Good Friday: "JUSTIFIED AS A GIFT THROUGH FAITH IN THE BLOOD OF CHRIST"

(Vatican Radio) Below we publish the official text of the 2013 Good Friday Sermon in St. Peter's Basilica, preached by Capuchin Friar Raniero Cantalamessa, Preacher of the Papal Household:

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, but they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith in his blood. He did this to show his righteousness [...] to prove at the present time that he is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus”(Rom 3:23-26).

We have reached the summit of the Year of Faith and its decisive moment. This is the faith that saves, "faith that overcomes the world" (1 Jn 5:5)! Faith – the appropriation by which we make ours the salvation worked by Christ, by which we put on the mantle of his righteousness. On the one hand there is the outstretched hand of God offering man His grace; on the other hand, the hand of man reaching out to receive it through faith. The "new and everlasting Covenant" is sealed with a handclasp between God and man.

We have the opportunity to make, on this day, the most important decision of our lives, one that opens wide before us the doors of eternity: to believe! To believe that "Jesus died for our sins and rose again for our justification" (Rom 4:25)! In an Easter homily of the 4^th century, the bishop pronounced these extraordinarily modern, and one could say existentialist, words: “For every man, the beginning of life is when Christ was immolated for him. However, Christ is immolated for him at the moment he recognizes the grace and becomes conscious of the life procured for him by that immolation” (The Paschal Homily of the Year 387 : SCh, 36 p. 59f.).

What an extraordinary thing! This Good Friday celebrated in the Year of Faith and in the presence of the new successor of Peter, could be, if we wish, the principle of a new kind of existence. Bishop Hilary of Poitiers, converted to Christianity as an adult, looking back on his past life, said, "before meeting you, I did not exist".
What is required is only that we do not hide from the presence of God, as Adam and Eve did after their sin, that we recognize our need to be justified; that we cannot justify ourselves. The publican of the parable came to the temple and made a short prayer: "O God, have mercy on me a sinner". And Jesus says that the man returned to his home "justified", that is, made right before him, forgiven, made a new creature, I think singing joyfully in his heart (Lk 18:14). What had he done that was so extraordinary? Nothing, he had put himself in the truth before God, and it is the only thing that God needs in order to act.
* * *
Like he who, in climbing a mountain wall, having overcome a dangerous step, stops for a moment to catch his breath and admire the new landscape that has opened up before him, so does the Apostle Paul at the beginning of Chapter 5 of the letter to the Romans, after having proclaimed justification by faith:

“Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.  And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us” (Rom 5: 1-5).

Today, from artificial satellites infrared photographs of whole regions of the Earth and of the whole planet are taken. How different the landscape looks when seen from up there, in the light of those rays, compared to what we see in natural light and from down here! I remember one of the first satellite pictures published in the world; it reproduced the entire Sinai Peninsula. The colors were different, the reliefs and depressions were more noticeable. It is a symbol. Even human life, seen in the infrared rays of faith, from atop Calvary, looks different from what you see "with the naked eye".

"The same fate”, said the wise man of the Old Testament, “comes to all, to the righteous and to the wicked...I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, wickedness was there, and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there as well" (Ecc 3:16; 9:2). And in fact at all times man has witnessed iniquity triumphant and innocence humiliated. But so that people do not believe that there is something fixed and sure in the world, behold, Bossuet notes, sometimes you see the opposite, namely, innocence on the throne and lawlessness on the scaffold. But what did Qoheleth conclude from all this? " I said in my heart: God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for everything" (Ecc 3:17). He found the vantage point that puts the soul in peace. What Qoheleth could not know and that we do know is that this judgement has already happened: "Now”, Jesus says when beginning his passion, “is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself"(Jn 12:31-32).

In Christ dead and risen, the world has reached its final destination. Human progress is advancing today at a dizzying pace and humanity sees new and unexpected horizons unfolding before it, the result of its discoveries. Still, it can be said that the end of time has already come, because in Christ, who ascended to the right hand of the Father, humanity has reached its ultimate goal. The new heavens and new Earth have already begun.

Despite all the misery, injustice, the monstrosities present on Earth, he has already inaugurated the final order in the world. What we see with our own eyes may suggest otherwise, but in reality evil and death have been defeated forever. Their sources are dry; the reality is that Jesus is the Lord of the world. Evil has been radically defeated by redemption which he operated. The new world has already begun.

One thing above all appears different, seen with the eyes of faith: death! Christ entered death as we enter a dark prison; but he came out of it from the opposite wall. He did not return from whence he came, as Lazarus did who returned to life to die again. He has opened a breach towards life that no one can ever close, and through which everyone can follow him. Death is no longer a wall against which every human hope is shattered; it has become a bridge to eternity. A "bridge of sighs", perhaps because no one likes to die, but a bridge, no longer a bottomless pit that swallows everything. "Love is strong as death", says the song of songs (Sgs 8:6). In Christ it was stronger than death!

In his "Ecclesiastical History of the English People", the Venerable Bede tells how the Christian faith made its entrance into the North of England. When the missionaries from Rome arrived in Northumberland, the local King summoned a Council of dignitaries to decide whether to allow them, or not, to spread the new message. Some of those present were in favor, others against. It was winter and outside there was a blizzard, but the room was lit and warm. At one point a bird came from a hole in the wall, fluttered a bit, frightened, in the hall, and then disappeared through a hole in the opposite wall.

Then one of those present rose and said: "Sire, our life in this world resembles that bird. We come we know not from where, for a while we enjoy the light and warmth of this world and then we disappear back into the darkness, without knowing where we are going. If these men are capable of revealing to us something of the mystery of our lives, we must listen to them". The Christian faith could return on our continent and in the secularized world for the same reason it made its entrance: as the only message, that is, which has a sure answer to the great questions of life and death.

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The cross separates unbelievers from believers, because for the ones it is scandal and madness, for the others is God's power and wisdom of God (cf. 1 Cor 1:23-24); but in a deeper sense it unites all men, believers and unbelievers. "Jesus had to die [...] not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God"(cf. Jn 11:51f). The new heavens and the new Earth belong to everyone and are for everyone, because Christ died for everyone.

The urgency that comes from all this is that of evangelizing: "The love of Christ urges us, at the thought that one has died for all" (2 Cor 5:14). It urges us to evangelize! Let us announce to the world the good news that "there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because the law of the spirit which gives life in Christ Jesus has delivered us from the law of sin and death" (Rom 8:1-2).

There is a short story by Franz Kafka that is a powerful religious symbol and takes on a new meaning, almost prophetic, when heard on Good Friday. It's titled "An Imperial Message". It speaks of a king who, on his deathbed, calls to his side a subject and whispers a message into his ear. So important is that message that he makes the subject repeat it, in turn, into his hear. Then, with a nod, he sends off the messenger, who sets out on his way. But let us hear directly from the author the continuation of this story, characterized by the dreamlike and almost nightmarish tone typical of this writer:

" Now pushing with his right arm, now with his left, he cleaves a way for himself through the throng; if he encounters resistance he points to his breast, where the symbol of the sun glitters. But the multitudes are so vast; their numbers have no end. If he could reach the open fields how fast he would fly, and soon doubtless you would hear the welcome hammering of his fists on your door. But instead how vainly does he wear out his strength; still he is only making his way through the chambers of the innermost palace; never will he get to the end of them; and if he succeeded in that nothing would be gained; he must next fight his way down the stair; and if he succeeded in that nothing would be gained; the courts would still have to be crossed; and after the courts the second outer palace; and so on for thousands of years; and if at last he should burst through the outermost gate—but never, never can that happen—the imperial capital would lie before him, the center of the world, crammed to bursting with its own sediment. Nobody could fight his way through here even with a message from a dead man. But you sit at your window when evening falls and dream it to yourself”.

From his deathbed, Christ also confided to his Church a message: "Go throughout the whole world, preach the good news to all creation" (MK 16:15). There are still many men who stand at the window and dream, without knowing it, of a message like his. John, whom we have just heard, says that the soldier pierced the side of Christ on the cross "so that the Scripture may be fulfilled which says 'they shall look on him whom they have pierced"(Jn 19:37). In the Apocalypse he adds: "Behold, he is coming on the clouds, and every eye will see him; they will see him even those who pierced him, and all the tribes of the Earth will lament for him "(Rev 1:7).

This prophecy does not annouce the last coming of Christ, when it will no longer be the time of conversion, but of judgment. It describes the reality of the evangelization of the peoples. In it, a mysterious but real coming of the Lord occurs, which brings salvation to them. Theirs won't be a cry of despair, but of repentance and of consolation. This is the meaning of that prophetic passage of Scripture that John sees realized in the piercing of the side of Christ, and that is, the passage of Zechariah 12:10: "I will pour out on the House of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and consolation; they will look to me, to him whom they have pierced".

