On Thankfulness in the Christmas Season. Is Pray Tell a Catholic Blog?

While we’ll probably never know why, the liberal Benedictine blog run by our *friends* in Collegeville has removed the post on the blasphemous and sacrilegious “adaptation” of a traditional Catholic hymn to contemporary “lyrics.” EF covered the story here:

Scripture says that whenever a sinner repents, all heaven rejoices, so we should as well. Indeed, we must also rejoice in this holy season that the Holy See has held back the deluge of “liberal” “liturgy” that would otherwise ensue if the “liturgists” at Collegeville were free of Roman oversight. For a particularly horrid example of what they would concoct, take a look at what their Coreligionists have done to Presbyterian worship:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4pr_E5Nbuc&feature=player_embedded

Having mentioned protestant worship, we ought to ask if Pray Tell is a Catholic blog. While Catholic Benedictines started it and are obsessed with the improved translation of the Roman Missal, the blog’s description does not use the word “Catholic” to describe itself. Perhaps it’s just a “catholic” blog.

http://www.praytellblog.com/index.php/about/

So when a Lutheran contributor wrote about the last O Antiphon, should we be surprised?

CBC News - Canada - Canadian-Arab Christians targeted on website

H/t: Jihad Watch

CBC News - Canada - Canadian-Arab Christians targeted on website

Good Jesuit, Bad Jesuit: 235 Months In Federal Prison For Fairfield Abuse Scandal

Never trust people who go on about collective responsibility ad nauseum and enthusiastically talk about their passion for youth ministry and at-risk-youth.

This Jesuit finally got caught and once again, you can smell the Modernism like piles of fetid garbage, stinking to heaven. Were there signs that this man was what he was?

How about barring homosexuals and people who don't believe the truths of the Catholic Faith from positions of authority in the Church?

Good Jesuit, Bad Jesuit: 235 Months In Federal Prison For Fairfield Abuse Scandal

Head of Belgian Church Shocks the Worldings: Comparing Victims of Pederasty to Flood Victims

Editor: We've been very defensive of Archbishop Andre-Joseph Leonard as he's one of the best things that has happened to Belgian society in  years. Expectantly, the crocodile tears shed by the same media that defended Roman Polanski will now raise an angry fist at the Archbishop.  It does this because it despises the Catholic things he defends.  Frankly, it's the same furor of anger that has met the Holy Father who has been pointing an accusing finger at the permissive elements in society that have promoted child sexual abuse, like Kinsey, substantial portions of Belgium's elite society, and all of those academics who've striven for the last decades to erase the idea of good and evil from the minds of people everywhere.

Archbishop Attacked at Mass by homosexual.

Various articles on Media attacks, here.

The following is an article from Catholic Church Conservation:


Le chef de l'Eglise belge choque en comparant pédophilie et inondations

The head of the Belgian Catholic Church, Andre-Joseph Leonard shocked MPs on Wednesday saying that the Belgian Church could compensate victims of pedophile priests, just as it has shown "solidarity with flood victims ".

"The Catholic Church could freely participate with all other sectors of society in the creation of solidarity funds, not because it is legally obliged, but because there is a duty of solidarity with all victims, not only of floods and epidemics, but also sexual abuse, "said the Primate of Belgium.

He spoke in particular cases where the abuser is dead or the actions under statute of limitations, for other cases being for him the responsibility of Justice.

Norway: a bomb threat closed the airport station Oslo

Editor: coordination between Anarchist and Al Qaeda cells shouldn't be overruled.

 OSLO, Dec. 23, 2010 | The alert was lifted Thursday night in the railway station to the airport in Oslo, excavations on a train carrying a bomb intended as a message board found no result Norwegian police said.

AFP | 23.12.2010 | 23:02 AFP | 23.12.2010 | 11:02 p.m.

. The alert was lifted Thursday night in the railway station to the airport in Oslo, excavations on a train carrying a bomb intended as a message board found no result, Norwegian police said.

Traffic, suspended four hours after the evacuation of the train station and Oslo-Gardermoen, resumed shortly after 2200 (21HOO GMT), officials said.
 
 "While the train was searched, but found nothing at all. Traffic is now reopened," said the head of police operations Romerike, Svein Arild Hallaas, the agency NTB.
 
  The evacuation of the train and the station occurred around 1715 GMT but the air traffic and the airport itself, located about thirty kilometers northeast of the capital of Norway, were not affected .

Read further...

Bishop Morlino's New Chapel: It's Beautimous

Thanks to Badger Catholic, we've just got this link with a lot of photos about Bishop Morlino's new adoration chapel, here.  It's amazing what can be done in Red Madison, Wisconsin.

If Pat Robertson is Mad, Why is He So Influential?

Hunter S. Dyer: Southern Writer and Religious Gypsy

The infamous reporter Dr. Hunter S. Thompson postulated the existence of a 'linkhorn gene' in his book about the Hell's Angels, "The Hells Angels a Strange and Terrible Saga", which he thinks would account for all of the weird [pronounced we'ahd in the Scots English] behavior surrounding people of Scots-Irish ancestry.  It would account for a lot of the historical prodigies, disasters, victories and senseless tragedies, that primal element and raw material which makes the heroic people of Michener's celebrated book, The Texans, such a captivating read.  Just think of Andrew Jackson and the Trail of Tears, or his numerous gunfights with men who insulted his beloved wife.

We have only to look at a few celebrities to get an anecdotal sense of the truish quality of Thompson's idea.   There's Mel Gibson.  Can't you just see him mounted on a thirty thousand dollar American motorcycle with a youngish but buxom female on the back, on his way through the deserts of Nevada?  Maybe not, but his intense faint blue eyes and madcap grin give him a special, familiar, wild look that might make you involuntarily say, "Leif the Lucky":

Gibson's Linkhorn Look

Mel Gibson, a Viking, a wildman, and a rather devotional and repentant sinner, could be seen as an exemplaire of many other  historical and legendary characters as well, as if he were related to those people you read about in the male-dominated, white European annals of le histoire.  Was the linkhorn gene only present in Scotland and Ireland?  We know for a fact that it emigrated to the United States.  We'd like to think that it was also present in the strains of fine, Norse stock, but also in the highlands of Central Europe, in Tyrolean and Switzerland, like Ferdinand Schiess, who fought at the Battle of Rourke's Drift and earned a Victoria's Cross, or the tragic Tyrolean hero, Andreas Hofer, who fought against the French and was rewarded with execution by the people he was fighting for...

We also think of Jeb Stuart, Stonewall Jackson and the Catholic convert, Longstreet or the famous William Quantrill who led irregular forces against the Union.

