! Thank you for the visits everyone.

Any ways, this just in after a mid-day viewing. Many people who hate the Catholic Church criticise us for having lavishly decorated exteriors, metal-plated devices, statues, etc. and say we should only have crappy, simple (and modern Churches to boot) made of economically cheap materials and art, etc. Well! Here's something from Elizabeth Scalia, the Anchoress and Oblate Benedictine (tertiary):

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/theanchoress/2012/07/06/why-not-beautiful-churches/

It`s also got a link to another Patheos blogger, the Crescat, who comments also on the situation.  Still, read the full article. I take from it, the first two and last paragraphs. They say it all:

"One of my cousins is a Capuchin priest. He has worked very closely with the very poor and disadvantaged for decades, and he bristles when people talk about “frivolous beauty” or “liturgical pomp”, and when they declare that beautiful things should be stripped down and sold for the poor. “You help the poor by being with them, living and working with them; being one with them, because one of the biggest needs of the poor is the reception of a simple message: ‘You’re as important as anyone; you are loved and loveable.’ You don’t send that message by making the world uglier for them.


Sell everything in a church, strip it down and you buy some temporary assistance; then the people who sold all that sinful, frivolous beauty go back home, feeling pretty good about themselves and all the ‘help’ they gave to ‘the poor.’ But when the money runs out — and my cousin says money running out is one of the few things you can bank on — then for the poor who remain, “it’s back to business as usual, but with nothing beautiful for them, anywhere ....”


``And for future generations of common, ordinary people — sometimes very poor people, what do the beautiful churches do for them? What does beauty do for any of us? It gives us pleasure; it helps us to dream; it stirs the imagination; it consoles; it reminds us that of all creatures, human beings are invested with a spark from the Creator; it gets us wondering — all of us, rich or poor, privileged or struggling — what potential conflagration of beauty might yet be lit from from our own small, individual sparks``[No matter how vile and dark and 'snuffed' out they may appear externally, or even internally due to sin].


Pax, YCRCM.

Monday, July 2, 2012

More on the Canadian Seminarian Who's first Mass was the EF

Hello Everyone.

Man I've had a lot on my plate to devote time to the blog, save a few quickposts. However, a couple of weeks ago, something caught my eye on the liturgical, Traditional Catholic sites I read up frequently.

Do you remembered my Fr. Z filled nutty/celebration of this Canadian Priest's  first mass, SAID IN THE EXTRAORDINARY FORM???


http://ycrcm.blogspot.ca/2012/06/quickpost-canadian-newly-ordained-young.html

Well, Fr. Pablo Santa Maria from the Diocese of Vancouver is Back! This slick video was produced by the Archdiocese of Vancouver for vocations, and it was well done!



Now, after going through it, I'd like to comment and highlight why this was well done. Very real, very true, very HARDCORE CATHOLIC!!!! Blue text for this as I'm not doing a rant (well, mostly), but a positive tone type reflection.

1) He starts out with this blurb: "I consider my vocation to be truly, very ordinary. There was no radical conversion ... I grew up in a practicing Catholic home, where the practice of the faith was a given ... the example of my paretnts ... I would also have to say my grandmother. She has been through many years, [a] very prayerful influence in my family ... especially my grandmother,  growing up, she would ensure that when we would visit her, we would go to daily mass with her. "

So, what encourages one to be a part of the Catholic faith in the first place? One's own family. It is there that the initial seeds of wisdom, knowledge, and Divine truths are planted in the Catholic child, and likewise mirrors that of the ultimate Divine familyship of Mary and Joseph with our Lord Jesus. Also, the Second Vatican Council highlights the utter importance of the family in one's faith education and nurturing: "Since parents have given children their life, they are bound by the most serious obligation to educate their offspring and therefore must be recognized as the primary and principal educators.(11) This role in education is so important that only with difficulty can it be supplied where it is lacking. Parents are the ones who must create a family atmosphere animated by love and respect for God and man, in which the well-rounded personal and social education of children is fostered. Hence the family is the first school of the social virtues that every society needs. It is particularly in the Christian family, enriched by the grace and office of the sacrament of matrimony, that children should be taught from their early years to have a knowledge of God according to the faith received in Baptism, to worship Him, and to love their neighbor. Here, too, they find their first experience of a wholesome human society and of the Church. Finally, it is through the family that they are gradually led to a companionship with their fellow men and with the people of God. Let parents, then, recognize the inestimable importance a truly Christian family has for the life and progress of God's own people.(12) " (3,  Gravissimum Educationis)