The evangelization has a mystical origin; it is a gift that comes from the cross of Christ, from that open side, from that blood and from that water. The love of Christ, like that of the Trinity of which it is the historical manifestation, is "diffusivum sui", it tends to expand and reach all creatures, "especially those most needy of thy mercy." Christian evangelization is not a conquest, not propaganda; it is the gift of God to the world in his Son Jesus. It is to give the Head the joy of feeling life flow from his heart towards his body, to the point of vivivfying its most distant limbs.

We must do everything possible so that the Church may never look like that complicated and cluttered castle described by Kafka, and the message may come out of it as free and joyous as when the messenger began his run. We know what the impediments are that can restrain the messenger: dividing walls, starting with those that separate the various Christian churches from one another, the excess of bureaucracy, the residue of past ceremonials, laws and disputes, now only debris.

In Revelation, Jesus says that He stands at the door and knocks (Rev 3:20). Sometimes, as noted by our Pope Francis, he does not knock to enter, but knocks from within to go out. To reach out to the "existential suburbs of sin, suffering, injustice, religious ignorance and indifference, and of all forms of misery."
As happens with certain old buildings. Over the centuries, to adapt to the needs of the moment, they become filled with partitions, staircases, rooms and closets. The time comes when we realize that all these adjustments no longer meet the current needs, but rather are an obstacle, so we must have the courage to knock them down and return the building to the simplicity and linearity of its origins. This was the mission that was received one day by a man who prayed before the Crucifix of San Damiano: "Go, Francis, and repair my Church".

"Who could ever be up to this task?" wondered aghast the Apostle before the superhuman task of being in the world "the fragrance of Christ"; and here is his reply, that still applies today: "We're not ourselves able to think something as if it came from us; our ability comes from God. He has made us to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; because the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life"(2 Cor 2:16; 3:5-6).

May the Holy Spirit, in this moment in which a new time is opening for the Church, full of hope, reawaken in men who are at the window the expectancy of the message, and in the messengers the will to make it reach them, even at the cost of their life.

Pope Francis to priests at Chrism Mass: Unction is function

(Vatican Radio) Below please find the official text of Pope Francis’ Homily for Chrism Mass, Holy Thursday 2013:

Dear Brothers and Sisters, This morning I have the joy of celebrating my first Chrism Mass as the Bishop of Rome. I greet all of you with affection, especially you, dear priests, who, like myself, today recall the day of your ordination.

The readings of our Mass speak of God’s “anointed ones”: the suffering Servant of Isaiah, King David and Jesus our Lord. All three have this in common: the anointing that they receive is meant in turn to anoint God’s faithful people, whose servants they are; they are anointed for the poor, for prisoners, for the oppressed… A fine image of this “being for” others can be found in the Psalm: “It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down upon the collar of his robe” (Ps 133:2). The image of spreading oil, flowing down from the beard of Aaron upon the collar of his sacred robe, is an image of the priestly anointing which, through Christ, the Anointed One, reaches the ends of the earth, represented by the robe.

The sacred robes of the High Priest are rich in symbolism. One such symbol is that the names of the children of Israel were engraved on the onyx stones mounted on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, the ancestor of our present-day chasuble: six on the stone of the right shoulder-piece and six on that of the left (cf. Ex 28:6-14). The names of the twelve tribes of Israel were also engraved on the breastplate (cf. Es 28:21). This means that the priest celebrates by carrying on his shoulders the people entrusted to his care and bearing their names written in his heart. When we put on our simple chasuble, it might well make us feel, upon our shoulders and in our hearts, the burdens and the faces of our faithful people, our saints and martyrs of whom there are many in these times…

From the beauty of all these liturgical things, which is not so much about trappings and fine fabrics than about the glory of our God resplendent in his people, alive and strengthened, we turn to a consideration of activity, action. The precious oil which anoints the head of Aaron does more than simply lend fragrance to his person; it overflows down to “the edges”. The Lord will say this clearly: his anointing is meant for the poor, prisoners and the sick, for those who are sorrowing and alone. The ointment is not intended just to make us fragrant, much less to be kept in a jar, for then it would become rancid … and the heart bitter.

A good priest can be recognized by the way his people are anointed. This is a clear test. When our people are anointed with the oil of gladness, it is obvious: for example, when they leave Mass looking as if they have heard good news. Our people like to hear the Gospel preached with “unction”, they like it when the Gospel we preach touches their daily lives, when it runs down like the oil of Aaron to the edges of reality, when it brings light to moments of extreme darkness, to the “outskirts” where people of faith are most exposed to the onslaught of those who want to tear down their faith. People thank us because they feel that we have prayed over the realities of their everyday lives, their troubles, their joys, their burdens and their hopes. And when they feel that the fragrance of the Anointed One, of Christ, has come to them through us, they feel encouraged to entrust to us everything they want to bring before the Lord: “Pray for me, Father, because I have this problem”, “Bless me”, “Pray for me” – these words are the sign that the anointing has flowed down to the edges of the robe, for it has turned into prayer. The prayers of the people of God. When we have this relationship with God and with his people, and grace passes through us, then we are priests, mediators between God and men. What I want to emphasize is that we need constantly to stir up God’s grace and perceive in every request, even those requests that are inconvenient and at times purely material or downright banal – but only apparently so – the desire of our people to be anointed with fragrant oil, since they know that we have it. To perceive and to sense, even as the Lord sensed the hope-filled anguish of the woman suffering from hemorrhages when she touched the hem of his garment. At that moment, Jesus, surrounded by people on every side, embodies all the beauty of Aaron vested in priestly raiment, with the oil running down upon his robes. It is a hidden beauty, one which shines forth only for those faith-filled eyes of the woman troubled with an issue of blood. But not even the disciples – future priests – see or understand: on the “existential outskirts”, they see only what is on the surface: the crowd pressing in on Jesus from all sides (cf. Lk 8:42). The Lord, on the other hand, feels the power of the divine anointing which runs down to the edge of his cloak.

We need to “go out”, then, in order to experience our own anointing, its power and its redemptive efficacy: to the “outskirts” where there is suffering, bloodshed, blindness that longs for sight, and prisoners in thrall to many evil masters. It is not in soul-searching or constant introspection that we encounter the Lord: self-help courses can be useful in life, but to live by going from one course to another, from one method to another, leads us to become pelagians and to minimize the power of grace, which comes alive and flourishes to the extent that we, in faith, go out and give ourselves and the Gospel to others, giving what little ointment we have to those who have nothing, nothing at all.

A priest who seldom goes out of himself, who anoints little – I won’t say “not at all” because, thank God, our people take our oil from us anyway – misses out on the best of our people, on what can stir the depths of his priestly heart. Those who do not go out of themselves, instead of being mediators, gradually become intermediaries, managers. We know the difference: the intermediary, the manager, “has already received his reward”, and since he doesn’t put his own skin and his own heart on the line, he never hears a warm, heartfelt word of thanks. This is precisely the reason why some priests grow dissatisfied, become sad priests, lose heart and become in some sense collectors of antiques or novelties – instead of being shepherds living with “the smell of the sheep”, shepherds in the midst of their flock, fishers of men. True enough, the so-called crisis of priestly identity threatens us all and adds to the broader cultural crisis; but if we can resist its onslaught, we will be able to put out in the name of the Lord and cast our nets. It is not a bad thing that reality itself forces us to “put out into the deep”, where what we are by grace is clearly seen as pure grace, out into the deep of the contemporary world, where the only thing that counts is “unction” – not function – and the nets which overflow with fish are those cast solely in the name of the One in whom we have put our trust: Jesus.

Dear lay faithful, be close to your priests with affection and with your prayers, that they may always be shepherds according to God’s heart.

Dear priests, may God the Father renew in us the Spirit of holiness with whom we have been anointed. May he renew his Spirit in our hearts, that this anointing may spread to everyone, even to those “outskirts” where our faithful people most look for it and most appreciate it. May our people sense that we are the Lord’s disciples; may they feel that their names are written upon our priestly vestments and that we seek no other identity; and may they receive through our words and deeds the oil of gladness which Jesus, the Anointed One, came to bring us. Amen.

Marriage is not about equality

Marriage is not about equality.

No one has a right to bring new life into the world. The privilege of being family, the privilege of saying "yes" to the gift of life is at the heart of what marriage always is: about more than two people, about more than what we can see.

Marriage always has about it the air of "perhaps three...or more" because marriage has a heart, a heart to love. Love is alwa...ys about more than self, and in the case of marriage, the love between man and woman, it is necessary that they are able to have a heart for loving ones they cannot see together: the children that may be brought into the world through their God-given union of bodies, minds and spirits in love.

Every child has a right to be brought into the world by a man and woman committed to each other in marriage and thus also committed to the life and love of the child or chidlren that they may bring into the world.