The linkhorn as Hunter S. describes it is an ancient strain, one could say it goes back in time to the great and frozen North, and down to the sunny valleys and fields of Italy and beyond to the shores of distant Palestine during the Crusades, where Robert the Bruce's heart was thrown in the breach by Sir James Douglas to inspire the Scots Crusaders, to fight ferociously to get to the other side of a breach at the battle of Teba in Spain.  Sir James fell, but he died carrying out his promise.

Like a lot of things, that divine madness of the linkhorn can be felt in the glorious splendour of the Gothic Cathedrals of Europe, the far flung adventures of the wild Men of the North, their brilliant establishments, Universities and Monasteries.  Things so beautiful and noble it might make you weep with shame to think that they were held in low regard by low men who are no better than thrallls to worldliness and pride.  But there is also a side to the linkhorn gene that can't be denied, where the loftiness and beauty of their aspirations are turned into the lowest and strangest most perverse contortions.   One doesn't have to go much further than to look at southern evangelicals for that, where true religion, patriotism and often love of family is twisted into strange shapes and guises, and for all of its strangeness, still finds a place in the hearts of many who are won over by their persuasiveness and glamor.  Evil wouldn't be much if it didn't have some of the attractiveness of good, and Pat Robertson has been mad for a long time, a veritable linkhorn of the highest order to compete with others like William Walker, Joseph Smith and Brigham Young.  Certainly, these are great men in their own right who've accomplished great things, for the Devil himself could lead a third of the Anglic Host out of Heaven.  Tom Roeser has a little to say about Pat Robertson, and here it is.

Make me a promise, will you?   When I get as goofy as Pat Robertson will  you get hold of my wife and have her lead me away from the computer?  Promise?  All right.   Odds are I’ll be senile.   Which is not Pat’s problem.   He’s always been weird.

 

         Robertson’s two years younger than I (born in 1930) but he’s had that vacant-minded chuckle even when he’s talking seriously… and misty eyes… that  tell you he’s a brick short of a load.    Yesterday he came out for legalizing marijuana.   Yeah Pat, just what we need now. We got incipient war in Korea, Iran with the bomb, the Russians stoking Iran with nuclear enrichment, China virtually owning us, Charlie Krauthammer seeing Obama cresting, gays going in the military and ordered to shower with the straights and now this ex-Southern Baptist charismatic preacher (charismatic preaching an anomaly to Baptists anyhow) sees the most important thing is to start Americans legally puffing.

Lt. Anthony William Vivian Loyd

Africans Want The Gregorian -- Not The Forced Hulahula

In the Old Mass one doesn't have to work at getting the faithful to be meditative.  That comes from himself -- the Bishop explained.

Bishop N’Koué celebrtes the Old Mass in St. Peter's

(kreuz.net, Benin)  Bishop Pascal N’Koué (51) of Natitingou in Benin has led his old Mass already since October 2003 in his Diocese.

That can be read in his report on the third anniversary of the historical Motu Proprio 'Summorum Pontificum'.

Msgr N'’Koué studied at the Vatican Diplomatic Academy in Rome in the early nineties.  Finally, he was active till his appointment as Diocesean Bishop, as the Secretary of the Nuntiatur of Panama.

The 76.000 population city Natitingou is located in northwestern Beenin -- not far from the boarder of Togo.

The Pope has asked all of the Bishops of the World for a report about the Old Liturgy in all of the Diocese.

The author of the report for the Dicoee Natitingou who hales from France is Fr. Denis Le Pivain.

He belongs to the Bi-Ritual Priestly Society 'Totus Tuus'.

The report was published in the weekly of the Diocese of Natitingou.


Enemies of the Old Mass have Poisonous Hearts

The report explains that the Old rite and the New Mass can peacefully exist together and
supposedly enrich one another.

Conflicts occurred from sick and poisonous hearts" and from narrow-minded ideologies.

In the wake of the Motu Proprio there was no turbulence in the Dicoese of Natitingou.

The Old Rite Moves the Faithful by Itself

The report explained that the Old Mass is an opportunity, especially for the young clerics of the Diocese.

The traditional Rite allows the priest, the altar, the holy silence, the mystery, the various making of the sign of the cross and kneelings to be held with greater worth.

Also the priest would better understand the celebration to God that the celebrant and the faithhful will face together to the cross.

The Old Mass enables also a better understanding of the New Eucharist.

Without every pressure of the Bishops many priests came themselves to learn the Old Mass.

Where the rubrics of the Mass are internalized, the Liturgy itself touches the faithful with its beauty and depth.

Then one doesn't have to fight any more for the Mystery, the Holy, the Piety, the Majesty of God and the active participation in the Liturgy.

The Old Rite Corresponds to the African Mentality

The Roman Canon and the liturgical gestures in the Old Rite stand closer to African religiosity and African feeling -- and here is what the report said, further;

"It is my wish that one day every priest will be able to celebrate both forms" -- explained the Bishop within.

He named further examples for the enrichment of a New Mass.

Immediately in Advent and in the time of Fast the priest could celebrate everything for the Lord.

That draws the attention on the Mystery of the Cross. The celebrant and the choir should disappear before God.

Msg N'Koué explains that the Offertory Rite is not in the rubrics of the New Rite and not celebrated in the face of the faithful.

He wishes also more latin in the Mass and would like to avoid profane instruments and music.

In their place Gregorian Choirs should be singing.

The bishop has asked the priests to say the Roman Canon on Sundays and Feast days. It will facilitate inculcation more easily.

Before giving Communion the Celebrant must make the sign of the cross with the Host.


Read original at kreuz.net... auf Deutsch.

Cardinal Daneels: Belgian Church must renounce self-centered mentality in response to abuse :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

That's what we need more of; A man who was criminally negligent an remains unpunished making moral prescriptions for others.  If anyone's being self-centered, it's he.  He's not too ashamed to stand up there and talk about a "class mentality" in the Church.  Sure, it's clear that leftists are the most class conscious people in history,  but how about a little shame?

Cardinal Daneels presided over the worst destruction in the Church, he's actively and passively tried to undermine his more conservative successor, and it's quite clear that from his own activity, the Belgian church is practically dead.

How about a little shame, Lordship?  And slip quietly into the oblivion of retirement and thank your lucky stars you're basically untouchable.  It probably doesn't matter to you if you're actually engaged in concealing  real source of the problem.

Related Stories:

Cardinal Daneels denies coverup.