2) He goes further about his influences, that is amongst the clergy: "... there have been a number of priests that have been instrumental ... [in] guiding [me]... also here in Vancouver we have been fortunate to have a number of priests who were generally interested in promoting vocations. My pastor at that time was Bishop Monroe and Bishop Gagnon, both of them had a huge influence in me. I ... remember how happy Bishop Gagnon was. I was attracted to this joy ... there was a genuine joy to what he was doing ...``

Next to the family, the most important influence in this priest`s life was the clergy around him. The expression is that "it takes a village to raise a child" and in the Catholic village, priests and other clergy are also an essential part of it. When the priest is just another fixture to everything else in one's Catholic life or demoted in value by regular Catholics to a "sacrament dispenser," this totally undervalues Christ and His Church, as well as his flawed, but mostly loyal and hard-working servants, who strive every day to be that Alter Christus to us. Furthermore, people will not want to consider the priesthood as a VIABLE profession and vocation if they are not valued. Remember people, priests are made, not born (rarely ...) and when there are no vocations, they will not be there as you always think they are. Without good loyal priests, parishes close and it makes it that much harder for you to get your sacraments when of course you want them.


Now, there's another point to be made in this statement, The bolded lines in his statements are important, and two sides to the dimension of the priest and vocations. ONE: the clergy MUST desire to actively pursue vocations and helping others discern if they are called to the priesthood. If one does not actively seek to reach out to their people, via direct media fairs, getting involved in the community, and especially PRAYING for vocations, this won't come to fruition. If a priest just cares about doing his daily duties and not bothering with much else, likely very few young men my age, slightly older, and especially younger, will not come to think about the Lord. Many young men are too busy participating in the partying and hook-up culture, being fed secular value garbage by society and sadly well-meaning parents (a.k.a. "you need money to live and the priesthood makes no money [not true if you are diocesan or join an order that doesn't take a vow of poverty]), and being hooked onto their electronic devices and media. You have to get out there into the world and online and pursue vocations actively. In Pablo's case the priests and bishops around him were actively involved in helping men think about vocations to the priesthood and discerning those vocations. TWO: The clergy around him LOVED what they were doing. If clergy just go about their jobs like misers, or simply enjoy the benefits of their position, but do not care much for the laity and the Mass and treat it like a "daily job", others will see that lack of passion and desire, and like how Christ will be against the "lukewarm" spiritually, well people also do not like lukewarmness when it comes to their leaders. They want to be inspired to such careers/vocations and want to see people happy in their work. If you wanted to be a lawyer, and someone said "the job sucks" as a young person, would you consider law as a profession? Likely not, unless you had strong resolve. The same goes for the priesthood, and clearly Pablo's priests and bishops showed him truly what serving the Lord brings about in a person: unbridled joy, and the way, the truth, AND THE LIFE!!!


3) Now for some real good stuff: Fr. Pablo starts to talk about the seminary and gives us a really good dose of reality:


"Well, going to seminary, doesn't mean one is going to become a priest ... sometimes people come in with a mentality that going to seminary, automatically means priest ... probably half of people that enter the seminary don't get ordained, even more, because the seminary first of all, is not a "priest-making machine" but It's a place of discernment ... in the seminary one goes, and one has to be first formed as a man, then as a Christian, then as a priest ... and that's why seminary can take somewhere from 6-8 years. It's a long formation, but it's a necessary formation because it's a serious call and one wants to be sure, and one may feel sure but it's for the Church to corroborate that."