That is why marriage is not about equality.

 

 

Loving a Child With Same-Sex Attraction

Father Check of the Courage apostolate asks parents to be guided by the clarity and authentic compassion of the Gospel message.

by JOAN FRAWLEY DESMOND 03/21/2013 Comments (8)

– Facebook/The John Paul II Centre for Life

Earlier this month, Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, endorsed same-sex “marriage.” In a March 15 column for the Columbus Dispatch, Portman reported that he changed his position after his son told him he was a homosexual.
“I wrestled with how to reconcile my Christian faith with my desire for Will to have the same opportunities to pursue happiness and fulfillment as his brother and sister. Ultimately, it came down to the Bible’s overarching themes of love and compassion and my belief that we are all children of God,” he wrote.
Portman’s announcement comes in the wake of similar declarations from other public officials who have children with same-sex attraction.
To better understand the challenges faced by families like Portman’s, Register senior editor Joan Frawley Desmond spoke with Father Paul Check, the director of Courage. Courage is an apostolate for persons with same-sex attraction who seek to live in accordance with Church teaching and the families and spouses of persons with same-sex attraction.
As attempts at the “redefinition of marriage” gain  ground, Father Check explains why people still come to seek help from Courage and why the Church will not retreat from its teaching about the meaning and purpose of sexuality and of marriage.

Since 2008, you have directed Courage. You also served as a Courage chaplain in 2003. Tell me about the apostolate’s mission.
Let me say first that I am most edified by the men and women of Courage, whose instinct to trust the Church in something very difficult is such a light in a confused time. They are the ones who have taught me most about same-sex attraction and that the teaching of the Church can be lived in a joyful and peaceful way without minimizing the struggle.
Courage is an apostolate of the Church. In a practical, concrete and personal way, it is an expression of the Church’s pastoral charity toward  men and women who have a homosexual inclination and to their parents, spouses or other family members.
The work of Courage is to enflesh the Gospel message in a particular group of people with a certain understanding of themselves and in those who love this group of people.
The word most closely associated with the Catholic Church and homosexuality in the civil order and within the Church is the word “No.” It is true, an erotic attraction to a member of the same sex cannot be acted upon. The Church does say “No” to that.
Yet the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the Gospel of “Yes” — yes to all people, yes to a universal invitation to the fullness of life in Christ, while understanding that Jesus told us that there are some actions that are incompatible with that new life.

You also work closely with the families of persons with same-sex attraction. Recently, Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, said that his son’s admission to him as a homosexual person led him to change his position on same-sex “marriage.” That response has become increasingly common.
The Golden Rule instructs us to treat others as we desire to be treated. However, the Golden Rule is not the foundation of Christian moral teaching. I could have a confused idea of how I would like people to treat me, and so my understanding of how the Golden Rule should be applied could also be confused. A person may seek loving affirmation for choices that are inconsistent with the gift of his or her humanity.
To properly understand the Golden Rule, we must begin with the words of Christ: “Love one another as I have loved you.”

Today, people increasingly view sexual inclinations as separate from a person’s sex and the power of the sexual faculty. What do you tell your members and their families who are asked to affirm this new vision?
Chesterton, in his book Orthodoxy, asks, “How does a man born upside down know when he is right side up?”
There are those who oppose the natural law and say, “We don’t like this idea of a design because it implies a ‘designer’ who would in someway constrain our freedom.”
Salvation history tells us that our first parents also rebelled against God, and said, “You are not our Father, and we are not your children.” They tried to create a new identity. And that has left us with the burden of original sin and concupiscence.
That interior turmoil is still in the heart of man, and it is experienced by all people throughout human history. In The Phaedrus, Plato uses the figure of a chariot with two horses pulling in opposite directions to explain an interior disjunction he feels right down to the core of this being. He lived in 400 B.C., but explains what we know to be true as Christians.
In Roman 7, St. Paul writes that "the good things I want to do, I don’t do. The evil things I don’t want to do, I do." St. Paul echoes Plato’s comments, but St. Paul, with the benefit of Revelation, knows why there is an internal disturbance and that it can be traced back to our first parents, who said, “God, you are not our Father, and we are not your children.”

The Church, then, offers a full understanding of the inner turmoil experienced by all of us, including persons with same-sex attraction. Yet many critics say that Catholic prohibitions against same-sex unions caused that inner turmoil.
The Church tells us that the desire for physical expression in the sexual realm can only be fulfilled in a way in keeping with the gift of our humanity, which is made plain in nature by the sexual complementarity of men and women and the procreative power of the sexual faculty.
Throughout sacred Scripture, male and female are described in nuptial terms. Christ describes his relationship with the Church, and therefore with individual souls, as a relationship between a bridegroom and a bride. The Church is understood to be feminine, and Our Lady, we say, is the archetype of the Church. The Church follows the example of Our Lady’s fiat in a thoughtful and deliberate “Yes.”
This “nuptial” or spousal relationship — the mystical marriage between God and humanity, Christ and the Church and Christ and the individual soul — has an icon in the complementarity of a man and a woman.
If we reflect upon the distinction in humanity between male and female, we ask ourselves: “Is there a moral and spiritual significance?” The Church has said, “Yes, there is.” She does not approach the question of homosexuality without an understanding of our identity, as it is revealed by nature and sacred Scripture.

So the inner turmoil must be addressed in the light of this truth. Nothing else will bring peace.
When two people enter into a conversation, they presume the other party will respect the goal and purpose of speech and community — to the best of their ability to convey the truth.
If we bring that expectation of true fulfillment to the sexual realm, we have to ask: “What makes that fulfillment possible, and what can frustrate it?” In Matthew 19:5-4, Our Lord tells us that the only authentic way our hope can be realized is if the “two shall become one flesh” in the only manner revealed to us by our humanity: that, from the beginning, God made them “male and female.”
His teaching verifies that we often fail to seek out authentic intimate relationships.
If we open the Catechism to the Sixth Commandment, we see there are different ways that man can act contrary to the gift of his humanity, resulting in great sadness, pain and loss of joy, not only divorce and adultery, but also fornication, contraception and pornography.
The sexual sphere brings with it a distinctively intense satisfaction that is unlike anything else. For that reason, the Church asks for a more thoughtful reflection of how we enter into that sphere.

While many demand that the Church retreat from its prohibition against same-sex unions, Courage continues to grow, and many people seek your counsel and participate in support groups.
Those who seek Courage do so because they feel that interior disquiet in the sexual sphere in particular. More than a few members have said, “Thank God the Church has consistently offered the fullness of truth. I might at times have wanted to hide from it, but the light of truth and the warmth of God’s grace and mercy have brought me back.”
All of us have conflicting voices within us. We need to know how to interpret them and thus to act in a more authentically human and loving way. When we make choices in the light of truth, we act with virtue.
Our members have had to pick themselves up over and over again. They don’t come to Courage because of a condemning or angry voice of the Church. They come because they see the thoughtfulness, the tenderness and the understanding the Church offers to help with the interior struggle that everyone but the Blessed Virgin Mary has experienced. It doesn’t mean they have stopped feeling strong urges, but they do find understanding, charity and fellowship.

How have families of your members been part of this struggle? You offer a separate group for families called Encourage.
Within the family, there is a great deal of suffering, whether the child is a teenager or an adult. No parents want to be estranged from their child, and no child wants to be estranged from his parents. The fear of estrangement causes great sorrow.
When I meet with the family, I try to encourage them to regain a sense of peace, which Augustine calls the “tranquility of order,” and to take counsel from many sources, including the Church.

In recent years, some critics of reparative therapy, which helps persons to overcome their unwanted same-sex attraction, say it’s wrong to connect sexual attraction with family dynamics and thus “blame” parents for their child’s condition. What’s the right approach to this sensitive issue?
There is nothing in our work or in the mind of the Church that says, “Here is the cause and the effect of family relationships that always leads to same-sex attraction.” As human beings, we are far too complex to offer simplistic explanations.
Let me make a few points first before we address family issues per se.
The data show that a person with same-sex attraction is seven times more likely to have experienced sexual abuse as a child or a minor.
I don’t say that everyone who is a victim will grow up to have same-sex attraction. But sexual contact, even when it’s unsolicited, leaves something in its wake. It’s not too much to say that people could have a distorted understanding of themselves if they were initiated into this sphere in the wrong way before they were mature.
Another issue is the question of perception on the part of people with same-sex attraction: How do they perceive themselves and members of the same and opposite sex?
We have filters through which we perceive reality. Some may not be helpful, and some may be truly distorting. We need humility, the virtue most closely associated with truth; otherwise, our perceptions may be inaccurate.
Family relationships can be decisive in the life of a child: the way the father loves the mother and the mother loves the father. That is formative for our own identity and for our relationship with members of the opposite sex.
Then there is the relationship between parent and child and how perception can influence the child’s understanding of it. For example, do they feel they have not lived up to their parent’s expectations? Please understand that I am not blaming parents, but, in humility, we can see why people ask questions about familial relationships because they are so important to us.
When we are dealing with parents, we try to keep them away from two poles — self-condemnation and self-justification. Neither extreme is useful, nor does it express humility or the truth.
The mind is searching for connections all the time. There is nothing wrong with asking: “What caused this?” But in a realm of deep emotion and complexity, we need peace of mind and heart before we can thoughtfully address anything.
I also try with parents to guard against the “emergency room” model.
When a child is injured or ill, it is a natural response for the parent to say, “I will take you to the emergency room to get this fixed.”
But if a young man or woman says to the parent, “This is who I am,” it is not good for the parent to say, “Don’t worry; we can fix you.” The child is not a problem to be fixed, and the child may also say, “I don’t need to be fixed.”