Cardinal Daneels Disgrace

Cardinal Dannels Admits He Failed



Cardinal Daneels: Belgian Church must renounce self-centered mentality in response to abuse :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

David Haas' New "Song" to Our Lady: Music to Abuse Liturgies By

David Haas

David Haas has been a long-time cacophonous purveyor of heresy and blasphemy. What's particularly scary is that they let this man teach High School students at a pretty expensive elite school.  What's even scarier is the man's getting paid by the Church to destroy the Church.  He's also an enemy in the use of "exclusive language", advocating its removal from parishes as reported here at Catholic Media Coalition:

David Haas: Contemporary Church music composer who published Dear Sister God, and presented a music workshop at which he and his ex-wife, composer Jeanne Cotter, informed the participants of their “duty” and “responsibility” to purge their parishes of “exclusive language” in the liturgy.

You might also know his work if you're unfortunate enough to attend "Mass" in the NO in North America with tortuous ditties like this.  This particular anthem is guaranteed to torture the unwary traveler.  It says, ominously, "you are mine."   Creepy.  In any event, if it does anything effectively, it's that it conveys the heterodox leanings of Mr. Haas   This particular piece features a Jesuit and a chick named Sister Bubbles, and we're not making this up:




 Now, over at the ever-effeminate and faux-Benedictine   Pray, Tell Blog, he's airing out his most recent steaming composition offensive to pious ears, and probably God and Our Lady, right here.  Note the agonizing attempt to work with the inclusive language and connect with a more ancient hymn..  \

Hail, Holy Mary, Queen of Peace, O Maria!
O Fragrance of God’s love increase, O Maria!
Mother, servant of God’s grace, [one of the commenters thought this line would offend someone]

Womb for Christ, holy birthing place, First disciple, we embrace:
Salve, Salve, Salve Regina! 

Hail, Holy Mary, hope for all, O Maria!
Your song of justice is our call, O Maria!
Poor and broken are held high,
Mercy will intensify,
God’s reign you personify:
Salve, Salve, Salve Regina!
Hail, Holy Mary, you inspire, O Maria!
With you, God’s presence we desire, O Maria!
Vision, wisdom, you instill,
You, the “Yes,” God’s holy will,
Faith and courage, you fulfill:
Salve, Salve, Salve Regina!
Hail, Holy Mary, strength and trust, O Maria!
O Woman, singer for the just, O Maria!
Mother, model, faith supreme,
Pregnant bearer of God’s dream,
Peace and justice is your theme:
Salve, Salve, Salve Regina!

No wonder males stay away from church until they have children.   What's really laughable is how Father Ruff OSB and his commenters over there are trying to play this off as a link between tradition and more contemporary forms of music.

Here's some commentary from the Musica Sacra Forum, which gives some hilarious commentary, calling this "hymn" a politically correct Salve.  Very funny.

SSPX Superior Father Schmidberger: "We Are Happy to Fulfill the Holy Father's Wish"

The SSPX Buys a New Church in Cologne 

Recently Purchased "New Apostle Church" in Cologne

(kreuz.net, Köln) The Society of Pius X has purchased a new church in Cologne.  They've recently just made this known.

The Superior of the German District, Father Franz Schmidberger is "very happy" about the new purchase:

"It is like a Christmas gift, that has come about because of the willingness of our faithful to sacrifice."

Father hopes that the new Church will bring the blessings of the Immemorial mass in and around Cologne. [Where there has been some trouble getting the Mass properly available to those who have requested it from the local Ordinary]

He recalls then that Pope Benedict XVI. has expressly desired the implementation  of the Mass in his 'Summorum Pontificum':

"We are very pleased that we could fulfill the Holy Father's wish and hope for a steadily growing stream of the faithful."

The Society bought the Church from a man-founded [and presumably defunct] sect, which was known as the "New Apostolic Church".

It is already the fourth church which the Society has purchased in this area and the seventh, which they have bought in total.

Also the Society has built twelve churches up till now.

In the meantime there are fifty offices in all where the Society celebrates the Mass in buildings which they've converted to chapels.


A Few Preparations Make a Church of God out of the Buildings

The Society's new church was built in 1951 and was completely rennovated in  1990.

The useable areas of the building consist of  350 Sq meters.  And the property on which is rests is 534 sq. meters.

The pews could be made suitable for the Old Mass with the addition of kneelers.

Also pews could be moved in order to make room for a communion rail where the choir area is.

Finally, they must remove the dinner table and construct a Catholic high altar.

In the gallery an organ will be built.  Otherwise, a place for the schola will have to be provided.

The existing  space could also have, without much building expenditure,  a sacristy, living and sleeping quarters as well as a lecture hall.

Link to kreuz.net...

Related Links:
44 Percent of Germans Want the Old Mass

Three Year Odyssey in Bonn: The Old Mass in Cologne is At Most, Tolerated

Chinese government defends control of Catholic church

Chinese government defends control of Catholic church

H/t: Pablo Rodari

Vivificat!: Who shares blame for the child sexual abuse scandal in the Church? Liberal, Postmodern, Deconstructionist “thinkers” do.

Holy Father and Donahue knock another one out of the park.

Vivificat!: Who shares blame for the child sexual abuse scandal in the Church? Liberal, Postmodern, Deconstructionist “thinkers” do.

Canon Lawyer: Bishops Have Authority Over the Word "Catholic"

This article comes from the In the Light of the Law blog. --------------------------------------- Lisa Fullam's dangerous advice should be ignored When informed that the Vatican would oppose him, Joseph Stalin shrugged and asked “How many troops does the pope have?” To the dictator, the only views that mattered were those backed-up by men with guns. Lisa Fullam has offered authorities at Catholic Healthcare West / St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix similarly myopic, even dangerous, advice when she suggested that, because the word “Catholic” is not copyright-able, the enterprise should continue to call itself “Catholic” despite Bp. Thomas Olmsted’s threatened prohibition of such use, and simply “let the canonical chips fall where they may.” Apparently Fullam believes that, since men with badges will never show up to enforce a cease-and-desist order (that will never be issued) by a civil court regarding the word “Catholic”, Catholic hospital officials need not worry about bishops tossing a few “canonical chips” their way. I strongly suggest that St. Joseph's seek advice from another expert. If the only criterion for authentic Catholic conduct is “what Church rules are enforceable by civil courts?”, then there won’t be much left of Catholic codes of conduct. Thank God. I don’t want states being the final arbiter of what is acceptable Catholic conduct and what is not, and I would hope that Fullam doesn’t want that, either. But if Fullam’s point is that a bishop’s authority over the use of the label “Catholic” is, absent state enforcement options, nugatory, then she needs to study up on some elementary canon law (and ecclesiology, for that matter). A bishop’s authority over the use of the word “Catholic” is reflected in, e.g., 1983 CIC 216 and 300, and those norms just get the conversation started. Canons 1319 comes next to mind, but an exploration of those options goes beyond what I can cover in blog post. Fullam’s nonchalance about ecclesiastical authority notwithstanding, I suggest that Catholic Healthcare West / St. Joseph's Hospital officials put a careful reading of these and related canons on the agenda for their next meeting. I’m pretty sure that Bp. Olmsted has them memorized. Read more at thevaticanlobby.blogspot.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/j47c

INQUISITION NEWS: Canon Lawyer: Bishops Have Authority Over the Word...: "Amplify’d from thevaticanlobby.blogspot.com Canon Lawyer: Bishops Have Authority Over the Word 'Catholic' This article comes from the ..."

