Fishers of Men Online

The Fishers of Men video is now available online through Catholic Online.

Click here to watch it.

Happy Easter

As we celebrate of Resurrection of Our Lord,

I wish you God's best blessings.

Know that you are always in my prayers

and please remember me in yours.

Happy Easter!

He is Risen, Alleluia!

Vestments for the Papal Mass

I don't have a picture of the vestments which will be worn by the clergy at the Papal Masses in New York, but I know where they are coming from.

They are being made by Stadelmaier, a company which is known for their...ummmm...unique designs. Expect more of the same. Also, the owner of the company which is providing all the liturgical supplies has announced that the Holy Father will be wearing his own vestments.

Spy Wednesday

I have too much work to do right now to write my Spy Wednesday post, so it will remain trapped in my head.

I will let Clerical Whispers do the talking for me since his post is very similar to the one I intended to post.

Also, check out my post from last year which features Pope Benedict's thoughts on the Triduum.

The US Papal Visit Schedule

From VIS

The Holy See Press Office today published the programme of Benedict XVI's forthcoming apostolic trip to the United States of America, including his visit to the headquarters of the United Nations, due to take place from 15 to 21 April.

The Pope will depart from Rome's Fiumicino airport at midday on Tuesday 15 April and land at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington at 4 p.m. local time, where he will be greeted by U.S. President George W. Bush and his wife.

The welcome ceremony will be held at 10.30 a.m. on Wednesday 16 April, after which the Pope will make a courtesy visit to the U.S. president at the White House. That afternoon he will preside at the celebration of Vespers and hold a meeting with U.S. bishops at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

Benedict XVI will celebrate Mass at 10 a.m. on Thursday 17 April in the Nationals Stadium in Washington. At 5 p.m. on the same day he will participate in a meeting with representatives from Catholic universities at the Catholic University of America, also in Washington, then meet with representatives of other religions in the city's Pope John Paul II Cultural Centre.

On the morning of Friday 18 April, the Holy Father will travel from Washington to New York where, at 10.45 a.m., he is scheduled to address the General Assembly of the United Nations. That evening he is due to participate in an ecumenical meeting at the church of St. Joseph in New York.

At 9.15 a.m. on Saturday, 19 April, the Holy Father will celebrate Mass with priests and religious in St. Patrick's Cathedral. He will then lunch with bishops of the archdiocese of New York and, at 4.30 p.m., preside at a meeting with young people and seminarians at the seminary of St. Joseph.

On Sunday 20 April, Benedict XVI is to visit "Ground zero" where he will pray for the victims of the attacks of 11 September 2001. At 2.30 p.m. he will celebrate Mass at New York's Yankee Stadium.

The departure ceremony will be held at 8 p.m. on the same day, at New York's John Fitzgerald Kennedy international airport. The papal plane is due to land at the Roman airport of Ciampino at 10.45 a.m. local time on Monday 21 April.

Souvenirs, Get Your Papal Souvenirs

There is only one official place to get Papal Visit souvenirs online. The shop is not set up yet, but you can give your name and e-mail address to get notified when the store opens.

The address is http://www.papalvisit2008.com/

Happy Shopping!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Today is St. Patrick's day. Officially, there is no St. Patrick's day this year. Although when St. Joseph's Day was transferred to March 14th, some dioceses transferred St. Patrick's Day to March 14th or 15th.

Boston.com has some video up from the Mass. I'm in it, but you'll have to guess which one I am.

The Archdiocese of Boston was one of the dioceses that did not transfer the memorial, but chose to have a low-key celebration today. Here are a few pictures from this afternoon's Mass at the Cathedral.



































Shamrocks were blessed during Mass and given to the faithful.

Sheet Music Bleg

Hi folks, I don't post many blegs here but this is a special request for a very special friend.

One of my friends us approaching the 25th anniversary of his priestly ordination. The Van Dessel Holy Holy (I believe from the Mass in Honor of St. Joseph) was sung at his first Mass and he would love for it to be sung again at his anniversary Mass.

If anyone knows where I can get the music for this piece I would be so grateful. Please, this would mean so much to this very good priest.

Papal Video Contest

I recently posted about the Papal Skateboard contest and in responding to a comment I said that there had to be a better way to get the kids involved. Well, I found it and it comes from D.C.

The Archdiocese of Washington is running a video contest. The video will be used to welcome the Holy Father. The contest is open to groups of five or more young people in grades K-12 living in the archdioceses of Washington, Baltimore, and the Diocese of Arlington. There will be at least three winning groups and each winning group will receive 15 tickets to the Mass at Nationals Park. Their videos may also be shown before the Mass.

Now that is how to get the youth involved! WTG Washington.

Unfortunately, the contest deadline is March 17th so anyone who wants to submit a video only has a few days left. Get more info here.

Iraqi Archbishop Murdered

Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho has become the latest Iraqi martyr. The body of the Chaldean archbishop of Mosul, was found this morning. Please pray for his soul and those of his murderers. Christians in Iraq are in particular danger and I believe the archbishop's murder was a tool used by the terrorists to force the Christians to leave.

From Asia News:

The Chaldean archbishop of Mosul had been dead for at least five days before his body was found this morning by some members of the Church, following information provided by the kidnappers themselves. This timeline is provided by the autopsy conducted on the body of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho, found in an abandoned area outside of the city, which is in part used as a trash dump. This information comes to AsiaNews from sources close to the deceased bishop. Archbishop Rahho had been buried, says Bishop Warduni, auxiliary bishop of Baghdad.

There do not seem to be any signs of violence on the body of the prelate, who was kidnapped on February 29. He probably died because of the lack of medicines that he had to take regularly because of his serious health problems. But the causes of his death are still not clear.

Archbishop Rahho and the three men who were with him at the moment of the ambush join the long list of Christians killed in Iraq. Mosul confirms its place as the most dangerous city for the Christian community, the presence of which has dropped by two thirds since 2003. This diocese has paid a heavy tribute in blood. In 2007 alone, at least 13 Christians are believed to have been killed - including Fr Ragheed Gani, slaughtered on June 3 - as well as two priests and a kidnapped bishop. There have been many attacks on Christian targets. The latest wave of violence came from January 6-17, 2008, when a series of explosions struck the Chaldean Church of Mary Immaculate, the Chaldean Church of St. Paul, which was almost destroyed, the entryway to the orphanage run by the Chaldean sisters in al Nour, a Nestorian church, and the convent of the Dominican sisters of Mosul Jadida.

According to a list drawn up by AsiaNews, a total of 47 people died of violent causes in Iraq last year, at least 13 of them in Mosul alone.

Pope Benedict XVI has sent a telegram to Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, Iraq.

In his telegram the Pope expressed his closeness "to the Chaldean Church and to the entire Christian community", and reaffirmed his "condemnation for an act of inhuman violence which offends the dignity of human beings and seriously damages the cause of the fraternal coexistence of the beloved Iraqi people".

The Holy Father gave assurances of his prayers for the archbishop "who was kidnapped just after he had completed the Way of the Cross" and invokes the Lord's mercy "that this tragic event may serve to build a future of peace in the martyred land of Iraq".

Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. also released the following declaration today:

"We had all continued to hope and pray for his release, something the Pope had requested on a number of occasions in his appeals.

"Unfortunately the most senseless and unjustified violence continues to be inflicted on the Iraqi people, and especially on the small Christian community to which the Pope and all of us are particularly close in prayer and solidarity at this moment of great suffering.

"It is to be hoped that this tragic event may once more - and more powerfully - underline the responsibility of everyone, and especially of the international community, for the pacification of so troubled a country".

NOTE: The details of the Asia News article are contradictory to the CNN report which states that the Archbishop's body did contain gunshot wounds.

Here is a brief biography of Archbishop Rahho:

Because of the conflict in Mosul, only a third of the area's Christians have remained, Archbishop Rahho denounced in November. For his little flock, the prelate still represented a "hope". The faithful recount to AsiaNews that the bishop had always said "that he wanted to remain in Iraq until the end, even if this meant death". His presence was an act of "resistance against terrorism and violence". Born in 1941, Faraj Rahho was a seminarian at the patriarchal seminary of Saint Simon. He then became the pastor of the church of Mar Elia. After a brief period of studies in Rome, he returned to Iraq. There, in the 1980's, he became the leader of the newly founded parish of St Paul in Mosul, until he was appointed as an archbishop in 2001. In 1989, he founded the Fraternity of Charity and Joy, with the aim of assisting sick people and guaranteeing them love and a dignified life. He also worked hard on behalf of young people. In the 1990's, when Iraq was under embargo, he instituted the "Youth Week", a successful initiative that later became a pastoral outreach for the entire diocese.