How should parents approach this challenge in a loving and respectful manner?
Christian parents seek to form their children after the mind and heart of Christ, so that the child will choose to live in a manner consistent with the Gospel, embracing the new life it proposes.
The parents’ example is critical. At the outset, parents must bring themselves to the foot of the cross and ask for the comfort of Our Lady, who stands there with them, and to appeal to the goodness of her Son to give them grace.
This struggle can go on for years, even decades. Without the grace of the cross, an authentic sacramental life, a commitment to prayer and a deep and personal relationship with Jesus Christ, this will be tremendously difficult.
It is easy to see how parents become discouraged and angry, so we cannot approach this challenge without deepening the foundations of our spiritual life. We cannot give what we do not have.

Has the growing acceptance of same-sex relationships and advocacy of same-sex “marriage” influenced young adults' choices to act on their same-sex attraction?
One particular challenge is social media. I am not condemning it, but when I was a child, my parents knew my friends and were aware of the outside influences in my life and in the house.
Today, children are growing up in a different world, and they are exposed to a lot of people that their parents know nothing about.
By the time parents come to us, their teenage child has often heard a chorus of voices from outside the family and the Church through social media. A higher degree of vigilance is necessary because there is more vulnerability and access to a wide range of voices.
Still, we can say to young people, “Do you want to go to heaven and be with Jesus?” Man has a supernatural end that cannot be satisfied by the goods of this world. If we have a desire for something that lasts forever, that is the pearl of great price, and we have to go to that Voice that can tell us how to preserve our inheritance. We have to elevate the conversation.

It must be hard for parents to affirm Church teaching when it may cause their child to turn away from them. Some come to believe they must support same-sex “marriage” to show their love for their children.
There can be a misplaced compassion and sentimentality that does not acknowledge the nuptial nature of man and the fullness of the Gospel teaching with regard to chastity. Chastity is part of the Good News!
When a child tells his parents he is attracted to members of the same sex, some parents respond by saying, “If this is how you feel, I can’t say your feelings are wrong, so you are free to act on them.”
In John 8:3-11, the Lord spoke to the woman caught in adultery, which is one of the acts against marriage. Our Lord forgave her, but also called her to conversion.
Our charity for any people with same-sex attraction should lead us to listen to why they feel as they do and to help them to try and understand themselves in a way consistent to the Gospel.
In John 8:32, Jesus says, “You can know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” That truth is not just about our eternity; it is also about the real source of joy in this life.
To abandon that truth will not bring us to authentic human freedom. The Lord established that the good of freedom is preserved by the good of truth. Our desires must be purified and properly directed according to reality. We will not move in the direction of freedom if we shun that reality.
The men and women of Courage have changed my priesthood. They have given me a greater understanding through their own example of the heart of Jesus Christ.

 

For more information: Courage/ Encourage holds an annual conference.
The 2013 conference is July 25-28 at the University of St. Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Ill.

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/loving-a-child-with-same-sex-attraction#ixzz2ONPCW9Iq

First reactions to Pope Francis

Saint Francis on honoring the Lord in the Eucharist: " ... buy beautiful chalices and beautiful vessels for the altar"

The great St. Francis of Assisi, (1182-1226), divided the world into different parts so that his Franciscan monks would be able to work in certain areas.  He reserved for himself the city of Paris, because he said, "In that country the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar is more honoured, than in any other place in the world".

The heart and soul of St. Francis was on fire with love for the most Blessed Sacrament.  He preached, “My people, it is your duty to give all you can, to buy beautiful chalices and beautiful vessels for the altar"  From then on, people have made an effort to have chalices and other altar vessels, made of gold and silver, wherever it was possible.

But greater than his love for the precious vessels, was his concern about the living tabernacles of men.  He encouraged his Third Order Franciscans to receive Holy Communion often, and not just once a year.  Although St. Francis was not a priest, he heard Mass every day and if he was sick he assisted at the Mass in a spiritual way.  Every time he received the Blessed Sacrament he went into ecstasy.

He used to say, "We religious bear the weight of the great sin and ignorance that certain ones have in regard to the Most Sacred Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and to His Most Holy Name.  If the Blessed Virgin Mary was honoured because she carried in her womb the very Son of God…  If Blessed John the Baptist trembled and dared not touch the head of Christ…  If the sepulcher which Jesus occupied is venerated; then it is just that he should be holy who touches with his hands, who receives with his lips and heart the immortal and glorious Body of Christ."

He would encourage the people, "With humility and charity I beg you dear people to use all the reverence and honour possible toward the most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, where Christ dwells in the midst of sinful men."

Image: Berto di Giovanni di Marco, "Saint Francis of Assisi", Walters

Pope Francis promotes Summorum Pontificum of Pope Benedict XVI

The very first thing Archbishop Bergoglio did after the publishing of Summorum Pontificum of Pope Benedict XVI was to promote the Traditional Latin Mass, the Extraordinary Form, in his Archdiocese, immediately directing that a chapel, to start with, be set up for this end.

Welcome Pope Francis! Benvenuto Papa Francesco!

The priest and people of Saint Francis de Sales Catholic Church in Benedict, Maryland, welcome our new Holy Father, Pope Francis, and assure him of our love and prayers.

Pope Francis' words from the loggia of Saint Peter's in Roma today after being presented to the people of Rome and to the world:

"Good evening!

"You know that the duty of the conclave was to provide Rome with a bishop. It looks as if my brothers the cardinals went to fetch him from the end of the world!  I’d like to thank you for your welcome. The people of Rome: thank you!

"I’d like to pray for Benedict XVI. Let’s pray altogether for him so that the Madonna can look after him.

[Then Pope Francis said the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary and the Gloria.]

"And now let’s start working together, walking together, in the Church of Rome.  This is the path of brotherhood and trust.  Let’s pray for each other because of the great brotherhood of the world. I pray the path will be fruitful for this beautiful city.  Now I will bless you. But I’d like to ask you a favour, for your prayer to bless me as your bishop. Let’s pray silently, your prayer for me.

[The stole was put around his shoulders.]

"I am going to bless you all and the entire world – all the men and women of good will…

[Pope Francis gave his urbi et orbi blessing, to huge cheers.]

"I’m going to leave you now. Good night, and I wish you peace."

Benevenuto, Santo Padre!  Viva il Papa!

George Weigel: "Dynamics of Conclaves 2005 and 2013 Very Different"

COMMENTARY

by GEORGE WEIGEL 03/13/2013 Comment

– Catholic News Agency

ROME — Despite an enormous amount of media chaff throughout April 2005, it was clear to those with eyes to see that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was the obvious, leading candidate to succeed John Paul II.

There is no such clear front-runner in 2013, although even more journalistic chaff is being vented into the atmosphere, primarily from Italian media sources whose ability to distinguish fact from fiction is not overly well-developed and who like to play Machiavellian games with this candidate and that.

Why no front-runner? As the general congregations of cardinals began on March 4, no cardinal had anything resembling the stature and authority of Cardinal Ratzinger in 2005; that's certainly one reason. But there are also unique dynamics shaping the 2013 conclave — and, ultimately, the selection of the next bishop of Rome.

1. Unlike 2005, there is an unsettling sense that the Church is in uncharted and perilous waters because of the abdication of Benedict XVI, an act that really has no precedent (other abdications having happened under very different circumstances). Will this abdication set up pressures on future popes, some of which cannot be imagined today? Does the possibility, already being bruited, that a very young man could be elected pope (because “he can do this for 15 years and then retire”) suggest a fundamental alteration in Catholic understandings of the papacy, changes that reduce the papacy to a Catholic variant on the role of the archbishopric of Canterbury in the Anglican Communion?