Homosexual Propagandist Abused Boy: Priest Sentenced Ten Years

Editor: It certainly bears repeating.  There is a confluence between liberalism and the sexual abuse of children by homosexuals.  It also goes hand in hand with what the Holy Father said recently.


This priest has fought publicly for the widening of homosexual perversion in the Church.  Actually now, he's behind bars.

Fr. Pezzini on the Website 'repubblica.it'

(kreuz.net)  Fr. Domenico Pezzini (74) has been sentenced today to ten years in prison in an abbreviated trial for the charge homosexual abuse.

He must also pay his victim 50.000 Euro.  This has been in the Italian media.

Fr. Pezzini who was always clothed as a civilian was known as the "Priest of the Homosexuals".

He is been in jail since his apprehension in May.

In June a Judge refused a release on bail because of the "alarming way of carrying on" of the Priest and because of his numerous contacts with young men from the third world.

His condemnation was based on the serious sexual abuse of a pubescent male from Bangladesh.

Pezzini had repeatedly raped him between the years of  2006 to 2009.  The abuse began when the boy was 13 years old.

The victim lived in the street and was picked up by the priest in a park.

During the investigation he requested one more foreign victim by undercover Police.

It was clarified that the homosexual priest was to have abused a boy younger than fifteen years old.  This misdeed was in any case barred from taking place.

Fr. Pezzini was a professor for English Linguistics at the University of Verona and was also an instructor at the Catholic University of Milan.

For years he promoted the homosexual ideology in the Italian Church.

He founded homosexual groups and fought for Church rectification of homosexual perversion.

One of his last books bore the title: "The Hands of the Potter:  a homosexual son.  What must be done?" [If the book title sounds like it's creepy, it probably is.  Reminds us of "Father" Richard Rohr, who advocates getting naked on retreats.]

In the past the abuser criticized the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger for the uncompromising repudiation of homosexual perversion.

So he said in 2005 for the newspaper "Corriere del Veneto':  "In homosexual circles, even among Catholic homosexuals, the name Ratzinger doesn't sound good."

The priest's house yielded  an abundance of homosexual pornographic materials.

The earlier preisident of the largest homosexual organization of Italy, 'Arcigay', Arelio Mancuso, pretended to be surprised at the arrest of Fr. Pezzini:

"In this moment there are a lot of discouraged homosexual Catholics , who knew Pezzini personally or through his deeds."

Homosexual lechers  could "always" depend on the attentiveness of the priest.

The abuser is said to be "a defender of the worth of homosexuals within the Church."

Translated from kreuz.net...

Mountain Meadows Massacre site may become national landmark

Mountain Meadows Massacre site may become national landmark

Catholic Girl Raped by Muslim Man in Pakistan

Criminals threaten family, who had made the complaint -- the rape of a Christian girl doesn't always count as a crime.

Faisalabad (kath.net/Fidesdienst)Gulfam, a 9 year old Catholic girl, was raped in the District of Tehsil Samundari  (Diocese of Faisalabad).  In connection with this occurrence the local church issued a report on the episode, which Fidesdienst published, that above all their concern in the view of the situation of  poor Christian families, who are often the victims of discrimination, violence and abuse.  "This episode is horrible.  I have spoken with the girl and the family and have tried to console them", said Bishop Joseph Coutts of Faisalabad in communication with Fidesdienst.  "We must develop a just and pastoral strategy, so that the phenomenon of abuse to Christian girls can be prevented".

The 9 year old Gulfam goes to the third grade.  She lives in village number 226 in the Administrative District Tehsil Samundari.  On the 10th of December she left with her 7 year old cousin, in order to go to a nearby sugar field to gather wood. Shortly after the younger girl returned home alone  and said that Gulfam had been taken by a man from the field.  Subsequently, the family present hurried to the field and found there the man who was in the process of assaulting the girl.  The perpetrator took flight and the mother of the girl brought the half-naked child back home.  A little later the parents reported the rape to the police.  The man was apprehended in the meantime, but the family is now in deep shock and fears violence from the majority Muslims in the village, because subsequently, they were threatened by the relatives of the perpetrator and were persuaded to withdraw the charge.  AS the girl reported the man had offered her money and when she refused his offer, was violently assaulted.


Link to kath.net... original.

Such Judgments Provoke New Tensions: EU Court Meddles in Russian Society

The Russian Orthodox Church is attempting to get human rights charges reviewed -- It could not be that the European Supreme Court for Human Rights (EGMR) in Strassburg should prescribe a homosexual demonstration in Moscow.

Strassburg/France (kath.net/APD)  The Russian Orthodox Church has called on the Russian Executive to cooperate in reconsidering a human rights charge.  The call clearly mirrored the December edition of "Orthodoxy Today" over which the anger of the Moscow Patiarchate was against that of the European Supreme Court for Human Rights in Straussburg which called for the alowance of the "Gay Parade".  It could not be that the EGMR Russia would prescribe a homosexual demonstration, explained the representative of the Moscow Patriarchate in Strassburg, Igumen Filaret (Bulekov)..

For a year long the Moscow city authorities had refused to allow a "Gay Parade" in the Russian capital.  While the organizers came before a Russian court with their complaint,  the European Supreme Court gave way to it.  The Court ruled on 21. Oktober that the Moscow City authority's ban against the homosexuals contravened three fundamental rights:  the right to assemble -- and association, the right to effective representation as well as the prohibition against discimination.

While the Russian homosexual movement considered this ruling as a victory, the Russian Orthodox Church criticized the judgment.  Such decisions are not only unsuccessful attempts to create social peace and to strengthen personal liberties, they promote even newer tensions as well, explained the 33 year old Igumen, who has represented his church since 2004 fat the European Council and also the Pastor of the All Holy Church in Strassburg.

 Thanks again to Kath.net, which enjoys the endorsement of the Holy Father.

Revoke the Act of Settlement Now: Catholic Windsor Condemns Abortion

Lord and Lady Windsor

The Act of Settlement is a piece of benevolent legislation passed down and transmogrified for centuries to accommodate the growing insignificance of the Church of England in public and private life.  Like Don't Ask Don't Tell, it can be abolished.

This man should be King.