Photo source.

Welcome CNN Readers

Welcome to everyone coming from the CNN link.

Rate My Classmates

If you ask for for my class notes, you had better have been absent or at least have taken your own. I am also not your personal tutor. Do not then complain after getting my notes that there are certain gaps or information that you think is wrong.

If you don't like my notes, take your own. Oh yeah, that is what you are supposed to be doing.

It's not that I don't like helping my classmates, but I don't like being taken advantage of. I have one classmate who seems to think that she doesn't have to do the work, because I will help her. I work, have a 3 year old child, and am taking three classes this semester. Between midterms and Holy Week preparations, I am spread more than thin.

Please do your own class work and if I do help you out don't complain that you don't like my notes. This woman even had the nerve to tell me how she wants me to take notes for her next time so it will be easier for her to understand. She has to be kidding! I take notes for me to understand. Any sharing of said notes is done from the goodness of my heart and in the interest of Christian charity.

Vent over!

Papal Mass Ticket Drawing!

Don't have a ticket for the Papal Mass at Yankee Stadium? It's not too late.

The Catholic Channel, a satellite radio station operated by the Archdiocese of New York on Sirius, is running a contest. The winner will get airfare for two to New York, three nights in a hotel, two tickets to the Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict, and $250 spending money.

Enter here!

The contest ends on April 4th.

New Sins? Huh?

Sometimes the media makes me laugh, sometimes they make me cry. Today there was a little of both.

Imagine my shock when I found out that the Catholic Church considers abortion, contraception, and drug dealing to be sins. Oh and not just sins, they are NEW sins. Yep, that is what the Fox News headline said.

If you haven't heard of this before, you must be living under a rock because the media is eating it up. In reality, it is sheer foolishness. The things mentioned have always been sins, especially contraception and abortion.

Also, the portrayal of this as being an official Vatican proclamation seems to be the exaggeration of the year. It is not an official proclamation, and it does not come from the Pope. It was a simple interview which for some reason has exploded into a firestorm. The message of the interview is nothing new!

As for the ecological sins, when the world was created God entrusted humanity with the responsibility of caring for it. So yes, abusing and destroying the earth is a sin...and always has been.

Want the real story? CNS has a good article.

Catholic World News has an even better one. Emphasis mine.

When he finished his interview with L'Osservatore Romano, Archishop Gianfranco Girotti probably thought that his main message had been an appeal to Catholics to use the sacrament of Confession. Little did he know that the English-language news media would play the interview as a newly revised list of sins.

Archbishop Girotti, the regent of the Apostolic Penitentiary, spoke to the Vatican newspaper about "new forms of social sin" in our era. He mentioned such transgressions as destructive research on human embryos, degradation of the environment, and drug trafficking. Within hours, dozens of media sources were suggesting that the Vatican had radically revised the Ten Commandments, issuing a list of "new sins."

[...]

When a second-tier Vatican official gives a newspaper interview, he is not proclaiming new Church doctrines. Archbishop Girotti was obviously trying to offer a new, provocative perspective on some enduring truths. The effort backfired-- but in a very revealing way.

An ordinary reader, basing his opinion only on the inane Telegraph coverage, might conclude that a "sin," in the Catholic understanding, is nothing more than a violation of rules set down by a group of men in Rome. If these rules are entirely arbitrary, then Vatican officials can change them at will; some sins will cease to exist and other "new sins" will replace them. But that notion of sin is ludicrous.

Sin is an objective wrong: a violation of God's law. What is sinful today will be sinful tomorrow, and a deadly sin will remain deadly, whether or not Telegraph editors recognize the moral danger. The traditional list of deadly sins remains intact; nothing has replaced it. Greed, gluttony, and lust are as wrong today as they were a day or a year or a century ago. If Archbishop Girotti referred to "new" sins, it is because some of the offenses he named (such as genetic manipulation) were impossible in the past, and others (such as international drug trafficking) are much more prevalent today, in a global society. Insofar as people could have engaged in these activities a century ago, they would have been sinful then as well.

A sin is not a sin because simply an archbishop proclaims it so. Sin, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us, "is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience…" The precepts of "reason, truth, and right conscience" do not shift in response to political trends, nor do they change at the whim of Vatican officials.

The fundamental point of the L'Osservatore Romano interview was that Catholics need to recover a sense of sin, make use of the sacrament of Confession, and receive absolution for their offenses. Sin, the archbishop insisted, is a reality that man cannot escape.

Update: Welcome to everyone coming from the CNN link.

Know Your Latin Numbers?

Can you count to 20 in Latin! I can.

Try for yourself here.

Nashville Dominicans on PBS

H/T to the Dominican Friars blog.

The Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, is a wonderful, growing, traditional order. I am blessed to encounter them on a regular basis.

They were featured last month on the PBS program Religion and Ethics Newsweekly. Check out the video. Transcript is also online.

The Papal...Skateboard?

Oh my...can't....stop....laughing. I know that there is probably a really good intention behind this, but they youth of the Archdiocese of New York are giving Pope Benedict a skateboard. Yes, a skateboard. Giving Pope John Paul II a skateboard would have made sense, but Pope Benedict? No way!

If you are between the ages of 11 -18 and live in the Archdiocese of New York, you are eligible to submit your artwork to the Papal Skateboard Art Design contest. The winner will recieve three tickets to the Youth Rally at St. Joseph's Seminary.

The winner will be commissioned to design the artwork of the Official Papal Skateboard, a gift to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI from the youth of the Archdiocese of New York.
Contestants are limited to the use of only four (4) colors: Papal Gold, Black, White and Red. One winner will be determined by a panel of judges based on creativity and originality. The use of symbols such as the Papal Visit Logo, Papal Crest, and the motto "CHRIST OUR HOPE" are highly encouraged. The winner’s design will be used to decorate the convex side (bottom side) of the Papal Skateboard.

Check out the contest site for more info and an entry form.

I still can't stop laughing at the idea of giving Pope Benedict a skateboard. Between the skateboard and the big stick that President Bush gave him, he is going to wonder what Americans are thinking.

UPDATE: The Pope2008 blog has a take on this which I am embarassed to admit that I missed. The possibility for marketing these papal skateboards as souvenirs. Hmmm, I think it might work.

UPDATE 2: Ok, after watching the videos of the students and the priest who made all this happen I don't think it is as silly as I originally did. Don't count me in with the converted yet, I still can't get over the mental image of a skateboarding Pope Benedict, but I have softened to the idea of the gift.

God is a Red Sox Fan

Ok, so it might be a stretch, but it is pretty funny.

From AOL Fan House:

A quick glance of the Yankees' schedule in April reveals a pretty strange stretch: they're on the road for almost three straight weeks from the 8th through the 28th, with a random two-game home stand jammed in the middle against the Red Sox on the 16th and 17th. That makes for an awful lot of traveling and some angry Yankees. But why is the schedule so funny?

Turns out Pope Benedict XVI is coming to Yankee Stadium to say a mass on April 20th, which required that weekend's series with the Orioles to be flipped from New York to Baltimore. Since schedules are apparently incredibly delicate things, MLB didn't flip any other series to accommodate the Yanks. The result is a schedule that requires them to be in Tampa on the 15th, New York in the 16th, and Baltimore on the 18th. That's a bad week.

So the Pope is messing with their schedule, the Red Sox have won two World Series in the past four years, and Hank Steinbrenner is in charge. There's only one conclusion to draw from this whole scenario, really. God hates the Yankees.

College Meme

Stolen from the guys at Christus Vincit.

When you attended Providence College, where did you live?
Luckily for me, at home. I have never been one for the dorm environment. I like my privacy too much and the idea of sharing MY space with a stranger is very unsettling.

Who was/were your roommate(s)?
My husband and son. ;-)

Do you still talk to them?
I hope so.

Ever get in trouble in the dorms?
Nope.

Something you remember when you lived on campus?
Luckily, I never lived on campus, unless you count the numerous hours spent in the cafeteria and library.