2. While there were concerns about the Vatican bureaucracy in 2005 — there always are when conclaves meet — there is, today, a widespread and firmly held conviction that the central administrative machinery of the Church is broken and that it must be fixed so that the Curia becomes an instrument of the New Evangelization, not an impediment to it. Needless to say, most of those involved in that curial machinery, i.e., cardinal electors who are either serving in the Curia or are retired from it (and who are some 20% of the electorate), have a different view. The disconnect between the reformers' perceptions of what's been going on and the defensiveness of many Curial cardinals has led to an undercurrent of anger that was not discernible in 2005 and that could lead to real tensions.

3. These two currents have, in turn, led to a strong reaction against what is perceived as an excessive and failed re-Italianization of the Vatican, the results of which were to make Benedict XVI's life and work far more difficult. As with complaints about the Curia, complaints about "the Italians" are a staple of pre-conclave conversation; but the tone, this time, is different. As one Italian friend, a distinguished academic and active Catholic layman, put it to me, "Our [Italian] culture has become corrupt"; and he believed, sadly, that that corruption had seeped behind the walls of the Vatican through the re-Italianization of the Roman Curia. A determination to deal with this aspect of the present Roman dysfunction will be another element in the 2013 conclave that was not present — or at least with such intensity — in 2005.

4. The Catholic Church is in the midst of a major change in leadership cadres or cohorts. Twenty percent of the 2013 electorate is retired. Only 8% of the cardinal electors are under 65. Men who have spent their entire ecclesiastical lives in the waning years of Counter-Reformation Catholicism are slowly being replaced by men who have grown into ecclesial maturity in the first phases of "Evangelical Catholicism," the Catholicism of the New Evangelization. The latter are the future, but their relative weight in this conclave is slight, and that tension will also be felt.

5. Finally, many cardinals admit that they don't know their brother cardinals very well. That's a problem I anticipated in Evangelical Catholicism: Deep Reform in the 21st-Century Church (Basic Books), where I proposed a biennial or triennial meeting of the College of Cardinals to assess the progress of the New Evangelization — and to let these men take each other's measure, with an eye to future conclaves. 

George Weigel is distinguished senior fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington.

Weigel’s column is distributed by the Denver Catholic Register, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Denver.

Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/dynamics-of-conclaves-2005-and-2013-very-different/#ixzz2NRC4xkhI

The Smoke Cam: Watching, waiting and praying

Paste this URL into your browser:

http://wtvr.com/2013/03/12/watch-live-vatican-smoke-cam/

"Ego te baptizo": A New Parents' Guide to the Solemn Rite of Baptism

John 3:3-5 "Jesus answered and said to him: Amen, amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith to him: How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born again? Jesus answered: Amen, amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

Matthew 28:19 "Going therefore, teach ye all nations: baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost."

Acts 2:38-39 "But Peter said to them: Do penance: and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins. And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, whomsoever the Lord our God shall call."

Solemn Baptism

First things first: Catholic parents should arrange for the Baptism of their newborn as soon as possible. Do not delay! It should be the first thing on the new parents' minds (well, maybe just after they count fingers and toes...). The name you choose for your child should, ideally, be that of a Saint; at the least, he should not be given a name that conflicts with the Faith or recalls anything unsavory. The name you, as a Christian parent, give your child is known as his "Christian name" for a reason (note that he will receive a new name at Confirmation, too).

Choosing Sponsors

When planning for a Baptism, sponsors (called "godparents" in the case of children) are chosen -- by the parents or by the catechumen himself, if he is of age -- to stand up for the catechumen during the Rite. The godparents act as witnesses and perform ritually in the same way that the Jewish kvatterin ("godmother") and kvatter ("godfather") pass a child to be circumcised from the former to the latter until the child reaches the mohel (the rabbi who circumcises). There should, ideally, be one male and one female for this task, both baptized Catholics who are in good standing with the Church and who've reached the age of sixteen. If two sponsors are unavailable, one will suffice. Among those who may not act as sponsor are: members of religious orders, spouses in respect to each other, parents in respect to their own children, infidels, heretics, members of condemned secret societies, and public sinners (Note: the 1983 Code of Canon Law does not mention that spouses may not sponsor each other and that members of religious orders may not act as sponsors. As to Christian heretics, it says that while Protestants may not act as sponsors, they may act as "witnesses"). The spiritual relationship formed between sponsor and the the one sponsored is so close that, traditionally speaking, it is considered an impediment to marriage if a sponsor were to attempt to marry anyone s/he sponsors, or even a parent of the one sponsored (the 1983 Code of Canon Law doesn't mention this tradition).

What Sponsors Do

In the case of children, the role of the godparent is to be that of "spiritual guardian" who takes up any "slack" in the child's catechesis, helps ensure that his godchild learns the Faith, and prays for the godchild throughout his life. St. Thomas Aquinas writes in his Summa Theologica III-67-8: Now it has been stated...that godparents take upon themselves the duties of a tutor. Consequently they are bound to watch over their godchildren when there is need for them to do so: for instance when and where children are brought up among unbelievers. But if they are brought up among Catholic Christians, the godparents may well be excused from this responsibility, since it may be presumed that the children will be carefully instructed by their parents. If, however, they perceive in any way that the contrary is the case, they would be bound, as far as they are able, to see to the spiritual welfare of their godchildren. This is a very solemn obligation, not one to be entered into lightly.

Parents should choose their child's godparents very carefully and select traditional Catholics who know the Faith, understand the obligations of godparenting, and are willing and able to live up to them. Parents and godparents should work together for the goal of helping the child to know, love, and serve God! During the Rite of Baptism, the godparents will answer for the child, that is, they will make the replies to the questions asked by the priest of the one to be baptized. Sponsors for adults should express the same type of concern for the newly baptized soul, helping to ease the person into Church life and answer questions that may arise.

During the Rite of Baptism, the sponsors for adults stand silent, with a hand on the candidate's shoulder (and sometimes signing the catechumen with the Cross, in some variations of the Rite); the one to be baptized answers the priest's questions himself. Cultural notes: it is common for sponsors to give a gift to the newly baptized on the day of his Baptism, and also common for the godparents of children to give gifts throughout the year, on days such as Christmas, Name Days, and birthdays -- to sort of act as an aunt or uncle would toward the child on special days such as these. These gifts need not be anything expensive, of course, but should be religious in nature.

Christening parties often follow Baptism -- especially after the Baptism of babies; they are usually small "family and close friends affairs" involving the serving of dessert and coffee. At these parties in Spanish cultures, the godfather will throw handfuls of coins to the children to scamper to gather up for "good luck." it is typical for guests at a Christening to give small gifts or cards to the newly baptized on the day of his Baptism, just as it is the custom for guests to do so for those who receive their First Communion, who are Confirmed, or who receive the Sacraments of Holy Matrimony or Holy Orders. it is customary to give the priest a stipend for his time, especially for a "stand-alone" Baptism, i.e., a Baptism that does not take place during the course of a regularly scheduled Mass. The Rite of Baptism Itself If the one to be baptized enters the Church during the most gorgeous Easter Vigil, the Rite of Baptism takes place during the Mass itself, after the Litany of the Saints and the Blessing of the Baptismal Waters.

If the one to be baptized is an infant, the Baptism takes place as soon as possible after birth. Otherwise, Baptism may take place any time the priest agrees. When adults are baptized, they usually receive Confirmation and their first Holy Communion at the same time. Infants are dressed in beautiful white christening gowns -- gowns which often become heirlooms and are carefully packed away to be used by future children (you might see baby boys dressed in tiny little white suits); these special christening outfits, which can be homemade or purchased at Catholic gift stores, aren't necessary, of course, but Baby should be dressed in white. Adult catechumens will wear either their "Sunday best" or, possibly, white albs, especially if they are received into the Church during the Easter Vigil.

Baptism can take place as a "stand alone" ceremony, or in the context of a Mass. The Rite itself is divided into 4 parts with different sub-parts, each bringing the catechumen further into the church building with each step, symbolizing initiation into the Church Herself: Part I: In the Narthex of the Church: The Questioning, the Exsufflation, The Sign of the Cross, The Imposition of Hands, The Imposition of Salt Part II: Admission into the Church Building: Exorcism, The Sign of the Cross, The Imposition of Hands, The Admission into the Church, The Credo and Pater Part III: In the Nave: The Solemn Exorcism, The Ephphetha, The Renunciation of Satan, The Annointing Part IV: At the Font: The Profession of Faith, Baptism, The Annointing with Chrism, The White Linen Cloth, The Lighted Candle, The Last Words of Good Will (Note that if a person is to be baptized during the Easter Vigil, the first 3 parts above might take place some time earlier than the Vigil itself. Then, during the Vigil, the rite is continued again starting with the Part IV.)

The Rite of Baptism

Part I: Outside the Church

The priest (wearing a violet stole), sponsors, and the catechumen stand in the narthex of the church, symbolizing that at this point, the candidate is not a member of the Church.