Tim Walker. Edited by Richard Eden 6:30AM GMT 20 Dec 2010

The Duchess of Kent has withdrawn from public life to such an extent that she is often described as a recluse, but her son Lord Nicholas Windsor is determined to speak out over causes that he believes in.

Lord Nicholas, 40, who lost his place in the line of succession when he became a Roman Catholic, has written a controversial article in which he claims that abortion is a bigger threat to Europe than al-Qaeda and Islamic terrorism.

He describes abortion as "the single most grievous moral deficit in contemporary life" and calls for a "new abolitionism for Europe" in which abortion, like the slave trade, can be abolished.

Read further at the Torygraph...

H/t: Pewsitter

About 1000 Anglicans tipped to join Catholic Church - CathNews

About 1000 Anglicans tipped to join Catholic Church - CathNews

H/t: Pewsitter

Holy Father Addresses the Curia

… We were all the more dismayed, then, when in this year of all years and to a degree we could not have imagined, we came to know of abuse of minors committed by priests who twist the sacrament into its antithesis, and under the mantle of the sacred profoundly wound human persons in their childhood, damaging them for a whole lifetime.

Read further at Biblical Paths...

He Fought the Good Fight: Professor Robert Prantner RIP

The deceased was presented during his life as the degreed Conservative of Austria to the public -- and usually not to the pleasure of the old Liberal Bishops.

(kreuz.net) On 10. December the worthy Austrian theologian, social ethicist and publicist Robert Pratner died.  he was 79 years old.  

Prantner studied philosophy, theology and political science after his graduation in 1949. 

He received his degree in Political Science involving work in Civil Law and International Relations.  Later he became a Doctor in theology.

The deceased was also an honorary doctor of Social Science.

From the year 1955 he was the personal scientific colleague of the former Chancellor of Austria, Julius Raab († 1964).

After his withdrawal from politics, Pratner lead his office from 1961 to 1964.

From 1974 to 1982 he was Professor for Ethics and Social Studies to the Philosophic-theological Order College of the Augustinian Choir at Stift Klosterneuburg in Vienna.

In 1982 he was occupied as the Professor for Ethics and Social Studies at the neo-Conservative Philosophic-theological University of the Cistercians at Stift Heiligenkreuz. He became an emeritus in 1998.

The deceased was the excellent ambassador and agent of the Sovereign Order of Malta.

Prantner was closely connected to the upper-Austrian garden suburb Aigen at the 'Theological Summer Academy".

In  2002 he was recognized with the Austrian Award for Science and Art 1st Class.

he published numerous works.  In 2004 his memoir appeared under the title "Between the Playing Fields and the Vatican".

His memorial Mass will take place on 21. December at 11 O'Clock in the Parish Church of the market town of Hinterbrühl  17 kilometers southwest of Vienna.

Shrieking CNN Reporter Accuses Dimonds of Making Death Threats

The video above is from Most Holy Family Monastery's video which is a meditation on death. It was sent to a  homosexual undergoing a "sex-change" operation by a DMV worker who'd discovered her/his intention and attempted to express concern by corresponding directly using the privileged information afforded by his job. The video and its contents were taken as threatening by  a hysterical feminist reporter from CNN who accused the DVD of saying that "homosexuals should be put to death". You may view the report, here.

It is hoped that the Dimonds sue CNN to death.

It's not hard to understand how CNN could hire such an incompetent and poorly educated individual to report on religious topics and to accuse people of saying or doing things for which they weren't guilty.

She further went on to say that the language of the bible is threatening when she unwittingly cited it when it says, "sodomy is a sin which cries to heaven for vengeance".

Europeans Can Only Dream of Such Bishops

 The new Archbishop of Oklahoma wouldn't even be a court jester in a decadent European Ordinariat.

Msgr Paul Stagg Coakley

(kreuz.net) Pope Benedict XVI. has named Paul Stagg Coakley (55) as the new Archbishop of Oklahoma City in the US State Capital of Oklahoma.

The newly named Bishop was the Bishop of Salina in Kansas.

He studied at the University of Kansas.  There he was a student in the "Integrated Humanities Program" of the legendary convert and Literature Professor John Senior († 1999).

Senior moved many students to conversion through his lectures at the State University as well as to entrance in the Cloister and the Seminary.

 After finishing studies in Kansas the the future Bishop journeyed to the traditional Abbey of Notre Dame de Fontgambault in France.

For a time he occupied himself with the thought of entering there.

In the year of 1978 he entered finally a seminary in the USA and was ordained as a priest for the Diocese of Witchita Kansas.

In October 2004 John Paul II named him Bishop of Salinas.

During the presidential year of 2008 Msgr Coakley explained:

"To vote for such  a candidate, who supports an evil like abortion or genocide,  would be just as much a necessary moral outcome, as simply ignoring such shortcomings."

Msgr Coakley also explained that the current Vice President of the US, Joe Biden, has distorted the Catholic teaching on abortion.

The abortion politician is an "annoyance for others" and was conducive to "the justification of a tremendous moral evil".

The election of Barack Obama he called, "an indisputable irony".

He maintained that Obama has denied an entire class of people their legal rights as citizens.

The naming of Kathleen Sebelius to US-Health Secretary in March 2009 was an occasion which he described as a "serious attack on the rights of conscience and our efforts to protect innocent human life."

In the following April, he expressed his "deep disappointment" over the invitation of President Obama to the allegedly Catholic University of Notre Dame:

"The Invitation by the University undermines the Catholic Identity and Mission of this institution" -- said Msgr Coakley firmly.

Read further...

French Youth Burn Santa Claus

Des jeunes catholiques brulent le père Noel
Uploaded by hgjhjg. - See video of the biggest web video personalities.

Scientology and Tom Cruise Declare War on Europe: Wikileaks

If you ever get tagged by Scientology as  a viable threat, they will come after you.  Captain Ron, a close personal friend of Aleister Crowley, has founded quite an insidious and potentially threatening organization.  All we can do now is to cite Mary Antoinette by saying, "never trust Lafayette."

EUROPE UNDER ATTACK?

¶3. (C) Caberta stated that Scientology has declared war on Europe. She cited evidence from Hamburg's Office for the Protection of the Constitution (OPC) annual reports of how Scientology attempts to influence politicians and political institutions as well as the press. According to the Hamburg OPC's 2006 report, Scientology continues to use methods that are against the free, democratic constitutional structure, as was established in the 1997 State Interior Ministers meeting. Caberta asserted that Scientology in Germany has received orders from the Los Angeles headquarters to conquer Europe.

Link to article, here.