Wow. This is probably the most frank and honest summary of the seminary I have heard from a priest. I never knew this fact, though I personally did get to serve with a person who after spiritual discernment in a seminary decided the priesthood was not his calling, yet still continues studies there to finish the degree or what not. And that ties nicely with the next sentences about the machine and the formation. Yes, people think it is a factory for churning out priests, and especially with our current worldwide decline or absence of a multitude or priests where they were once in abundance (and good orthodox priests not in the Spirit of Vatican II are sorely needed). However, like any profession, it is important to have dedicated, mature individuals as leaders working in those professions, whether it be as a teacher, a psychologist, a police officer etc. If a person is in it only as a money-maker or source of financial security and does not respect the foundations or the purpose for the career`s existence, they will be ineffective at their job, and their mis-intentions may be exemplified in poor examples capitalized by our bloodthirsty mainstream media. 


About the time period, most lengths of stay in the seminaries also provide a "clinical placement" of sorts where seminarians are sent to various parishes for one year of working alongside a priest to understand the diocesan structure and ways of life, and to give a taste of what will come to them as an assistant pastor or pastor of a diocesan parish. Also in that time frame, they learn a number of religious subjects such as theology, liturgy, homiletics, etc. as well as how to say the Mass in the appropriate rite. Finally, I bolded the last few words as this is truly important. A true vocation MUST be firmly grounded in the will of the Lord, via his Church. If it ain't there, it ain't there. Christ just might have another purpose for you if you aren't called. Heck he might even have you go out of seminary and switch 360 degrees and marry and start a family! I'm sure there's a few people you know who this has happened to. 


4) Now Fr. speaks about "The Duties of a Priest":
"As a vocation, I will ... God willing, become a saint, not a canonized saint, but someone who's in the company of God in Heaven. So, I am at the service of God and his Church. And as such, my duty, is really, to show others the Love of God, the Love of Christ. In a sense, to exemplify what the Eucharist is, and that God ... humbles himself to become the small host of the altar, gives everything, so that He can be in communion, in a relationship with God. And the priest is there to mediate that, to be able to facilitate that. It's a great example of God's love, that doesn't abandon us, that stays with us. He promised to be with us till the end of time ... what a best example we have, than the priesthood. So the duty of the priest, is really, to show others the love of God. How we do this? The Sacraments. The sacraments is the ministry of the priest, that is our battlefield, that`s where we are doing battle for souls.

Whoa! This is flooring me right now. It`s so direct and poignant and mighty I can`t add to much, but to comment somewhat on the boldface stuff. About Sainthood, it is not about being `perfect` or just limited to the clergy and religious. It`s about being ``holy`` and striving to orient one`s life as such so as to be in the company of God in Heaven. Laypeople can do this too and even get on the ladder to sainthood, like St. Gianna Molla, and Blessed Pier Frassati. On the mediation comment, yes, that`s what priests do. No other clergyman, layperson of either sex, can do so. Only he (and the higher levels like bishop) can do this. Finally the last sentence, YES!!!! This is so often disposed of in modern theology and even devalued by some (e.g. some devalue the sacrament of reconciliation to be a `cheap form or historcial form of talk therapy prior to the development of clinical psychology.` No, these sacraments also duel with the Devil and keep one`s soul disposed to Him. It`s our key means of doing such in the Church, albeit only the Priests can administer ALL of them. They are not just milestones of initiation people, these are vital life preservers for our souls to stay tethered to the barque of Peter as many of us in our daily lives are concupiscent and `go overboard`` when we venially and mortally sin, and we are never 100% perfect!