The Questioning

Priest: N., what do you ask of the Church of God? Priest: N., quid petis ab Ecclesia Dei

Sponsor/Catechumen: Faith. Sponsor/Catechumen: Fidem.

Priest: What does Faith offer you? Priest: Fides, quid tibi præstat?

Sponsor/Catechumen: Life everlasting. Sponsor/Catechumen: Vitam æternam.

Priest: If then you desire to enter into life, keep the commandments. ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul and with thy whole mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.' Priest: Si igitur vis ad vitam ingredi, serva mandata. Diligis Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo, et ex tota anima tua, et ex tota mente tua, et proximum tuum sicut teipsum.

The Exsufflation

The priest then breathes 3 times on the candidate in the form of a Cross, recalling the Spirit (breath, wind, "ruach") of God.

Priest: Go forth from him (her), unclean spirit, and give place to the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete. Priest: Exi ab eo (ea), immunde spiritus, et da locum Spiritui Sancto Paraclito.

The Sign of the Cross

The priest now makes the Sign of the Cross with his thumb on the candidate's forehead and breast.

Priest: Receive the Sign of the Cross both upon your forehead + and also upon your heart +; take to you the faith of the heavenly precepts; and so order your life as to be, from henceforth, the temple of God. Priest: Accipe signum Crucis tam in fronte, quam in corde, sume fidem cælestium præceptorum: et talis esto moribus, ut templum Dei iam esse possis.

Priest: Let us pray: Mercifully hear our prayers, we beseech Thee, O Lord; and by Thy perpetual assistance keep this Thine elect, N, signed with the sign of the Lord's cross, so that, preserving this first experience of the greatness of Thy glory, he (she) may deserve, by keeping Thy commandments, to attain to the glory of regeneration. Through Christ our Lord. Priest: Oremus: Preces nostras, quaesumus, Domine, clementer exaudi; et hunc electum tuum (hanc electam tuam), N. crucis Dominicae impressione signatum (-am), perpetua virtute custodi; ut magnitudinis gloriae tuae rudimenta servans, per custodiam mandatorum, ad regenerationis gloriam pervenire mereatur (-antur). Per Christum Dominum nostrum.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

The Imposition of Hands

The priest places his hands on the candidate's head.

Priest: Let us pray: Almighty, everlasting God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, look graciously down upon this Thy servant, N., whom Thou hast graciously called unto the beginnings of the faith; drive out from him (her) all blindness of heart; break all the toils of Satan wherewith he (she) was held: open unto him (her), O Lord, the gate of Thy loving kindness, that, being impressed with the sign of Thy wisdom, he (she) may be free from the foulness of all wicked desires, and in the sweet odor of Thy precepts may joyfully serve Thee in Thy Church, and grow in grace from day to day. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen. Priest: Oremus: Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, Pater Domini nostri Iesu Christi, respice dignare super hunc famulum tuum (hanc famulam tuam), N, quem (quam) ad rudimenta fidei vocare dignatus es: omnem caecitatem cordi ab eo (ea) expelle: disrumpe omnes laqueos Satanae, quibus fuerat (-ant) colligatus (-a); aperi ei, Domine ianuam pietatis tuae imbutus (-a), omnium cupiditatum foetoribus careat (-ant), et ad suavem odorem praeceptorum tuorum laetus tibi in Ecclesia tua deserviat, et proficiat de die in diem Per eundem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen. Priest: Through the same Christ our Lord. Priest: Per eundum Christum Dominum nostrum.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen

The Imposition of Salt

Now the priest puts a little blessed salt in the candidate's mouth. Salt is the symbol of that wisdom which gives a relish for the sweetness of divine nourishment; preserves, by the teaching of the Gospel, from the corruption of sin, and prevents evil passions from growing in men's souls. Adult catechumens might be signed on the brow, ears, eyes, nostrils, mouth, breast, and between the shoulders before the imposition of salt. If this procedure is followed, afterwards the candidate will kneel, recite the Our Father several times, and a Cross is made on his forehead, first by the sponsor and then by the priest.

Priest: N., Receive the salt of wisdom; let it be to thee a token of mercy unto everlasting life. May it make your way easy to eternal life. Priest: N., accipe sal sapientiæ: propitiatio sit tibi in vitam æternam.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

Priest: Peace be with you. Priest: Pax tecum.

Sponsor/Catechumen: And with your spirit.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Et cum spiritu tuo.

Priest: Let us pray: O God of our fathers, O God the Author of all truth, vouchsafe, we humbly beseech Thee, to look graciously down upon this Thy servant, N., and as he (she) tastes this first nutriment of salt, suffer him (her) no longer to hunger for want of heavenly food, to the end that he (she) may be always fervent in spirit, rejoicing in hope, always serving Thy name. Lead him (her), O Lord, we beseech Thee, to the laver of the new regeneration, that, together with Thy faithful, he may deserve to attain the everlasting rewards of Thy promises. Through Christ our Lord. Priest: Oremus: Deus patrum nostrorum, Deus universae conditor veritatis, te supplices exoramus, ut hunc famulum tuum (hanc famulam tuam) respicere digneris propitius, et hoc primum pabulum salis gustantem, non diutius esurire permittas, quo minus cibo expleatur caelesti, quatenus sit semper spiritu fervens, spe gaudens, tuo semper nomini serviens. Perduc eum (eam), Domine, quaesumus ad novae regenerationis lavacrum, ut cum fidelibus tuis promissionum tuarum aeterna praemia consequi mereatur. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Priest: Through the same Christ our Lord. Priest: Per eundum Christum Dominum nostrum. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen

Part II: Admission into the Church Building

The Exorcism

The priest makes the Sign of the Cross over the candidate three times and says: Priest: I exorcise thee, unclean spirit, in the name of the Father + and of the Son, + and of the Holy + Spirit, that thou goest out and depart from this servant of God, N. For He commands Thee, accursed one, Who walked upon the sea, and stretched out His right hand to Peter about to sink. Therefore, accursed devil, acknowledge thy sentence, and give honor to the living and true God: give honor to Jesus Christ His Son, and to the Holy Spirit; and depart from this servant of God, N. because God and our Lord Jesus Christ hath vouchsafed to call him (her) to His holy grace and benediction and to the font of Baptism. Priest: Exorcizo te, immunde spiritus, in nomine Patris + et Filii + et Spiritus + Sancti, ut exeas, et recedas ab hoc famulo (hac famula) Dei N.: ipse enim tibi imperat, maledicte damnate, qui pedibus super mare ambulavit, et Petro mergenti dexteram porrexit. Ergo, maledicte diabole, recognosce sententiam tuam, et da honorem Deo vivo et vero, da honorem Iesu Christo Filio eius, et Spiritui Sancto, et recede ab hoc famulo (hac famula) Dei N, quia istum (-am) sibi Deus et Dominus noster Iesus Christus ad suam sanctam gratiam, et benedictionem, fontemque Baptismatis vocare dignatus est.

The Sign of the Cross

The priest again makes the Sign of the Cross on the candidate's forehead Priest: And this sign of the holy Cross, which we make upon his (her) forehead, do thou, accursed devil, never dare to violate. Priest: Et hoc signum sanctae Crucis, + quod nos fronti eius damus, tu, maledicte diabole, numquam audeas violare. Priest: Through the same Christ our Lord. Priest: Per eundum Christum Dominum nostrum. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen

The Imposition of Hands

For the final time, the priest lays his hand on the candidate's head

Priest: Let us pray: O Holy Lord, Father Almighty, Eternal God, Author of light and truth, I implore Thine everlasting and most just goodness upon this Thy servant N., that Thou wouldst vouchsafe to enlighten him (her) with the light of Thy wisdom: cleanse him (her) and sanctify him (her), give unto him (her) true knowledge; that, being made worthy of the grace of Thy Baptism, he (she) may hold firm hope, right counsel and holy doctrine. Priest: Oremus: Aeternam, ac iustissimam pietatem tuam deprecor, Domine, sancte Pater omnipotens, aeterne Deus, auctor luminis et veritatis, super hunc famulum tuum (hanc famulam tuam) N, ut digneris eum (eam) illuminare lumine intelligentiae tuae: munda eum (eam), et sanctifica: da ei scientiam veram, ut, dignus (-a) gratia Baptismi tui effectus (-a), teneat (-ant) firmam spem, consilium rectum, doctrinam sanctam. Priest:Through Christ our Lord. Priest: Per Christum Dominum nostrum.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

Admission into the Church Building

The priest lays the end of his stole on the candidate as a symbol of his priestly authority, and admits him into the church building, which is the symbol of the Church of Christ. If the catechumen is an adult and was anointed in Part I above, he may be asked to lie prostrate before the Altar in adoration of Christ before this next step.