Your campus phone number or other number?
If I tell you, you will call me.

First party attended?
Party? Did I mention I am a Catholic geek? I don't have time for parties.

Favorite Pizza Place?
I can't think of it name of it. I guess that shows how often I go there.

Favorite place to go out to eat?
The cafeteria - I hate giving up my parking space. I never know if I will get one when I get back.

Did you go to the library?
Yes, yes, and yes. I spend so much time there that people know exactly what corner to find me in.

What was your Favorite Floor you'd always be on?
2nd floor in the library (Theology section) or the theology library in the basement of Siena.

Where did you buy your books?
From the campus store (expensive), the off campus bookstore (poor selection) and Amazon (takes forever to ship).

Play any sports?
Extreme paper writing. lol!

Ever attend a sporting event?
Yes

Ever attend a concert or comedic performance?
No, but there have been a few that interested me.

Favorite professor(s)?
Yes - Despina Prassas, she taught a class called "Growth in Christian Life". Don't let the title fool you. This was a class on Sacraments in the Early Church. I came away from that class with a much deeper understanding of the continuity of the celebration of the Sacraments. I wrote my term paper on the use of Sacred Chrism in the rite of Baptism.

She really did so much more than just teach. She inspired me to take my theological study as far as I can. Because of her example, I hope to follow in her footsteps and someday teach theology.

Have you ever spent the night on campus not in a residence?
No

Favorite night to go out on, and where did you go?
Friday, usually out to dinner at some random restaurant.

Where did you buy your coffee?
Dunkin, cafeteria coffee is AWFUL!

Favorite Year of Halloween?
None

Favorite memory?
They time Dr. Barry really believed that I was a CDF official sent to his class to investigate him for theological orthodoxy. He was.

Go see a play or been in one?
No

What did you hate about your college?
The price, feeling like the only theology/ministry major, dealing with professors who are a little less than orthodox (99% have been very good, but there are bad apples in every bunch).

What did you love most about it?
Studying topics I am interested in.

Where would you believe is the best location to live?
Absolutely, the Suites.

Graduated or still attending?
Still attending. I start my junior year in May.

Year of graduation?
Will be 2010.

Will you go back?
To school, yes. To PC, probably not.

How many parking tickets have you gotten there?
None, so far.

Finally, ever gotten arrested?
No

Tag you're it!

Because This is What Really Matters

We all know that Pope Benedict has nothing better to do than ban smoking, right? Thought so. It seems a group of doctors are going to attempt to convince the Holy Father to do just that.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

From the Fall River Herald News:

Reflecting the gravity and addictiveness of the health problem, two dozen area doctors and nurses are appealing to a higher authority to curtail cigarette use.

When Pope Benedict XVI visits the United States in April, they plan to come armed with a petition with thousands of names asking the pope “to declare the Vatican the world’s first country to ban tobacco in its entirety.”

They are asking the pope to also “condemn the production, distribution and sale” of cigarettes and all tobacco products.

They are citing nicotine’s addictive force and that more than 5 million deaths a year worldwide is traced to smoking.

“We are frustrated over the lack of action on the part of our leaders whose job it is to protect and advocate for the common good,” said Dr. Claude Curran, a city psychiatrist treating addicts and co-founder of Physicians and Nurses Against Tobacco.

Curran said they selected the pope not only for his religious, moral and spiritual leadership but because “he’s the head of a country. … He’s not only the Vicar of Christ. He’s also the defender of man,” Curran said. “Who’s going to protect us if he doesn’t?”

During the past few months, Curran and several others formed PANAT. “Many of us work in addiction medicine and we understand the damage caused by tobacco,” he said.

Their Web site, www.unholysmoke.org, contains a petition saying they’ll “implore” Benedict to join them by declaring the Vatican tobacco-free and support their aims.
The petition effort began a few weeks ago.

They plan to publish the petition in New England newpapers during Pope Benedict’s first visit to the country, to Washington, D.C., and New York City April 15-20.

Curran pointed to the World Health Organization’s report one month ago stating that smoking killed 100 million people worldwide in the 20th century with the prospect of the numbers increasing ten-fold this century.

“We hold in our hands the solution to the global tobacco epidemic that threatens the lives of 1 billion men, women and children during this century,” said Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO director general.

A WHO official that directs its tobacco-free initiative said the estimate of 5.4 million smoking-related deaths a year could rise to more than 8 million annually by 2030 if nothing is done.

While the WHO report advocates dramatic efforts to stop young people from starting smoking, helping others quit and reducing second-hand smoke, the PANAT activists attack the nicotine addiction problem.

“Nicotine causes changes in the way the brain works and nobody wants to admit it,” said Curran, a psychiatrist who has treated drug addicts in the city for the past decade.

“Chemicals that are addictive change the way the brain works,” he said. He said the changes to brain lesions from addictive chemicals are scientifically documented.
“Therefore, it’s neuro-chemical; it’s not a behavioral issue.”

People are dependent daily for the nicotine in tobacco or the caffeine in coffee “because the brain likes it,” Curran said. But he contrasts the daily lines of regular Dunkin’ Donuts coffee drinkers looking for their morning doses with addicted cigarette smokers this way:

“Six million people — the number of Jews that died in the Holocaust — don’t die every year because they drink coffee.” But they do from tobacco use.

The PANAT Web site gives an example of the nicotine implant on the brain and why smokers “don’t just quit” with a contrasting story about the excitement of riding a rollercoaster.

“The accelerations, twists and turns can be so thrilling and exhilarating that a group of friends at an amusement park may spend their whole day riding the rollercoaster,” it says. The next day, when they return to school or work, they might recollect the memories and fun to friends.

“They did not suffer irresistible urges or cravings to get back on the rollercoaster. They did not go back, day after day … to spend their life riding the rollercoaster. They did not overlook their health or responsibilities in order to get the ‘rollercoaster high’. “Not so with drug-induced euphorias,” PANAT says.

“What we want the tobacco industry to do,” said Curran, readily stating his treatment of addicts here has drawn controversy, “is to start reducing the nicotine in tobacco plants; so, within five years no one is inclined to smoke it” – or be addicted.

He said the government removed the cocaine from Coke, but with a world health care crisis won’t follow suit with tobacco products. “The reason,” he said, “is everyone is making so much money.”

“It is an indefensible, moral question that has to be addressed. The American health care system is on the brink of collapse,” said Dr. Roger Boshes, another city psychiatrist and PANAT co-founder.

“Heart disease, pulmonary disorders, lung cancer, these are all directly influenced by smoking,” Boshes said.

About 15 years ago, before Edward Bernays died at 103 years old, several PANAT members said they met the man often credited with being “the creator of public relations as we know it,” who immortalized the bacon and eggs breakfast among other accepted staples.

Working for the American Tobacco Co. in the 1920s, long before the health dangers of cigarette smoking became known and accepted, Bernays used female models and the Easter Day Parade in New York City to sell his product.

On his signal, the models lit Lucky Strike cigarettes in a successful effort to erase the stigma of women smoking, the wikipedia Web site documents.

“Group of Girls Puff at Cigarettes as a Gesture of Freedom,” read the New York Times headline of April 1, 1928.

Bernays, a nephew of Sigmund Freud, asked years ago by Curran and a couple others how to reverse the worldwide cigarette curse he helped bolster, planted the idea of petitioning the pope.

“Let us stomp out the ‘torches of freedom’ and bring something else to light: The eradication of tobacco,” PANAT says.

Yes, smoking is harmful and some theologians consider it to be objectively sinful, but...come on. Let's get real. There are bigger issues. The Vatican has already banned indoor smoking. In fact, many cardinals were unhappy during the conclave because they had to go up to the roof to smoke.

Church Sued, Schools Protected

H/T to Brian.

National Catholic Register has a interesting article about a new bill in Colorado which attempt to hold the Church liable for abuse which occured as long as 80 years ago.

Not outraged yet? Just wait. Jennifer Kraska, executive director of the Colorado Catholic Conference told NCR, “Since Jan. 1, 2006, 44 public school teachers have been charged with sexual contact with children. That number only reflects those who’ve been caught and turned in.”

So, what is the state doing about it? They are cracking down on priests who died decades ago. All this while Colorado law prevents the public schools from being sued. There is currently a fluff bill in the works to only allow immunity if the public school performed a background check.