5) Ooooh, here comes the bomb, ``the Liturgy ....``
"In the seminary, they really stress this to us: The Church subsists to as liturgy, in the liturgy ... there wouldn't be the Church without liturgy ... it is very important a priest ... has a great knowledge of what the liturgy is, and how to live the liturgy, but a great love of the liturgy ... a liturgy done reverently and well .... love for the traditions of the Church, in terms of liturgy, in that we are not afraid of chant for instance ... that's the great Patrimony, that it is not something relegated to the concert hall, but it`s something for today. The liturgy, is really where everybody comes to meet God. It is they duty of the priest to do a good job, to do what the Church asks, and to do it faithfully, but above all, to do it prayerfully. The Liturgy is, first and foremost, ``prayer``. And ... the priest is there to preside the liturgy and to lead people in that great prayer, especially the Mass with sacraments and liturgy of the hours. The priest, needs to be praying in the liturgy, to be able to lead others to pray, and have a real encounter with God, an encounter that develops into a genuine and lasting relationship.   

And once again, Fr. hits a grand slam out of the ballpark. The liturgy is, prayer. Not just any prayer, but THE MOST POWERFUL form of prayer that exists in this finite life. Yes, the priest must know and do the liturgy well, not just as an exercise in seminary studies, no, he must make it a lifelong duty to truly and reverently celebrate this prayer. The priest must not forget, that the Mass with its sacraments contain the most powerful ties to our Lord. And it is also right to consider a relationship developing out of the Mass. Why do you think Christ instituted the priesthood and Eucharist on that Passover Seder? just  for kicks. No, he wanted a full and genuine relationship with us, and provided for us a key way to keep with him until our deaths. That's right, Jesus was reaching out to all of us, for the continuum of time. The Mass with the Eucharist is where we come to further solidify our relationship with Christ. 


Further, about the chant comment, it's not just some show piece of the Museum of the Church. No, Chant, the Latin Mass etc. are all meant to further glorify our Lord and enable the Mass to reach its fullest potential in achieving that goal of that relationship with Christ in the Mass. Sorry to be somewhat negative, but those folk choirs, props and jollies and stupid Easter bunny costumes, and those snazzy tunes are not leading souls to heaven. And the ones that do like them, you have to ask are they TRULY going to Mass because they long to be nourished and fed our Lord and learn His truths, or are they there for the feel-good entertainment that priest and parish is providing? To put it short, they JUST DON'T WORK. Further, they are but reflections of the overall attitude taken by that priest with regards to the Liturgy. Were a priest actually doing as Fr. says, his liturgies would actually fulfil the goals listed and not turn people away from the Church. 


Finally, Fr. makes an awesome point about the priest LIVING THE LITURGY. It does not do well enough to just do your daily Mass and just leave it for 9-10AM daily. No, the liturgy, the teachings in Scripture, and everything else MUST stem from the Liturgy. Otherwise, the Mass is simply just another obligation, and the laity become personally lost in the politics of either Fr. socialite priest or Fr. `king of the parish`` and totally miss what the Mass is about. They will even dis-consider the Lord because the priest acts like a hypocrite outside his role as a ``sacramental dispenser`` in the Mass (of which he is not, but his actions outside the Mass cause him to become). When a priest truly does as Fr. alludes to, that is becoming a living embodiment of the Mass and what Christ has taught us, he will be the light of the world and the salt of the earth to his parishioners, and the Mass will contain more meaning personally to those laity, and they in turn will have a fuller relationship with Christ and even actually come back for weekly Mass. It will not be a joke to them. 


Well, that`s my take on this awesome video. It`s things like this that gives me hope in my own generation and in the future institutional Church. If more of these kind of priests are able to participate in the life of the Church and to influence their peers, we`ll finally be able t the level of Joe Catholic laity, to re-instill value and meaning in the Church and it won`t be just an ``option`` in one`s daily life. More of them will finally get what Jesus came to do and what the Church is about in one`s life.

One Final Note: Please share, forward, send, mention etc. this video to everyone you can think of that should see this. This video is easily found on YouTube with a search.

Pax Tibi Christi, YCRCM.