Priest: N., enter thou into the temple of God, that thou mayest have part with Christ unto life everlasting. Priest: N., ingredere in templum Dei, ut habeas (-ant) partem cum Christo in vitam aeternam. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

The Credo and Pater

Sponsor/Catechumen: I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into Hell. On the third day, He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence shall He come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy Catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Credo in Deum, Patrem omnipotentem, Creatorem cæli et terræ. Et in Iesum Christum, Filium eius unicum, Dominum nostrum: qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, natus ex Maria Virgine, passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus, et sepultus: descendit ad inferos; tertia die resurrexit a mortuis; ascendit ad cælos; sedet ad dexteram Dei Patris omnipotentis; inde venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos. Credo in Spiritum Sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, Sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, vitam æternam. Amen.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation: but deliver us from evil. Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Pater noster, qui es in cælis, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in cælo, et in terra. Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie. Et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem: sed libera nos a malo. Amen.

Part III: In the Nave of the Church

The Solemn Exorcism

Priest: I exorcise thee, every unclean spirit, in the name of God the Father + Almighty, in the name of Jesus + Christ, His Son, our Lord and Judge, and in the power of the Holy + Spirit, that thou be depart from this creature of God N, which our Lord hath deigned to call unto His holy temple, that it may be made the temple of the living God, and that the Holy Spirit may dwell therein. Through the same Christ our Lord, who shall come to judge the living and the dead, and the world by fire

Priest: Exorcizo te, omnis spiritus immunde, in nomine Dei + Patris omnipotentis, et in nomine Iesu + Christi Filii eius, Domini et Iudicis nostri, et in virtute Spiritus + Sancti, ut discedas ab hoc plasmate Dei N, quod Dominus noster ad templum sanctum suum vocare dignatus est, ut fiat templum Dei vivi, et Spiritus Sanctus habitet in eo. Per eundum Christum Dominum nostrum, qui venturus est iudicare vivos et mortuos, et saeculum per ignem.

The Ephpheta

The priest takes a little spittle and touches the ears and nostrils of the candidate with it. For health reasons, the use of spittle may be omitted. This rite comes from Mark 7:33-35, when Jesus healed the deaf-mute: "And taking him from the multitude apart, he put his fingers into his ears: and spitting, he touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he groaned and said to him: Ephpheta, which is, Be thou opened. And immediately his ears were opened and the string of his tongue was loosed and he spoke right.". Priest: Ephpheta, that is to say, Be opened, for an odour of sweetness. Be thou, devil, begone; for the judgement of God shall draw near.

Priest: Ephpheta, quod est, Adaperire. In odorem suavitatis. Tu autem effugare, diabole; appropinquabit enim iudicium Dei. The Renunciation of Satan Priest: N., do you renounce Satan? Priest: N., abrenuntias Satanæ? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do renounce him. Sponsor/Catechumen: Abrenuntio. Priest: And all of his works? Priest: Et omnibus operibus eius? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do renounce him. Sponsor/Catechumen: Abrenuntio. Priest: And all his pomps? Priest: Et omnibus pompis eius? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do renounce him. Sponsor/Catechumen: Abrenuntio.

The Anointing

The priest annoints the candidate with the oil of catechumens on the heart and between the shoulders in the form of a Cross, saying:

Priest: I annoint you + with the oil of salvation in Christ Jesus our Lord, that you may have everlasting life.

Priest: Ego te linio Oleo salutis in Christo Iesu Domino nostro, ut habeas vitam æternam. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

Part IV: At the Font

The priest removes his violet stole and puts on a white one.

The Profession of Faith Priest: N., do you believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth? Priest: N., credis in Deum Patrem omnipotentem, creatorem cæli et terram ? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe. Sponsor/Catechumen: Credo. Priest: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, Who was born and Who suffered?

Priest: Credis in Iesum Christum, Filium eius unicum, Dominum nostrum, natum, et passum? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe. Sponsor/Catechumen: Credo.

Priest: Do you believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting?

Priest: Credis et in Spiritum sanctum, sanctam Ecclesiam catholicam, Sanctorum communionem, remissionem peccatorum, carnis resurrectionem, et vitam æternam? Sponsor/Catechumen: I do believe. Sponsor/Catechumen: Credo.

Baptism (Matter and Form of the Sacrament)

If the one to be baptized is a baby, the godparents take him to the font (the godmother holds him in her arms, the godfather touches the baby's shoulder with his right hand); if he is an adult, the sponsor puts his right hand on the shoulder of the one to be baptized.

Priest: N., will you be baptized? Priest: N., vis baptizari? Sponsor/Catechumen: I will. Sponsor/Catechumen: Volo.

The priest pours water over the head of the candidate three times, once after each mention of the Divine Persons. The water he uses will have been consecrated during the Easter Vigil or on the Eve of the Pentecost. As he pours the water, the priest says these words (or the words of a conditional Baptism):

Priest: I baptize you in the name of the Father + and of the Son + and of the Holy + Spirit. Priest: N, ego te baptizo in nomine + Patris, et Filii, +, et Spiritus + Sancti.

The Anointing with Chrism

Priest: May the Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who hath regenerated thee by water and the Holy Spirit, and who hath given thee the remission of all thy sins, may He Himself + anoint thee with the Chrism of Salvation, in the same Christ Jesus our Lord, unto life eternal.

Priest: Deus omnipotens, Pater Domini nostri Iesu Christi, qui te regeneravit ex aqua et Spiritu Sancto, quique dedit tibi remissionem omnium peccatorum, ipse te + liniat Chrismate Salutis in eodem Christo Iesu Domino nostro in vitam aeternam. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

Priest: Peace be with you. Priest: Pax tibi.

Sponsor/Catechumen: And with your spirit. Sponsor/Catechumen: Et cum spiritu tuo.

The White Linen Cloth

This priest takes a white linen cloth -- symbolizing the purity of a soul cleansed from all sin, and a relic of the days when the newly baptized wore white albs for 8 days -- and places it on the head of the candidate.

Priest: Receive this white garment, which mayest thou carry without stain before the judgment seat of our Lord Jesus Christ, that thou mayest have life everlasting.

Priest: Accipe vestem candidam, quam perferas immaculatam ante tribunalem Domini nostri Iesu Christi, ut habeas vitam æternam. Amen.

The Lighted Candle

The priest gives the candidate or the sponsor a lighted candle.

Priest: Receive this burning light, and keep thy Baptism so as to be without blame: keep the commandments of God, that when the Lord shall come to the nuptials, thou mayest meet Him together with all the Saints in the heavenly court, and mayest have eternal life and live for ever and ever.

Priest: Accipe lampadem ardentem, et irreprehensibilis custodi Baptismum tuum: serva Dei mandata ut cum Dominus venerit ad nuptias, possis occurrere ei una cum omnibus Sanctis in aula caelesti, habeasque vitam aeternam, et vivas in saecula saeculorum. Last Words of Good Will

Priest: N., go in peace and the Lord be with you. Amen. Priest: N., vade in pace et Dominus sit tecum. Amen.

Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen. Sponsor/Catechumen: Amen.

Reject gossip about the Church as you would for anyone; seek the good in the Church as you do in anyone

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK

Never have so many people written and spoken so much about some­thing they understand so little. In the face of the libelous unfounded rumors, gossip, and scurrilous innuendo being peddled about the Church and her members by journalists who easily entertain fantasies in order to sell newspapers, make a name for themselves, and perpetuate “ trends” in the news, I have a statement to make.

I have had the completely unmerited privilege in the past few years of getting to know a Vatican insider, a man of rank, experience, and influence who served at one time within the Roman Curia. He is one of the kindest, most humble, and good people I know and an example of the many dedicated, sincere, and committed Catholic Christians who have the privilege and duty of assisting the Holy Father our Pope in his mission as universal pastor in Rome and elsewhere around the world.

He is tireless in his ministry and very seldom is seen to take time for himself in his many travels to seek out the members of the Lord’s flock and to serve them as an “ alter Christus.” He is not the only one who is both living his faith and serving the Church as a true servant: There are many more like him who will never be known because they do not pro­mote themselves in the media and the media are not interested in the good, the true, and the beautiful, especially as they are found in the Lord’s Mystical Body, which is the Church on earth.

Those who are shocked by the existence of sinners in the Church are like the Pharisees who refused to sit and eat with Christ because He associated with tax collectors and prostitutes. They are yet far from the Kingdom of God and certainly need our prayers and the witness of our kindness.

Those who hate the Church will certainly use sin against her, but those who love her should be among the last to find themselves scandalized, knowing themselves, and all who share the privilege of being members of the Body of Christ, to be sinners also in need of mercy and redemp­tion in Christ.

Fasting and prayer are the first recourse for those who seek to cast out evil in themselves or in the Church.