Still not outraged?
Bill Donahue from the Catholic League listed the way abusers are treated in public school systems.

• Instead of punishing child molesters, they’re simply moved from place to place in the school system without anyone getting a heads-up.

• It takes almost a year-and-a-half to investigate claims of abuse in the public schools.
• If the accused public school teacher is guilty of touching a minor or accessing porn on a computer, he can continue working, provided he sees a shrink.

• Public school molesters who admit to their crimes are given a second chance.

• Investigators are not commissioned from the outside, but are all staffed from inside the public school system.

• Deals are routinely cut for accused public school molesters in secret, protecting the identity of the molester from the community.

• The accused public school molesters not only walk, they can walk away with cash settlements, health insurance and letters of recommendation.

Sound familiar? It should, but for some reason it's acceptable for public school teachers. That is not acceptable for ANYONE! Not for the Church, not for the schools, not for ANYONE!

Read the Register article here.

New Books by the Heirarchy

It seems there has been a number of books written lately by members of the heirarchy, so I decided to post at least a partial list of them here.

Two Popes, One Cardinal, and a Book

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone is just one of the latest Vatican officials to have a book waiting to roll off the presses. The former bishop of Genoa, and current Secretary of State was the undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith when the last secret of Fatima was revealed. In his role with the CDF, Bertone assisted in the release of the secret.

For those hoping for a shocking revelation, you will be disappointed. It supports what has been previously revealed: the secret foretold of the May 31, 1981 assassination attempt of Pope John Paul II. Don't get disappointed, however, there are supposedly other revelations in this book, including the reasons why the secret was kept a secret.

So, what is different about this book? The introduction is written by Pope Benedict. A rare honor to be sure.


Time magazine also published an article about the book. You can read it here.

A Papal Meal

People attending the Papal Youth Rally (and presumably the Mass at Yankee stadium will be fed).

From the SILive:

Tickets to the rally were distributed through parish schools and youth groups, religious-education programs and sports programs. The youths and their chaperones will also travel by bus and will have to be in place four or five hours before the pope's scheduled address.
To help them bide the time, there will be a concert from noon to 4 p.m. Every ticket-holder will be issued vendor credits good for one meal and a rain poncho -- no umbrellas will be allowed on the seminary grounds or at Yankee Stadium.

Schools, Sisters, and the World

This editorial appeared in the Herald News a few weeks ago. I thought it was worth sharing with all of you. It so eloquently describes how the loss of women willing to respond to the call of religious life affects the Church and the world.

You won’t find it in Scripture, your catechism or any of the sacred tomes that speak so eloquently of the possibility of eternal happiness, but let me give you a snippet of wisdom about the critically important bridge between the here and the hereafter: Salvation is free but religion costs money.
[...]
When nuns with the vow of poverty taught in the many Fall River schools now closed and filled with only memories, these holy ladies had no trouble fulfilling their vow of not accepting money. Miraculous medals were not legal tender. Paying teachers a living wage today has been a burden. Paying them well, almost impossible.
[...]
The Catholic Schools we see fading slowly from our midst were truly the first Global Positioning System for parents committed, whatever the cost, to setting their children on the direct road to paradise.

Read the rest here.

Ordination

Do you recognize this seminarian?

No? I bet you know him.

The New Liturgical Movement Blog has a fascinating series of posts filled with pictures and newpaper articles from the 1951 priestly ordination of a certain well-known German prelate. Check it out. You won't be disappointed.

Part 1

Part 2

Archbishop Rahhu Kidnapped

Pray for the archbishop of Mosul, Faraj-Farraj Rahhu, who has been kidnapped and his three companions who have been murdered. The kidnapping took place following the celebration of the Stations of the Cross at Holy Spirit Cathedral in Mosul.

Also, please remember in prayer all our soldiers who are risking and giving their lives to make Iraq a peaceful place for everyone.

Finally, please pray for all the people of Iraq, both Christian and Muslim.

Photo Source.

Invalid Baptisms

Made public today were the responses of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to two questions concerning the validity of Baptism conferred with certain non-standard formulae.

The first question is: "Is a Baptism valid if conferred with the words 'I baptise you in the name of the Creator, and of the Redeemer, and of the Sanctifier', or 'I baptise you in the name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer'"?

The second question is: "Must people baptised with those formulae be baptised 'in forma absoluta'?"

The responses are: "To the first question, negative; to the second question, affirmative".

Benedict XVI, during his recent audience with Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, approved these responses, which were adopted at the ordinary session of the congregation, and ordered their publication. The text of the responses bears the signatures of Cardinal Levada and of Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B., secretary of the dicastery.

An attached note explains that the responses "concern the validity of Baptism conferred with two English-language formulae within the ambit of the Catholic Church. ... Clearly, the question does not concern English but the formula itself, which could also be expressed in another language".

"Baptism conferred in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit", the note continues, "obeys Jesus' command as it appears at the end of the Gospel of St. Matthew. ... The baptismal formula must be an adequate expression of Trinitarian faith, approximate formulae are unacceptable.

"Variations to the baptismal formula - using non-biblical designations of the Divine Persons - as considered in this reply, arise from so-called feminist theology", being an attempt "to avoid using the words Father and Son which are held to be chauvinistic, substituting them with other names. Such variants, however, undermine faith in the Trinity".

"The response of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith constitutes an authentic doctrinal declaration, which has wide-ranging canonical and pastoral effects. Indeed, the reply implicitly affirms that people who have been baptised, or who will in the future be baptised, with the formulae in question have, in reality, not been baptised. Hence, they must them be treated for all canonical and pastoral purposes with the same juridical criteria as people whom the Code of Canon Law places in the general category of 'non- baptised'".

VIS

A Local Miracle for JPII?

Wow! A local man may be the recipient of a miracle through the intercession of the Servant of God, Pope John Paul II.

From the Standard Times:

With neck bent and gripping forearm crutches, Jose Amaral slowly climbed the stairs to the Bullard Street entrance of St. Anthony of Padua Church.

Once settled in the pew near the door, he stowed the crutches until it was time to receive Holy Communion. Then, with great devotion, he made the painful journey to the altar.

When Mr. Amaral was 19, he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis, which caused him great discomfort and pain.

"I also have had for years arthritis all over," he said.

In February 2003, Mr. Amaral's condition worsened. He collapsed at work and was diagnosed with cervical myelopathy, a stroke of the spine.

"The neurologist and neurosurgeon both said that there was considerable nerve damage. I've gotten progressively worse and had to have five surgeries."

On Jan. 26, Mr. Amaral was reading from a booklet of meditations on the Gospel when his eyes fell on the passages about Jesus curing the paralytic (Mark 2:1-12 and Luke 5:17-26).

"You remember the story," he said. "Jesus first healed the paralyzed man of his sins and then cured him of his physical paralysis."

Mr. Amaral said that he went to confession that afternoon so that Jesus could heal him of his sins.

"Something happened during that confession that I cannot explain," he said. "But I felt different."

Later that night, Mr. Amaral was thinking about the experience in the confessional, and his eyes lit upon a picture he had beside him of Pope John Paul II.

"Pope John Paul the Great, please help me," he prayed. "Help me to understand God's will."

Turning on the TV to EWTN, he watched the movie, "Witness to Hope," a biography of Karol Wojtyla, who became Pope John Paul II.

"That is when something came over me that is very difficult to explain," he said. "I just kept remembering the late pope's words, 'Be not afraid!'"

Over the next few days, Mr. Amaral said that he began to walk a little better with his forearm crutches.

"But I didn't say anything about it to anyone," he said. "I was very calm and peaceful."

On Jan. 30 at 3 p.m., Mr. Amaral prayed the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and looked over at Pope John Paul II's picture.

"I decided to get up and try to walk around without my crutches," he said. "I just walked back and forth, and I didn't stop — and I've never stopped since. My strength came all at once."

Mr. Amaral attended morning Mass on Feb. 2, and after the service, he approached the sacristy.

"I was taking off my vestments, and then all of a sudden I saw him," said the Rev. Roger Landry, pastor of St. Anthony's. "He was standing completely erect, and I had never seen him stand erect. I knew then as a person who had been trained as a scientist and worked at Mass. General for five years that the only way that happens is by direct intervention of the Lord."

The Rev. Landry said that his eyes welled up with tears and the men embraced and cried together.