H/t: P. Hall

Meet the New Nuncio for UK

Our new Nuncio

[Valle Adurni] There seems to be a consensus emerging on the Italian blogosphere (as on Palazzo Apostolico among many others) that our new Nuncio was appointed because of his success in soothing the volatile temperament of the Russian Orthodox. In this his achievement has in all regards been conspicuous. He is, it is said, expected to perform the same miracle with the Church of England. Let us set aside the question of whether the aggrieved sensibilities of the CofE are perceived to be more important than the aggrieved sensibilities of the Russian Orthodox, or the extent to which either side brought it on themselves. What matters is that Mennini was perceived to have done a good job, and it is hoped that he will do it again.

Read further analysis, at Valle, here.

Melkite Patriarch Gregory III: Jihad attacks on Middle Eastern Christians have all been a Zionist plot

I linked to Pamela Geller's righteously indignant post on this last Sunday but have been meaning to revisit it when time permitted, as it is indicative of several unfortunate tendencies. Gregory III Lahham, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, and All the East, has said -- if this report is accurate -- that Islamic jihad attacks against Middle Eastern Christians are actually a Zionist plot to discredit Islam. And in doing so, he has illustrated the predicament of Christians in the Middle East in ways that he perhaps did not intend.

Read further...

Rainbow Ron Paul Votes for Gay Rights

Never trust a Democrat, or a Libertarian.  A Libertarian doesn't mind what you do, as long as you are paying for and it's mostly legal.  Here's the story, fittingly enough, from Mother Jones:

Ron Paul's DADT Reversal

— By Suzy Khimm

| Fri May. 28, 2010 6:25 AM PDT

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) was one of only five House Republicans to support the repeal of the military's "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy on gay servicemembers, which passed the House on a 234-194 vote last night. But Paul's vote came as a bit of a surprise. An unabashed foe of gay marriage, Paul had a decidedly squeamish stance on gay rights—even prompting actor Sacha Baron Cohen to ambush the Texas Republican for his film "Bruno." And Paul stated throughout his 2008 presidential campaign that he thought the military's policy should stand, though he had some concerns about its enforcement.

When asked about DADT repeal in June 2007, Paul told CNN:

I think the current policy is a decent policy. And the problem that we have with dealing with this subject is we see people as groups, as they belong to certain groups and that they derive their rights as belonging to groups. We don't get our rights because we're gays or women or minorities. We get our rights from our creator as individuals. So every individual should be treated the same way.

H/t: salus at AQ 

Photo Credit, here.

Anglicans want to make their parishes into village retail

Link to original

The Anglican Church wants to use their parish buildings in rural areas as village shops. According to a report in the Sunday newspaper, the "Sunday Telegraph", the "church" wants to revitalize the communities and give villagers the chance to shop in their buildings.

The "church" buildings are often "the only public place in a village or low-income neighborhood," said the bishop. The move follows the establishment of post offices in churches, after the Royal Mail announced the closing of many branches in rural areas.

Commentary: The collapse of Christendom, even outside the Catholic Church, is everywhere.

Hungary May Introduce Constitutional Ban on Homosexual Marriage

[national secular society] Under pressure from the Vatican, the Hungarian government is planning to introduce a complete ban on abortion and any prospect of legalised gay marriage in its new constitutional proposals.

At a meeting with the pope earlier in December, the Hungarian ambassador was told that it was “desirable that the new constitution be inspired by Christian values, particularly in what concerns the position of marriage and the family in society and the protection of life.” The pontiff’s wishes are reflected well in the governing Fidesz party’s proposal, which — in additional to mirroring papal teaching on abortion — says marriage is “the most natural community of man and woman.”

The pope told the ambassador that “Europe would be finished” if heterosexual marriage were no longer “the norm”. He said: “Europe would no longer be Europe if such a basic cell of the social construct were to disappear or to be substantially changed.”

Read further... 

H/t: Pewsitter

New Forum: Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus

A few members have come to find themselves here, at this new forum with all the trappings and a spicy layout, here.

China Completes Military Highway to India

Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A new highway now links Metok County, in southern Tibet, to the rest of China. Although of limited economic significance since it has a small population of some 11,000 people, the area is crucial from a military standpoint because it bolsters Chinese claims to the wider region, currently disputed with India.

The People’s Liberation Army did most of the work. On Wednesday, its construction crews broke through the last obstacle in the 3.3-kilometre Galongla Tunnel at 3,750 metres above sea level, thus completing the 117-kilometre Metok highway.

At present, the “PLA's fighting capability in southern Tibet is very weak because we failed to overcome countless fatal natural barriers there over the past near five decades," Shanghai-based military expert Ni Lexiong told the South China Morning Post.

Read further at Asia News...

Bishop of Birmingham Defends His Gay Mass

Editor:  Jumping to conclusions about the motivations of the people who are upset about this and being credulous about the people doing it  Obviously, he doesn't have a problem with embracing the Zeitgeist.


Birmingham Archbishop Attacks Faithful Catholics Protesting London’s ‘Gay Masses’

LONDON, December 17, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A group of pro-life and pro-family British Catholics have reacted with dismay this month as the “conservative” archbishop of Birmingham, Bernard Longley, has accused them of being “judgmental” in their opposition to an officially approved “gay” Mass that is ongoing in the archdiocese of Westminster.

In an interview with the liberal Catholic magazine, The Tablet, Longley, widely regarded as a theological conservative among the Catholic bishops of England and Wales, said, “I assume” that the people praying and protesting outside the church where the Masses are held, are acting out of prejudice.

Asked by The Tablet whether “those protesting are making assumptions” about the “lifestyles” of the people attending the Masses, Longley replied, “I would assume that is the case, and so it isn’t for any of us to make those judgments which, in conscience, people make before God and also within the sacraments, particularly the sacrament of reconciliation assisted by the priests and other pastors within the Church.”

Read at Lifesite News, here...

A Pogue and "The Priests" Sing Drummer Boy: The Video

A promotional video is available on the new Shane MacGowan  and "The Priests" video, here, where they'll be singing Little Drummer Boy.   Others have made the comparison between Bing Crosby and David Bowie, which was very popular and somewhat shocking and strange when it came about.  Since we're used to such juxtapositions and irony now, Shane MacGowan will surely surprise those who know of him as anarchic, dark and anti-clerical will be taken by surprise at the singer's reverential treatment of "The Priests".

This meeting of these entertainers in contrast to Bowie standing on equal footing with Bing, gives  the air of the prodigal returning home, as the riotous Pogues lead singer asks "the Priests" for a 'blessin' before they go.  It's much more touching than the Bowie-Crosby meeting lacking the forced generational tension. It certainly looks much darker in this new version and they will possibly be singing as Bowie correctly and properly did, "that men of good will can live in peace" and not  "that each child should be made to care" in its very hyper-educational vein.  Perhaps it's also a lot less preachy as the producers of the Bowie-Crosby show felt the need in that time to tip the hat to the "Peace" Movement in the late date of 1977, whose naive optimism had been shattered the year before when the Punk Rock movement came on the scene, which prepared the way for the Pogues early eighties debut.  It's almost as if Bowie and Crosby are seeking refuge with the remnants of the Ancien Régime  in a country estate as Anarchy came to the UK.  Incidentally, Bing Crosby had been long established and his popularity never really waned.  Bowie's career as a pop icon was just then coming to an end.