Those who have faith, however, are first and foremost responsible for seeing the good and the Godly in all mankind, sinners and saints. Those who call themselves Christians have the first duty to live the life of grace in desire for their own salvation and as part of that experience to see the image and likeness of God in everyone, for “ God desires all to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.” We have the duty, also, to pray for our Holy Father and all who collaborate with him in his ministry.

And, finally, we are called to refuse to participate in detraction and calumny which are sinful and to “ never let evil talk pass your lips; say only the good things men need to hear, such as will help them on the day of the Lord Jesus.”

Reject gossip about the Church as you would for anyone; seek the good in the Church as you do in anyone.

Father Cusick's columns appear weekly in The Wanderer Catholic Newspaper.  This column appeared in the March 7, 2013 issue of the paper.

(Subscribe to updates on Facebook at Reverendo Padre-Kevin Michael Cusick or follow on Twitter at MCITL. Visit Meeting Christ in the Lit­urgy at mcitl. blogspot. com for teachings from the Catechism of the Cath­olic Church paired with the Scriptures of Holy Mass for every day of the week. Fr. Cusick blogs at APriestLife. blogspot. com and you can e­mail him at mcitl. blogspot. com@gmail.com).

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Roman vestments and customs: the manutergium

The manutergium is a long rectangular cloth used for practical reasons after the anointing of the priest's hands in the ordination rite to prevent the oils from dripping onto vestments or elsewhere.

I arranged for manutergia to be made for me and as gifts for my priesthood classmates in 1992.  We were discouraged from using the linens as pictured here so we suspended them from our cinctures and then used them for removing the oils from our hands after anointing by the ordaining bishop, Cardinal Hickey.  I then gave my manutergium to my mother who still keeps it as a memento of my ordination.

More from Monsignor Charles Pope:

I was privileged to preach the First Mass of Fr. John Reutemann. It was a beautiful Mass. I was also pleased to see that he has kept a custom that had recently been lost in the western Church. He presented the manutergium to his mother.

“What,” you may ask, “Is the manutergium?” The manutergium (from the Latin manu+tergium = hand towel) was a long cloth that was wrapped around the hands of the newly ordained priest after the Bishop anointed his hands with the sacred Chrism (oil). The purpose was to prevent excess oil from dripping onto vestments or the floor during the remainder of the ordination rites. (In the picture to the right, the newly ordained priest has his hands wrapped with the manutergium).

The use of the manutergium was discontinued in the current Rite of Ordination. Currently, the newly ordained steps aside to a table after his hands are anointed and uses a purificator to wipe away any excess oil. While it is not technically called the manutergium nor is it exactly the same in design or usage, (for the hands are not wrapped by it), nevertheless this is still a cloth used to wipe away the excess Chrism (oil).

Manutergium redivivus! In recent years many newly ordained have carefully set aside these purificators in a bag with their name on it so that they may retain this purifiular lcator and present it to their mother. The same word has been retained for the cloth (manutergium).

According to tradition, the mother of a priest is to keep this precious cloth in a safe place. Upon her death this cloth is placed in her hand as her body lies in the casket. It serves as a reminder that one of her sons is a priest. She, according to tradition has this as a special glory, and is to present this manutergium to the Lord at her judgement. Although there is no free ticket to heaven, it is a special honor to have borne a son who became a priest. As I said, Fr. Reutemann presented his manutergium to his mother.

My own story - I also presented the manutergium to my mother 21 years ago. It was very rare in those days for a priest to do so, but I had read of this tradition and was taken by it. I carefully set aside the cloth I had used to wipe my hands in a bag with my name and asked a seminarian friend of mine who was serving the mass to “guard it with his life!” He did so and proudly handed it to me after the mass having acquitted well his sacred duty. At my first Mass I presented it to my mother.

Five years ago my mother died very suddenly. I wondered if we could find the manutergium in her effects. Sure enough there it was carefully stored in her dresser. I sadly but proudly placed it in her hands at the funeral home and she carried it to her grave. I wept as the casket was closed, but the last sight I had was of my mother carrying that maniturgia to present to the Lord. I pray the Lord well considered it as my mother appeared before him for the great judgment we must all face.

A beautiful tradition from the Lost Liturgies file. Magnificently, this tradition is reviving as many younger priests practice it in a new but similar way.

This video shows the anointing of the priest’s hands in the Current Rite of Ordination. As the Bishop anoints the hands of the priest he says: The Lord Jesus Christ, whom the Father anointed with the Holy Spirit, empower, guard and preserve you, that you may sanctify the Christian people and offer sacrifice to God.

Pope Benedict's farewell lesson is one Americans should heed

Pope Benedict's resignation offers a counterculture message not just to Catholics, but Americans writ large

Benedict XVI gave his last speech and blessing from the Vatican before flying to Castel Gandolfo. Photograph: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Getty Images

Elizabeth Scalia

There was a striking sense of puzzlement amid American coverage of Benedict XVI's last day as pope. Even as they tried to capture every move and softly spoken word, media pronouncements contained a note of inexplicability, like punctuation marks strewn within the margins of a book. Behind their questions lay a sense of real confusion. Was this for real? Did anyone believe a man would remove himself from a throne to simply disappear from sight? He's going to still publish and speak … right?

Pope Benedict has pretty consistently confounded the press. When the shy, professorial man with the awkward body language did not align in any way with the "rottweiler" caricatures they assigned. Most media folk adapted to that reality with the more mature among them even admitted that Ratzinger's nature was more pastoral than expected.

His leave-taking confounded them again. What was happening before their eyes did not equate with American understandings of job identity, power or utility. The strangeness of it all almost seemed to evoke a sense of wonder and if so, that's a very good thing – not just for the press, but for all of us watching in America.

Saint Gregory of Nyssa taught that "ideas lead to idolatry; only wonder leads to knowing." If we are caught in wonder at Benedict's departure, then this "teaching pope" has provided one more thoughtful lesson that could deeply influence Americans willing to ponder it out.

Stereotypes are usually rooted in truth and not for nothing is the stereotypical American described as "optimistic, work-obsessed and materially prosperous". We are accustomed to identifying ourselves not by who we are, but by what we do. And we really are, by and large, optimists. A great deal of that optimism hangs on the illusion – and we love this illusion – that in our "classless" society there resides a world full of choices, and on the idea that hard work brings desired results. We believe success builds upon itself in our pursuit of power, position and prosperity – all of which, in return, assist in our philanthropies, because we also believe that we are a generous nation, eager to do good by others.

Today, before our eyes, Pope Benedict's life and actions addressed all of that. Whatever his departure meant to the rest of the world, it said to Americans and their ideals, "no one is irreplaceable; power isn't everything; not everything is your choice; sometimes bread cast upon the waters comes back soggy."
"Well", some might think, "thanks a lot, Papa, for that encouraging message."

In fact, Americans should be encouraged by it. There still resides within us the Calvinistic work ethic, the notion that one deserves because one has earned, and that one's worth is all tied up in those earnings. We feel driven to "push it" (whether it be a job, a relationship, a policy, a bottom line) from one goal to the next. There is a constant sense of striving to earn more, do more, own more, than the next guy. It is a mindset that has parents of not-yet-newborns fighting for a spot at the "best" pre-schools; parents of 13-year-olds pestering them about their eventual college essays. It is a culture that celebrates the "winner", ignores the "loser" and encourages the weird Kardashian life goal of pursuing fame for its own sake.

Still, we continue to push the limits: our powerful until they are only corrupt, our daring athletes until they are only doping apes, our rich until they are ridiculous.

All of this continual advancing doesn't leave us happy and fulfilled. This is what Jesus meant when he said "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Luke 12:34), the life of endless pursuit, ungrounded by something larger than the self, brings us only to the sort of futile emptiness that wreaks havoc on our souls and provides so much fodder for so many gossipy headlines.

And this is where Benedict's lesson comes in, because today, as he entered Castel Gandolfo, and called himself "no longer the pope … just a pilgrim", he put the lie to many American ideas and illusions and instead offered encouragement we should take to heart – particularly as our economy shudders and our leadership continues to spar rather than lead.

To those who are out of work or worried about their jobs, Benedict's move says, "what you do does not define who you are." To those experiencing "downward mobility" it says: "your trappings make you less free; do not be afraid to shed them." To those who feel like choices have disappeared, it says: "when someone else chooses for you, what you make of it is your own."

To those whose efforts are deemed inadequate by others, it says: "don't judge yourself." To those living through rejection, scorn or bullying, it says: "there is a higher and unconditional love waiting for a chance to embrace you." To lives turbulent and overly busy it says: "prayer can be peaceful productivity."

For Americans these are radically countercultural messages, and if we take them to heart, we may find that Benedict's legacy to us is a path he has culled by his own example, one that puts us on an escape route from relentless doing, to the treasure of being.

Source: http://m.guardiannews.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/28/pope-benedict-resignation-lesson-for-americans