"One of the most beautiful moments in my priestly life was when I saw him leaving the church, and this man whom I had never seen walk before, genuflected to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. I'll never forget that. Awesome."

Editor's note: The Rev. Landry has written a letter to the procurator at the Vatican relating Mr. Amaral's healing through the intercession of Pope John Paul II. A medically certifiable miracle is required for the late pontiff's canonization. Mr. Amaral visited his doctor last week and related that the physician had no scientific explanation for the healing. Last weekend, Mr. Amaral went shopping at the local Target for the first time and bought a pair of sneakers and a football.

If you are wondering, yes it is the Fr. Landry from EWTN and the Catholic Preaching site.

Hello Washington Post Readers

Just a special hello to all those coming from the Washington Post link.

Thanks for stopping by, don't be a stranger.

DC Papal Mass Ticket information

Baltimore is recieving 2,500 tickets. Requests are no longer being accepted.

Washington will be distributing tickets through parishes. Contact your pastor ASAP if you are interested in attending.

Richmond is getting 400 tickets. Apply through your parish or online. Tickets will only be given to members of parishes in the diocese. Deadline: March 7th.

Arlington is getting 600 tickets. Tickets are being distributed through individual parishes. Contact your pastor to request tickets.

Sambi on the Papal Visit and The Best Dressed Bear

Looking for more Papal Visit info, including ticket information? click here.

It seems that lately I have been blogging all Papal Visit all the time. Maybe it's because 90% of my hits have been by people looking for info on the papal visit, maybe it's because I still can't believe I have a ticket reserved for me, maybe it's because test related insanity has set in. Anyway, please forgive me for yet another Papal Visit related post.

From USA Today:

Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the veteran Vatican diplomat who serves as the Holy See's U.S. ambassador, knows exactly why the world will see — but not hear — Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the bedrock at Ground Zero during the pope's first visit to the USA.
The silence is Sambi's idea.

"This will be a moment of solidarity with those who died and their families. He will walk alone to indicate the loneliness of those who went to their deaths and the loneliness of the survivors. He will light a lamp. He will pray silently and make a public prayer (the only portion to be broadcast) for the remembrance of those who died, and for peace.

"There must be only silence and prayer here because not a single word will be enough to be convincing. Nothing will be adequate to touch the loneliness of those who died there and those who lost someone. Silence and prayer are what is required."

It is Sambi's job to know what is required, spiritual or political or trivial, to make a success of the shy, scholarly pope's visit. When Benedict comes to Washington and New York April 15-20, he will be reaching out to all Americans, not only Catholics.

Sambi, 69, is a model of Italian charm who engages visitors with warm hazel eyes and expressive hands emphasizing his conversation. He has a 40-year résumé of serving in world hot spots: Jerusalem, Cuba, Indonesia and more.

[...]

Now, the nuncio wants to correct many people's image of Benedict, drawn from when the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger headed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, enforcing John Paul II's strict vision of Catholic teachings.

'Simple man, human and warm'

"Anyone who lives by first impressions will simply see very quickly they were wrong about this Pope Benedict," Sambi says. (I will attest to that!)

"The great surprise for people will be that the professor is a very simple man, human and warm in the ways in which he expresses himself. He came down from the chair of the teacher and accepted the role of preacher."

Indeed, Vatican watchers calculate that Benedict is outdrawing the immensely popular John Paul II when he speaks to the faithful in St. Peter's Square during Wednesday general audiences and his noon prayer and reflections on Sundays.

[...]

"Hope is the transcendent theme. A person or a people without hope is already dead," Sambi says. "In his humble, simple, kind way, this pope is bringing us this clear message: that the way to happiness is to know that God loves you, and because God loves you, you love your neighbor."

[...]

Sambi also is engaged in the fine points of making Benedict, who will turn 81 while in Washington, welcome and comfortable.

The shining black Yamaha baby grand piano is tuned in case the pianist pope wants to relax playing Mozart. It stands in one of the upstairs reception rooms at the nunciature, the Vatican Embassy's home and offices, across busy Massachusetts Avenue from the vice president's residence.

If Benedict wants to take one of his twice-daily walks, Sambi has mapped out a sylvan route where birds will drown out urban clamor.

But there are no plans for the German-born pope to have Bavarian pastries for his birthday luncheon. This will be an Italian meal, Sambi says, catered by Cafe Milano, a trendy Georgetown restaurant.

It's one more taste of American life for Benedict, who keeps an astute eye on popular culture.

Young people are drawn to the pope's message of "obedience to God as the way to happiness" and away from the self-centeredness of modern life, Sambi says.

"If you stop believing that you are God, it will be easy to believe in Him." (Awesome quote. I am saving that one)

Catholics believe the pope is infallible in questions of faith and morals, but "he very rarely makes infallibility an issue. There is so much absolutism, so much infallibility in each of us, the pope uses it very little by comparison."

Sambi, eyes twinkling, repeats, "People will be surprised."

I have no doubt that the hearts of many people will be changed by this visit.

On a related note, the souveniers are already making an appearance:
Six Washington, D.C.-area Build-A-Bear Workshop stores will be selling souvenier teddy bear T-shirts. The shirt costs $6, and a portion of the shirt sales will help pay for the pope's trip.

Archbishop Wuerl on the Papal Visit

H/T to Thomas Peters (American Papist) for making this video available. Check out his You Tube page for more great video from this Theology on Tap session.

Listen carefully! The Archbishop has a very important message which I wish more people would get. It's not about the man, it's about the office.

Papal Mass (DC) Update

The Archdiocese of Washington has announced that letters have been mailed to nearly 120 dioceses in the United States that had requested tickets on Monday, February 25.

Nearly 14,000 tickets are being distributed to these dioceses, including 6,000 for the Diocese of Arlington and 2,500 for the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Quantities for the 140 parishes within the Archdiocese of Washington are scheduled to be shared with the parishes on Friday, February 29.

How tickets are distributed within a parish will be decided at the parish level. While the quantities are being announced now, the actual tickets to the Mass will be provided closer to the event. More than 45,000 people are expected to attend the Mass, Pope Benedict’s first major, public event in the United States.

For more information, visit www.adw.org/papalvisit or keep checking back here as I will continue to post updates as I recieve information.

Update: A special hello to all those coming here from the Washington Post link.

Check out my other Papal Visit related posts here.

How much do you remember?

You paid attention during 97% of high school!

85-100% You must be an autodidact, because American high schools don't get scores that high! Good show, old chap!

Do you deserve your high school diploma?
Create a Quiz

Save the Earth? Not!

Ethanol will save destroy the world.
Remember when ethanol was going to save the world? Well, guess what. Ethanol is actually worse for the earth than fossil fuels. At least, that is what Science Magazine says.

According the the article "replacing fossil fuels with corn-based ethanol would double greenhouse gas emissions over the next three decades."

Wow, that is an interesting statement. It seems that while the world was crowing about the new miracle fuel, an important item was forgotten. Ethanol doesn't just appear. Corn must be raised on farms, it must be picked, it must be processed, and so forth. The result, ethanol is worse for the world than oil.

Read more here.

Doctor Surrenders License after Abortion Death

From Cape Cod Today:

Five months after 22-year-old Laura Hope Smith died on his operating table during an abortion, Rapin Osathanondh, a Hyannis gynecologist , has relinquished his medical license in the wake of a criminal investigation and disciplinary action by the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine.

Woman's mother kept the heat on newspaper and DA's office

Smith was reportedly 13 weeks pregnant when she underwent the abortion Sept. 13 last year at the Women Health Center office of Dr. Rapin Osathanondh.

Mother was sought out and interviewed by a Cape Cod Times reporter two days after her daughter’s death, but the article never ran.“I don’t want Laura’s death swept under the rug,” her mother said. Eileen and Tom Smith adopted their Honduran-born daughter at age 5. “If Laura had died falling off a bike or in a car accident, it would have been in the paper the next day. This is a political hot potato,” Laura's mother said.

The Board had moved to suspend Osathanondh's license pending further investigation, declaring him to be a "risk to public safety." In a surprise move yesterday, Osathanondh instead permanently surrendered his license, and will not practice medicine again anywhere.

“If Laura had died falling off a bike or in a car accident, it would have been in the paper the next day" the mother

On Monday, the Boston Medical Examiner's office declared that the cause of Smith's death was "cardiac pulmonary arrest during anesthesia during a voluntary termination of pregnancy."

