German Synod attempts to abolish the priesthood
The Synodal Way has given the green light, with the majority of only one vote, to a further revision of the text "Priestly Existence Today", practically leaving open the debate on the abolition of the priesthood. For Cardinal Cordes this is a confirmation of the "heretical thrust". And a threat of schism that the Pope is called to face.
Bergoglio vs. Francis. A new concept of the papacy
Today the dominant Catholic theology holds that the Christian faith and the life of the Church is a historical process and that all life in the Spirit does not come from outside but passes through the concreteness of history. Remaining Bergoglio is therefore essential to being pope, because the papacy is not something that is "above" or "beyond" the man Bergoglio, but the Spirit opens up avenues of self-communication precisely from within that personal history.
The Legion of Mary, a legacy to be rediscovered
A hundred years have passed since the native Irish Frank Duff founded the Legion of Mary, a lay organization that today has over ten million members all over the world. Marked by a strong Marian spirituality, Duff's legacy is still evident in the works of mercy it provides to prisoners, prostitutes, the homeless, drug addicts. His idea of the mission of the laity in the Church both anticipated and was taken as a model by Vatican II. Yet Ireland and even Catholic circles seem to have forgotten this.
Civil unions "contrary to the common good". Signed Benedict
In his latest article - published in the collection “The True Europe. Identity and Mission”, with an introduction by Pope Francis - Ratzinger underlines the gravity of the legal approval of homosexual unions, which produces consequences "contrary to the common good". Laws to this effect clear the way for a concept that debases the dignity of man, reducing him to a "product", and is therefore against "the ecology of man", created in the image and likeness of God, and therefore sacrosanct. This text by the Pope Emeritus recalls the truth always taught by the Church, but forgotten in Bergoglio's recent in-flight press conference on his return from Slovakia.
The Sorrows of St Joseph, a means to glory
The devotion of the “Seven Sorrows and Seven Joys of St Joseph” helps us to meditate on some of the greatest mysteries of the hidden life of Jesus, from the inner perspective of Mary's spouse. Venerable Mary of Ágreda recounts how he suffered various infirmities for several years before he died, passing on to us two great lessons: how to endure illness and the exercise of charity towards the sick.
And in Slovakia the Pope rehabilitates “gay” bishop
Pope Francis' visit to Slovakia ended with the rehabilitation in public opinion of the former bishop of Trnava, Robert Bezák, who was deposed by Benedict XVI in 2012 and also accused of having created a network of homosexual priests. Embarrassment at the Bishops' Conference.
Mary is the Eucharistic woman, we should imitate Her
«The Mother of God is the first living tabernacle in history. She carried Jesus in her womb and handed him over to men, as their path to holiness and nourishment in their lives.... Modern man is lost precisely because he no longer dedicates time to prayer, particularly to silent prayer... Let’s ask Jesus in the Eucharist to fill us with His presence and to make us tabernacles of His body in our daily lives, just as the Virgin Mary was». Excerpts from an homily at the International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest.
"Listen", but to whom? The Synod’s empty words
The next synodal phase exploring ‘synodality’ has just published two documents. Key words scattered throughout the Vadenecum handbook (listening, inclusion, participation, dreaming, hope, novelty, change, stereotypes, prejudices, dialogue, reconciliation, sharing, peripheries, discernment, accessibility, equity, co-responsibility) are words that are so empty, being void of any specific significance, that they are fillable with any potential meaning. For example, do ‘inclusion’ and ‘dialogue’ also regard heresy? Is ‘sharing’ a value in itself regardless of the content being shared? Do ‘stereotypes’ and ‘prejudices’ also concern elements of doctrine?
Resignation and Pope Emeritus, another mess is brewing
A new Motu Proprio to regulate the "emeritus papacy", a canonical problem effectively left open by Benedict XVI, is expected soon. What according to his predecessor was to remain an exception, for Francis it would become an institution along with all the problems that this entails because by its very nature only one person can assume the title of “pope.” The proposed hypothesis of retirement at 85 would be a blow to the heart of the Petrine office.
Italian seminary: not vaccinated, no place for priesthood
The priest of tomorrow will not need to be saintly, but vaccinated. The glorious seminary of Milan has become the first educational institution to impose compulsory vaccination. A letter to the 120 seminarians reads: “You must all be vaccinated before returning from holiday”. The vice-rector, in turn, confirms the decision to the Daily Compass: “We are doing it to return to a more serene life”. And the seminarians who are against it are branded ideologues.
Saint Joseph, Master of Contemplatives
There was no tension in Mary's spouse between the active and the contemplative life, for both were expressions of love. The example of his bride and the daily presence of Jesus helped him reach the heights of contemplation. And this is why saints exhort the faithful to take St. Joseph as the master of their own interior life.
Vanhoye, the Biblicist who said no to women priests
French Cardinal Albert Vanhoye, the oldest member of the Sacred College and a renowned exegete, died in Rome on July 29. Esteemed by Ratzinger, he became secretary of the Pontifical Biblical Commission and headed the working group that drafted “The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church”. It was a long-awaited document that, among other things, put a stop to the excesses of the feminist approach such as the idea of women priests, which Vanhoye took care to demolish in one of his writings on the Letter to the Galatians.