Wikileaks Being Used to Beat the Church

Liberal anti-Church papers like Guardian et al will want to make these wikileaks into swords and clubs to beat their intended victim with.   Without sufficient analysis of the various sources, it might be easy to confuse the Garda with the good knight on the white horse, and the Murphy Report as an unbiased fact-finding commission made up of people who were really concerned about eternity, justice, truth...

The Vatican refused to allow its officials to testify before an Irish commission investigating the clerical abuse of children and was angered when they were summoned from Rome, US embassy cables released by WikiLeaks reveal.

Requests for information from the 2009 Murphy commission into sexual and physical abuse by clergy "offended many in the Vatican" who felt that the Irish government had "failed to respect and protect Vatican sovereignty during the investigations", a cable says.

Despite the lack of co-operation from the Vatican, the commission was able to substantiate many of the claims and concluded that some bishops had tried to cover up abuse, putting the interests of the Catholic church ahead of those of the victims. Its report identified 320 people who complained of child sexual abuse between 1975 and 2004 in the Dublin archdiocese.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/10/wikileaks-vatican-child-sex-abuse-investigation?INTCMP=SRCH

Algiers: The Most Important Pilgrimage Church in North Africa Newly Consecrated

The Church of Notre Dame d'Afrique was closed for three years during renovation -- Is counted among the most remarkable edifices in a land dominated by Islam.

Algiers (kath.net/KAP) The most important Catholic pilgrimage Church in North Africa, Notre-Dame-d"Afrique in Algiers is to be newly consecrated in the presence of the Religion Minister Bouabdalla Ghamallah as well as the Church and Diplomatic guests from the EU and Africa.   This was reported by the French Internet-site, "Tout sur l'Algerie".  The 140 Year old Church was closed in 2007 because it was badly in need of necessarily renovations.

The Basilica was consecrated in 1872.  It stands at a height of 124 Meters on the hill above the bay of Algiers and counts among the msot remarkable edifices in the Islamic dominated land.  It corresponds to the concept of the Basilica of Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde in the French port city of Marseilles.

The around five million Euro expensive renovation was undertaken by the city of Algiers, the Province of Algeriers, the city of Marseilles, the French Department of Bouches-du-Rhone, Algerian State Companies and French corporations active in Algeria.  Even the EU has supported the undertaking financially.  Sea winds and earthquakes have damaged the Church in the course of the years.  The work of restoration has been accomplished under the direction of the Marseilles Architect Xavier David, who was also responsible for the restoration of Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde in Marseilles.

From the beginning on Notre-Dam-d'Afrique was even for the Muslims a place of pilgrimage.  In the apse since 1872 has the golden inscription "Our Beloved Lady of Africa, Pray for Us and For the Muslims".   Of especial importance is the organ of Notre-Dame-d'Afrique:  The powerful instrument was installed in the Villa Georges, which belonged to a private English gentleman.  He was an admirer of the composure and organist Camille Saint-Saens, who died in Algeria in 1921.  After the death of the Englishman in 1930 the organ was donated to the Basilica.


 Link to the original story from kath.net in German...

Oberammergau bends 10-year vow, will stage religious plays annually

German grandmothers once made the traditional blood sausage every ten years.  Oberammargau is scarcely Catholic and has been substantially watered down, like so many Seminary Curricula, so that it isn't really Catholic at all.

[M&C News] - The Alpine town of Oberammergau, which reputedly vowed in 1633 to dramatically re-enact the death of Jesus Christ once every decade, said Friday it would stage a play once a year in future.

Christian Stueckl, director and producer, said the German townsfolk were fed up with waiting 10 years at a stretch for their next chance to act. [Too bad, but it's all about self-promotion, which is why it will be lame] Male players must grow full beards for the roles.

Tourists have been coming from round the globe since the 19th century to see the production in the remote Catholic town. This summer, 500,000 people saw the Passion Play staged in a purpose-built 5,000-seat auditorium.

Link to original...here.

H/t: Tom at AQ

Jesuit-like Diocesan Priest Worships the God Shiva with Ravi Shankar

Jefath Gaspar Raj Crazy Like a Jesuit

Remember when the 60s were fun? Father Jegath Gaspar Raj, who is not a Jesuit as we first were informed, has had a lot of interesting connections, playing an intermediary in the peace talks between Tamil Tigers and the government of Tamil Nadu, running businesses and then becoming implicated in running the 2G Spectrum Scam.   Working in collaboration with Jesuits, he's working to destroy the Catholic Faith by breaking the First and Second Commandments, and he's doing it by  worshiping Shiva to promote his musical endeavor and get himself and the local Archdiocese out of a financial jam.  Some people seem to think that the Jesuits in India are pretty good.  We're inclined to think they might be even worse than the ones in the West.  Has anyone warned Father that he's committing one of the worst crimes a Christian can commit?

Not to be outdone in his many other adventures, this ambitious priest is featuring a musical production .  The production will cost about 15,000,000 Rupees which is about $135,000US, funds of the Archdiocese and some of which they are borrowing with the Blessing of the Archbishop himself.  More astounding than the cost of the production of the album will be part of the stated purpose which is to Praise the god Shiva.  The website Layitudity avers that this is because the enterprising  Father Gaspar needs the money and relies on the support of his Hindu fans in Sri Lanka:

The priest, with the blessings of Most Rev. Antony Devotta, Bishop of Tiruchirappalli, and the support of other Catholic priests, Fr. Vincent Chinnadurai, Fr. Lourdu Anandam, Fr. M.A. Joe Antony S.J. [Editor of the New Leader], Fr. Joe Arun S.J. [Director of the Institute of Dialogue with Cultures and Religions, Loyola College campus, Chennai], and the full knowledge of Archbishop Most Rev. Malayappan Chinnappa SDB and Auxiliary Bishop Most Rev. Lawrence Pius Dorairaj of Madras-Mylapore, uses the studios, offices, communications systems, infrastructure, personnel, time [over 3 years] and money of the Church in the pursuit of his goal, with a projected budget of Rs. 1.5 crore [Rs. 15 million] towards which he has made borrowings of at least Rs. 1 crore [Rs. 10 million], much of it at an interest rate of 20%.