Left Boston Hospital under a cloud
Threatened nurses, complaint ignored


As we reported last October, Dr. Osathanondh left Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston in 2001 following complaints that during a staff meeting he threatened to “execute” five nurses. He was not prosecuted for the alleged threats, according to Boston Herald reports. Mrs. Smith said her daughter apparently died on the abortion table. Firefighters found her non-responsive when they answered the emergency call, according to the report she read.

Smith was brought by ambulance to Cape Cod Hospital. Pending the autopsy, the cause of her death is still not officially listed. Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O’Keefe said his office “reviews all deaths of this nature.” However, he’ll have to first receive the state medical examiner’s autopsy report, which may be released by late October.

Calls to Osathanondh's clinic revealed that it is not accepting patients, but is referring women to other clinics.

Laura Smith had sought an abortion from Osathanondh on September 13, 2007, at his office, Women's Health Center, in the Cape Cod town of Hyannis. Smith was placed under full anesthesia when only Osathanondh and a non-medical receptionist were present. When Smith suddenly stopped breathing, the receptionist phoned 911 but gave very little information to the dispatcher. Smith died later that day.

Met with mother, immediately "smelled a rat"

Ten days after Smith's death, Osathanondh met with Smith's mother, Eileen, and showed her medical records that caused her to believe that his negligence was responsible for Laura's death.

"While nothing can bring back Laura and her baby, we take great comfort in knowing that Osathanondh will never again hurt another woman or kill another innocent child"Operation Rescue, a "Pro Life" organization, first broke the news of Laura's death, then worked with Eileen to apply public pressure to authorities so that Laura's death was not covered up. Cape Cod TODAY ran a story on these facts on October 17, 2007 after the local daily newspaper had failed to respond to the mother's requests for news of her daughter's death. "I feel like this was a group effort and you were part of it!" Eileen Smith told Operation Rescue after receiving news of Osathanondh's license surrender.

"While nothing can bring back Laura and her baby, we take great comfort in knowing that Osathanondh will never again hurt another woman or kill another innocent child," said Operation Rescue spokesperson Cheryl Sullenger. "We commend Eileen Smith on her tireless dedication to seeking justice for Laura, in spite of the personal grief and huge obstacles that she had to overcome."

"Most of the time authorities just want to sweep abortion complications and deaths under the rug, slap the abortionist on the wrist, and send him on his merry way. That certainly would have happened in this case if not for Eileen's determination and for groups like ours that kept Laura's death on the front burner."

and from the Cape Cod Times:

A gynecologist who came under scrutiny after a patient died following an abortion in his Hyannis clinic resigned his medical license yesterday.

As a result of his resignation, Dr. Rapin Osathanondh, whose primary practice was in Brookline, can no longer practice medicine in Massachusetts, nor can he reapply for the license at a later date.

Dr. Rapin Osathanondh
Medical school: Mahidol University, Siriraj Hospital, Thailand, graduated 1967

Post-graduate training:

Siriraj Hospital, Thailand, general surgery, 1967-1968



UMass Memorial Medical Center, intern, 1968-1969


Caritas St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, resident, general surgery, 1969-1970Brigham & Women's Hospital, resident, obstetrics and gynecology, 1970-1973 Brigham & Women's, Harvard Medical School, fellow, 1973-1975Ford Foundation, fellow, 1975-1977


Board certification: American Board of Medical Specialties, obstetrics and gynecology

Source: Massachusett Board of Registration in Medicine
The reasons why the former Harvard fellow resigned his medical license are not public, according to a Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine spokesman. However, medical board spokesman Russell Aims described the action as "disciplinary," adding that because the doctor chose to resign, members of the board are constrained from discussing the case or the underlying cause of the resignation.

Aims said Osathanondh's name and a notice about his resignation will be sent to national data banks that track doctors' licenses.

Messages left at Osathanondh's offices in Brookline and Hyannis yesterday were not returned.

Laura Smith of Sandwich, 22, died Sept. 13 after going to Osathanondh's Hyannis office for an abortion. Smith's mother, Eileen filed a complaint against Osathanondh with the medical board late last year.

Laura Smith was pronounced dead at Cape Cod Hospital after being taken there by ambulance. Her mother said she was 13 weeks pregnant when she sought an abortion.

In her medical board complaint, Smith questioned what kind of drugs, including anesthesia, Osathanondh used on her daughter and whether there was anyone with medical training to assist Osathanondh during the abortion procedure.

Some of those questions remain unanswered because Smith has not been allowed complete access to her daughter's medical records, and the results of the autopsy performed in September are still pending as the state Medical Examiner's office awaits toxicology tests.

Smith has filed a claim in Barnstable Superior Court to obtain the medical records and autopsy results. Smith's Boston-based attorney, David Angueria, said he plans to press the court harder for the release of the medical records now that Osathanondh has resigned.

"I cannot say exactly what led the board to take the action it did (to accept the resignation), but something the doctor did obviously led them to take that action," Angueria said.

"For the time being, we are acting under certain constraints because we don't have all the information we're seeking."

Angueria said once he has a complete autopsy report in hand, he will consult with experts before taking further legal steps.

In a telephone interview from her New Jersey home yesterday, Eileen Smith said she was "overjoyed" with the medical board's decision to accept Osathanondh's resignation.

"I am thrilled beyond belief. I feel like Laura finally got justice. ... I'm grateful to the medical board," she said.

The state medical examiner has determined Laura Smith's cause of death as "cardiac pulmonary arrest during anesthesia for voluntary termination" of a pregnancy, her mother said.

The manner of death is still pending, Smith said.

Manner of death — the way in which the cause of death came about — is a key factor in whether Osathanondh could face a criminal charge.

Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe said his office is treating the case as an unattended death, a term that is applied to cases the state medical examiner investigates under state law. He spoke with the state medical examiner a few days ago and some blood tests are pending, he said.

O'Keefe said he will consult with an anesthesiologist about the results of the toxicology reports.

Eileen Smith said she is satisfied with O'Keefe's handling of the case.

"He's been very sensitive and it has been reassuring to know the DA's office is following this," Smith said.

"My hope is the district attorney will prosecute. There are certain things that (Osathanondh) should have done that he didn't do. He must be held accountable."

Ten days after her daughter's death, in an effort to understand what had happened, Smith met with Osathanondh in the lobby of the Boston Harbor Hotel.

Osathanondh said her daughter had a suction-type abortion and she was anesthetized during the procedure, according to Smith. She saw a waiver her daughter signed, the permissions she gave and the list of drugs she was given, Smith said.

"After what had happened, I expected to meet a monster. Instead, I met this tall, thin, soft-spoken Asian man, who if I had not known what he'd done, might be someone I'd invite to dinner," Smith said. "But I do know what he did and I am relieved that he will no longer practice medicine. Laura's death will not be in vain if it saves the lives of other young women."

Religious E-Cards

I know that I often send e-cards to my cyber-friends and I prefer to send religious themed cards for religious holydays, but I sometimes have a hard time finding them in the mix of Santa Clauses and Easter Bunnies.

I recently found out that 123Greetings.com has a selection of religious Easter e-cards. The artwork leans to the semi-traditional and the cards contain scripture verses from the KJV Bible or a quote from one of the Church Fathers or a protestant theologian.

123Greetings.com is the largest free ecards web site in the world, with over 20,000 proprietary ecards celebrating more than 3,000 everyday, special occasions & events. According to Comscore Media Metrix they are also in the top ten fastest growing websites for December 2007 .

One interesting card in the one with the image of the Divine Mercy and a quote from St. Augustine.

I hope they create more cards with Catholic images and quotations from Catholic translations of Scripture and quotations from the Church fathers.

Catholic Blog Awards

Consider nominating We Belong to the Lord for the Catholic Blog Awards.

Registration is required to nominate, but is free. In order to progress to the final voting, a large number of nominations must be submitted.

Please vote!

Diocese Interviews Liturgical Musicians

The Rhode Island Catholic interviewed a few liturgical musicians from around the diocese. There were a few interesting comments both good and bad.