Ravi Shankar's Music Made Me Cry

What's even more interesting than a dancing Jesuit doing Yoga, which the program also promotes, in addition to pagan worship, is the appearance of Ravi Shankar who is famed for teaching George Harrison of the Beatles to play the Sitar.  He will be part of this extravaganza that promises itself as some kind of Mozart thing.

Dance like the Wind

Can't get over these Indian Jesuits.  Anthony de Mello SJ and now this guy.  It's too good. Where Anthony de Mello SJ tries to be aloof from these moneymaking things, this Jesuit is almost shamelessly dipping his mits into the cookie jar. 


Dancing Jesuit stolen from, Catholic Caveman.

Renovation: St. James Cathedral of Orlando, Florida [Updated]

Check out the photos:

Renovation: St. James Cathedral of Orlando, Florida [Updated]

"May Be That Some Think I'm Crazy"

The Mass of All Ages

"People from my community, who are not liturgically educated and therefore don't know that the pre-Conciliar Rite is supposed to be 'evil', speak of the old Mass in the meantime with complete naivete as the 'proper Mass.'"

(kreuz.net) "surely there are not a few German chief shepherds, who are concerned about the unique path of Germany."

There you can read "much that is crying out from between the lines".

Fr. Hendrick Jolie (46) explained this in his most recent interview with the monthly magazine 'Kirchliche Umschau".

Fr. Jolie is the member of a team of speakers of the German 'Priest Network'.

Dissenters will be hard to unpack

"Our shepherds should know that they are not standing alone, if they decide to stand on the side of the Pope." -- he said.

Because: "There are countless priests and believers out there, who are waiting for a sign of solidarity from the Holy Father -- a sign that are not exhausted in words, rather something that can be read in concrete acts."

A bishop will find it much easider to distribute a Roman Instruction to his Diocese if he knows which priests and believers he can leave to its implementation.

Fr. Jolie himself believes the Pontificate of a German Pope is a "moment of grace for the Church".

This must not elapse.

Why since the death of the Fulda Bishop Johannes Dyba (+2000)  is that the Senior Sheperhds don't dance out of line, he finds it hard to explain:

"The case of +Mixa has shown then that the episcopal conduct of "dissidence" can be compared to everything else but brotherly."

"May be that fear rules here" -  concluded Fr. Jolie.

The Old Mass is the Mass of tomorrow

Fr. Jolie was asked how he priestly soul can be relighted.

His answer: "Priesthood and the offering of Sacrifice go together."

The obedience of the priest is shown above all in the offering of the Sacrifice of the Mass:

"How will they show the obedience of Christ in the ritual, if they are at the same time narcissitically attempting ever newer gimmicks?"

For him the Old Rite is an outstanding school of obedience: "The priest opens himself in the requirements of this Rite to be stamped in a certain way, which is completely alien in the new Rite."

Fr. Jolie did not experience the Old Rite in his childhood for long.

Because: "after I had learned this Rite and celebrated my "First Mass" in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite, a feeling gripped me of homecoming."

Fr. Jolie also explained the reactions of his Parish:

Afterward: "People from my community, who are not liturgically educated and therefore don't know that the pre-Conciliar Rite is supposed to be 'evil', speak of the old Mass in the meantime with complete naivete as the 'proper Mass.'"

The Clergyman isn't too concerned about his repution:

"May be, some think of me as crazy, but according to my clear understanding the Old Mass is necessary for the healing of the Church."

Then he cited the Priest Rodhaudt from Aachen: "The old Mass is the Mass of tomorrow, because without it there won't be another morning."

© Bild: Christopher.M., Flickr, CC

‘Time to look again’ at China Church relations

[UCANEWS] Two veteran observers of China Church affairs say it is time for Beijing and the Vatican to take stock of their relations and work out how to ease the tension caused by the recent ordination of a bishop not sanctioned by the Vatican and last week’s national congress.

The government-sanctioned National Congress of Catholic Representatives convened in Beijing on Dec. 7-9, about three weeks after the unapproved ordination in Chengde.

Time to look again’ at China Church relations

H/t: Pablo Rodari

Violence Against Pro-Lifers in Salzburg

At a Pro-Life demonstration of "Youth For Life" in Salzburg an activist was punched out by a  Pro-Abortion fanatic and had to spend the night in the hospital.

Salzburg (kath.net) At a peaceful demonstration by the Austrian life defense group "Youth for Life" this last Saturday in Salzburg a life defender was punched.  The group broadcast this information recently.

The event, at which  Salzburg's Auxiliary Bishop Andreas Laun took part, was disturbed by a counter-demonstration.  This demonstration did not shrink from obscene and unworthy provocations like "If Mary had aborted, we would have been spared."  After the end of the chain of light, as the life defenders had left Mass at the Mullner Parish church, five members of the Youth For Life were occupied with removing torches and banners and were confronted by the pro-abortion people and assaulted.  A young life defender suffered a concussion from a punch and had to spend the night in the hospital.

Read original at kath.net...

Al-Qaida hatred for Pope caused US worries about Vatican security :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Al-Qaida hatred for Pope caused US worries about Vatican security :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Cardinal Zen Decries Chi-Com Government's Attack on the Church

(AsiaNews) The empty chair onstage in the Oslo municipal hall makes me remember the two empty chairs in the Synodal Hall, when in 1998, for the first time, I participated in the Synod of bishops: one was for Bishop Duan Ying Ming of Wan Xian, the other for his Coadjutor Bishop. Still for the Synod of two years ago, a delegation from China was not possible, because someone had insisted to include in the group an illegitimate bishop.  In the Synod of 1998 I said: "In China there is no real religious freedom." Unfortunately, last month at the Consistory of November 19, I had to give the same bad news to my brethren Cardinals: "In China there is still no religious freedom."

http://www.asianews.it/news-en/China,-the-Nobel,-the-bishops-and-the-Vatican:-Who-won,-who-lost-20246.html

Pope meets with Japanese bishops to discuss Neocatechumenal Way

By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Japanese bishops, including the president of the bishops' conference, met with Pope Benedict XVI and top Vatican officials to discuss the Neocatechumenal Way.

The Dec. 13 meeting with four Japanese bishops had been called by Pope Benedict, said the president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan, Archbishop Leo Jun Ikenaga of Osaka.

He told Catholic News Service that the meeting lasted nearly two hours and included the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and "several other cardinals."

While the archbishop would not comment on the substance of the meeting, he said the bishops would have to have further discussions with the Vatican and the Neocatechumenal Way's co-founder, Kiko Arguello.

Read further...

Catholics Discuss New Translation of the Missal

Catholic officials describe climate of terror in Iraq, call for justice :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Catholic officials describe climate of terror in Iraq, call for justice :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)