The good:

It is important, Berbercik asserted, that choirs and cantors not try to steal the show. The music they perform is meant to be inviting, “we try not to turn that music into a performance, it’s a presentation or a participatory song,” she said. She is wary of any choir or cantor that is too invested in their individual performance. She compared liturgical music to the national anthem, which at many public events has become an opportunity for one singer to showcase, or showboat, their individual talents, rather than a communal experience for everyone to participate in. “We lose our love of the song because we detach from it,” she said, “we’re distracted by somebody going overboard.” (Unfortunately they failed to mention that first and foremost choirs and cantors should not try to steal the show because the music is worship, not a concert. God should be the focus of the Mass, not the muscians.)

The bad:

“I don’t go too contemporary because most of the parishioners like their old chestnuts,” said Stott. But, he added, it is important not to rule any music out, the selections “should be a mixed bag because that’s what the tradition of church music has become.” Others see putting an emphasis on contemporary music as a chance to bridge generations and reach out to younger audiences. “You want to keep people coming to church and I feel that if you want the young people you really have to do the contemporary music,” said Labréche. Berberick said that when choosing music at her parish she tries to “touch upon each generation” and “keep in mind other cultures.” (Sometimes music does need to be ruled out. As for contemporary music, all the guitar strumming that was done when I was a kid sure kept my generation at Mass. @@)

Finally, a comment I can agree with:

In the end, everyone agrees that music adds too much to the Mass to be ignored. “Music gets inside you in a different way that spoken word does,” said Rashed, “If you want the Liturgy to enter people’s hearts and minds, you better use some music.” (Yes! And it's all the more reason to be careful when selecting Liturgical music.)

Read the article here.

Middle Name Meme

Tagged by Brian and Jason

1. You have to post the rules before you give your answers.
2. You must list one fact about yourself beginning with each letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, use your maiden name or your mother's maiden name).
3. At the end of your blog post, you need to tag one person for each letter of your middle name. (Be sure to leave them a comment telling them they've been tagged.)

I have a collection of middle names, so I will pick my first middle name.

M - Maria was the first name of both my grandmothers.

A - (St.) Anthony of Padua and I are related.

R - Rome is one of my favorite places in the world.

I - Incense should be used at every Mass.

A - Azores is where my father is from.

I tag the first FIVE people who read this.

Papal Visit Update

The deadline for tickets to the Papal Events in New York in most dioceses was last Friday, but some tickets may still be available for the Mass at Nationals Stadium in Washington DC. The Archdiocese of Washington reports that there are 45,000 tickets for the Mass but demand for the tickets is so high that two Popemobile rides through the streets of DC have been added to the papal schedule. The exact route will be finalized and released at a later date.


The Archdiocese of New York reports that there were over 180,000 requests for the 90,000 tickets which were available for the Mass at Yankee Stadium, the Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral, and the meeting with youth at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers. Approximately 58,000 tickets were granted for the Mass at Yankee Stadium.

I can't imagine having the responsibility of planning this event, but here is a little peek in at the man who is in charge.

Maybe the hardest part of Mark G. Ackermann's job is reading the letters that come in every day from people pleading for any chance to be close to their pope.

"They're heart-rending stories of people who have been through great tragedy and just want to be somewhere near the Holy Father," he said.

The problem is that there have been more than 180,000 requests for 90,000 total tickets for the six events that will take place in New York when Pope Benedict XVI visits from April 18-20.

[...]

Ackermann is executive director of the archdiocesan Office of the Papal Visit, a temp job that packs a decade's worth of responsibility.

Reporting directly to Cardinal Edward Egan, he is in charge of planning for every papal minute from when Benedict arrives at John F. Kennedy International Airport from Washington on April 18 to when he lifts off on Shepherd One about 8 p.m. April 20, heading for Rome.

It is a unique job that covers everything from planning security with the Secret Service and a litany of government agencies to preparing 550 priests and deacons to give Communion to 58,000 people at Yankee Stadium in 15 minutes.

"We've literally had walk-throughs at the stadium to figure out who is going to be where, how people are going to get out of their row - I was going to say pew - to receive Communion and get back to the same seat," he said in his office at the archdiocese's headquarters.

[...]

It's not surprising that Ackermann believes that Pope Benedict's stop at Ground Zero on the morning of April 20 promises to be the most poignant part of the papal visit.

"The Holy Father will actually go down and touch bedrock, spend a period of private prayer, bless the area and then visit with 24 individuals, some of whom lost loved ones in the attacks on our country," he said.

Ackermann leads a 50-person Papal Visit Task Force that is kicking into high gear for an eight-week stretch that promises to fly by.

He spends about 20 percent of his time on security issues, working with the Secret Service, other federal agencies that he won't identify, the New York City and Yonkers police departments, the papal security team and others.

"New York has been through a lot; this region has been through a lot," he said. "The level of preparedness - people have no idea - when a major event happens is overwhelming."

Then there are the protocol people from the White House, the State Department, the Vatican, city and state agencies.

Then there are the logistics. A database, growing by the day, will include the names of every person ticketed to every event. It's a requirement of the Secret Service.

For the pope's youth rally at St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers on April 19, more than 20,000 youngsters from across the region will be bused to Yonkers Raceway. From there, they will be shuttled to the seminary, where Secret Service will be waiting to check bar-coded tickets.

"Nationally known entertainment" is being lined up for both the seminary and Yankee Stadium, Ackermann said.

More than 800 buses will descend on the stadium April 20, bringing representatives from all 195 dioceses in the United States. After hours of waiting, they'll see Benedict celebrate Mass from a stage above second base - assisted by more than 200 cardinals and bishops and some 800 priests.

And that's not all.

About 250 Christian leaders from across the country have to get to St. Joseph's Church in Manhattan on April 18 for an ecumenical prayer service.

A good 2,500 priests, deacons and nuns will fill St. Patrick's Cathedral on April 19, when Benedict becomes the first pope to celebrate Mass there.

Hundreds of volunteers are being enlisted (and checked out) for all the events.

Every step the pope will take - every left turn, every right turn - is choreographed in a big book that Ackermann keeps close at hand. But who's to say Benedict won't get out of line, like when John Paul II popped out of St. Patrick's in 1995 and walked down 50th Street?

"In this post-9/11 world, I'm not sure we'll see that kind of spontaneity, but not every step can be choreographed," Ackermann said.

Ackermann will be near the pope's side the whole time, of course, but he can't be more specific than that. Security reasons.

And when Benedict leaves and the Office of the Papal Visit evaporates? On April 22, Ackermann has to give a speech in Calgary about emergency preparedness for hospitals. He committed to it more than a year ago.

Then he will take a non-temp job with the archdiocese, which he prefers not to identify for now. He has more immediate concerns.

Like the 100,000 ponchos he'll need in case the pope brings rain.

I am exhausted just reading about it, and please no RAIN!

Update: The Archdiocese of New York has two more tickets which they are holding a drawing for. Anyone can enter. Click here for more info.

Instruction for Opening Sainthood Causes

In the Holy See Press Office this morning, Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins C.M.F., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, presented the Instruction "Sanctorum Mater" for conducting diocesan or eparchial enquiries in the causes of saints.

Cardinal Saraiva was accompanied by Archbishop Michele Di Ruberto and Msgr. Marcello Bartolucci, respectively secretary and under-secretary of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

In his remarks, the cardinal affirmed that the aim of the document "is to contribute to ensuring that current norms for the diocesan inquiry of a cause of beatification and canonisation are applied with ever greater care".

The Instruction is divided into six sections, said Cardinal Saraiva, going on to explain: "The first draws attention to the need for a true reputation of holiness before beginning a process, and explains the duties and roles of the petitioner, the postulator and the competent bishop. The second part describes the preliminary phase of the cause which extends as far as the 'Nihil Obstat' of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The third section concerns the instruction of the cause. The fourth part concentrates on the gathering of documentary proof and the fifth on the gathering of proof from witnesses. Finally, the sixth section of the document outlines the procedures for the closing of the inquiry".

The cardinal then went on to consider the reasons for the publication of the document, pointing out that 25 years have passed since the promulgation by John Paul II of the Apostolic Constitution 'Divinus Perfectionis Magister', and of the 'Normae servandae' by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. Since then, he said, "in some dioceses, certain provisions of the law have not always been understood and, consequently, not been put into practice with the necessary meticulousness, the which has sometimes made it necessary for the congregation to supply clarifications or to ask diocesan curias to correct errors".

Furthermore, he added, "dioceses do not always have access to specialised individuals with practical experience of the various procedures involved in a cause of canonisation". For this reason, "it is evident that a practical document, such as this Instruction, was useful, indeed necessary".

"When the current legislation on causes of saints came into force", said the cardinal outlining another reason for the publication of the present document, "an unfounded idea became widespread that the traditional methodology ... had been substituted by some kind of historical-critical investigation". And he identified the reason for this confusion in "the fact that the term 'inquisitio' used in Latin (the only official text) to designate the procedure of the diocesan phase of a cause of canonisation was translated in Italian as 'inchiesta' (inquiry)". This Instruction, then, highlights "the importance of procedure" in causes of beatification and canonisation, "and accurately highlights the norms that must be observed".

Turning to the last reason for which the document was published, Cardinal Saraiva noted how, "in the move from the earlier legislation to that in force today, it was unclear to some people that a serious and rigorous verification of the fame of sanctity or martyrdom, undertaken in dioceses, is a prior requirement of absolute importance. Hence, a procedure must not be begin without irrefutable proof that the Servant of God ... is held to be a saint or martyr by a considerable number of faithful, who invoke him or her in their prayers and attribute graces and favours to his or her intercession".

Thus far during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, there have been 20 beatification ceremonies during which 563 Servants of God were beatified (36 confessors and 527 martyrs), including 48 diocesan priests, 485 male and female religious, and 30 lay people, for a total of 509 men and 54 women.

The prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints has presided at 31 ceremonies, 18 in Italy and 13 in other countries (Mexico, Portugal, Brazil, Spain, France, Poland and Austria).

The canonisation ceremonies celebrated thus far during the pontificate of Benedict XVI number four (three in Rome and one in Brazil), during which 14 people were canonised (two bishops, four priests, five male religious and three female religious).

The current total of saints and blesseds of this pontificate is 577.

VIS

Papal Visit

Just a reminder that time is running out. Only 61 days until Shepherd One touches down on American soil.

I have my tickets, do you?
If not, contact your local diocese ASAP!

Is Eating Meat on Friday a Mortal Sin?

One comment that I hear often during Lent is, "God won't send me to Hell because I ate meat."

The person who makes that statement is usually shocked when I respond by saying, "You know, I agree. You are right".

That usually gets their attention long enough, then catechesis begins.

First: God doesn't send anyone to Hell. We get their on our own.
Second: Eating meat on a Friday during Lent is not a sin, but the attitude of a Catholic who chooses to is.

Abstaining from meat is not a doctrine or a dogma of the Church. It is a practice much like priestly celibacy. The Church has chosen to enforce this practice because of the great benefit which it gives to individual Catholics and the Church as a whole. The Church has had 2,000 years to develop these practices. It doesn't create them on whims, serious thought and prayer goes into them.

So, where does sin come in? Simply put, the person sins by eating meat on a Friday during Lent because the individual presumes to know better than the Church. The Church has spent 2,000 years thinking about these topics. How much time have you spent? I thought so.

So, is it a mortal or a venial sin? Well, that depends on the attitude of the carnivore.

Basically what I want to say in this post is that it's not about meat at all. It's about denying ourselves, uniting with other Catholics in a common practice, and being obedient to Church law. There is so little that the Catholic Church requires of her members, not eating meat on 8 days isn't that much of a sacrifice. Just remember, you could be ordering a Ramadan meal or keeping Kosher all year long.

On a related note: Remember the Meat Police?

Papal Mass Tickets

For those interested in attend the Papal Mass at Yankee Stadium I have the following ticket information.

Boston will be getting 3,000 tickets. Tickets will be distributed to people registered in parishes located in the Archdiocese. Bus transportation to New York has also been arranged.

Charlotte will be getting 100 tickets. Anyone can apply, but the diocese has already recieved over 150 requests. Tickets will be granted through a lottery.

Chicago will be getting 100 tickets. Pastors at each of Chicago’s 363 parishes have been asked to submit four nominees. Winners will be chosen by lottery.

Syracuse will be getting 500 tickets. There are no tickets remaining.

Philadelphia is getting an undisclosed number of tickets, but I assume it is 3,000. The application period ended on Jan 24th.

Louisville is getting 650 tickets. All tickets have been reserved.

Fall River recieved 100 tickets. All tickets have been reserved.

Based on this information I will assume that dioceses celebrating bicentennials will recieve 3,000 tickets and other dioceses will recieve 100 tickets.

Ticket information for the Mass in Washington DC has not been released yet.

Check out the event website for details.

Update: For those who can't get tickets, the Archdiocese of Boston is building a website which will have full coverage of all the papal events. It's not up yet, but the address will be: http://www.popeinamerica.com/

Update: Dallas has 150 tickets to the Mass in Washington and 10 tickets to the Mass in New York for parishioners on parishes in the diocese.

UPDATE: (March 10, 2008) The Archdiocese of New York is running a contest where one lucky person will win a trip to New York and two tickets to the Pontifical Mass at Yankee Stadium. More info here.

Adventure of the Priesthood

Yesterday afternoon, the Holy Father visited Rome's Major Pontifical Seminary for the occasion of the feast of its patroness, Our Lady of Trust. After presiding at Vespers, the Holy Father expressed his joy at having the opportunity, as Bishop of Rome, to visit "his seminary".

"Because the gift of being adoptive children of God has illuminated your lives", the Pope told the seminarians, "you have felt the desire to share this with others. That is why you are here, to develop your filial vocation and prepare yourselves for your future mission as apostles of Christ. ... Savouring the joy of life with God the Father means that you feel the ever more urgent need to become messengers of the Gospel of His Son, Jesus".

"All this cannot but induce great trust, because the gift received is amazing, it fills us with wonder and sates us with intimate joy. And thus you are able to understand the role Mary has in your lives. ... Just as 'the Son was born of woman', of Mary Mother of God, the fact that you are children of God means you have her as mother".

The Pope then addressed the parents of the future priests, saying "you are probably the most surprised of all about what has happened and is happening to your children. You had perhaps imagined for them a mission different from the one for which they are now preparing. ... Let us look to Mary. The Gospel helps us to understand that she too asked herself many question about her Son Jesus, and reflected on Him for a long time.

"It is inevitable that the vocation of children in some way also becomes the vocation of the parents", he added. "You have found yourselves participating in your sons' marvellous adventure. Indeed, although it may appear that a priest's life does not attract the interest of the majority of people, in reality it is the most interesting of adventures and the most necessary for the world: the adventure of demonstrating and realising the fullness of life to which everyone aspires. It is a very demanding adventure and could not be otherwise because a priest is called to imitate Jesus".

The Holy Father then went on to refer to two aspects that characterise the lives of seminarians. In the first place, that of listening to the voice of the Lord which, he said, "requires an atmosphere of silence. For this reason the seminary offers time and space to daily prayer; it pays great attention to liturgy, to meditation on the Word of God and to Eucharistic adoration. At the same time, it asks you to dedicate long hours to study: by praying and studying, you can create within yourselves the man of God that you must become and that people expect a priest to be".

The Pope went on: "There is also another aspect to your lives: ... the community aspect, which is of great importance. ... Your communion is not limited to the present but also concerns the future. The pastoral activity that awaits you must see you acting together united in a single body, an 'ordo' of priests who, with the bishop, watch over the Christian community".

"All this serves as a reminder that God calls you to be saints, and that sanctity is the secret of real success in your priestly ministry. From this moment on, sanctity must be the final goal of all your choices and decisions. Entrust this desire and this daily commitment to Mary, Mother of Trust".

"Follow your journey at the seminary with your hearts open to truth, to transparency, and to dialogue with those who guide you, and this will enable you to respond simply and humbly to the One Who calls you, freeing yourselves from the risk of pursuing a personal project of your own".

VIS

Beautiful Ave Maria

Wow, I love this!


H/T to Fr. V.



These young ladies are members of a singing group called Seraphim and this version of Ave Maria is from their newest CD titled Hail Queen of Heaven.

Want more?

I ONLY work here

To all the DRE's, Pastors, and Pastoral Associates out there:

If you are planning to have a visiting choir sing for a Mass, PLEASE take the common courtesy to ask or at the very least TELL the music director/organist so she can plan accordingly and doesn't look like a complete idiot as strange people take over the choir loft.