Problems of moral and deviant behavior require secular solutions, right? That’s the logic coming out of the Bishop’s conference this week, and the logic coming out of those painful airline press conferences that we’re so used to. Where did they come from?
Continue reading “Podcast show notes: Secularism Among The Bishops”
By John C Evans. To view his other work follow this link.
Continue reading “Guest Submission: A Prayer To Our Lady Of Sorrows”
First, here is the Burke/Schneider document.
https://www.lifesitenews.com/images/local/Declaration_Truths_Errors.pdf
Continue reading “Podcast Show Notes: Vigano Accuses Francis of the Obvious”
by John Evans
Disclaimer: Guest articles represent the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this site owner or any affiliated staff.
Author’s Note
The following work hardly comprises an exhaustive defense of the Catholic teaching on the use of Icons nor does it represent necessarily a novel breakthrough on the subject. Quite the contrary, the goal of this report is simply to represent the Apostolic teaching of the fathers on the matter as preserved through the Keys of Peter and the Holy Magisteriam. Among the many sources that were helpful in employing this rather abridged study was an article entitled, ” Is There Really a Patristic Critique of Icons?” by G V. Martini on his blog dedicated to defending Orthodoxy. As a Roman Catholic, I found Martini’s work profoundly compatible with the Catechism and in harmony with the Patristic sources I would have preferred had I the time to compose a more rigorous treatise. Many of the quotations in this report can be found in his more scholarly work and I would highly recommend it to anyone seeking clarification on this issue. I also must give credit to E.W.T.N and to my colleague Brandon Young for developing some of the larger brush-strokes to be found in my presentation of the relevant topic. Some early readers of this work initially critiqued it for its lack of clarity and garbled syntax as well as for its lack of proper in-text citations. On this count my critics are right, but miss entirely the casual genre of this piece. The following does not constitute a journal, but only a rough outline of some of the ideas I have collated over the past few months on contemporary attitudes to the Icon in light of their Patristic origins. Had I been composing a work of true scholarship I would then surely have been more attune to the niceties of composition. Therefore I beg lenience from you my reader and some modicum of indulgence as you join me on this expedition through the earliest centuries of The Church. I am no G.K Chesterton or C.S Lewis, and even if I were I would still point any inquisitive reader to the Baltimore Catechism or to E.W.T.N for a more definitive discussion on the Churches’ veneration of the Holy Icons. Nevertheless, as is so often the case, those outside the visible walls of the Church often find such rigorous theological discussions wearisome and the frank ramblings of an amateur such as myself, a source of consolation and greater understanding. Therefore, as the Lord calls me, so I have endeavored to write. I should also note that of all the Icons defenders, I am perhaps the most peculiar as I am, in the eyes of the world, blind according to the flesh. The icon described in the introductory passage of this report was in turn illustrated to me in words. Therefore, I make passing references to my lack of temporal vision throughout this report and want to insure you, the reader know what I am making reference to. Finally, I am aware I use the term icon quite broadly in this piece to refer to any Sacred Image associated with the liturgy or the pictorial representation of the scriptures. Early in this report I attempt to defend this broader definition, but I wish to make aware that I am not only conscious, but profoundly respectful of the more precise definition employed by our Byzantine Rite brethren and the Orthodox communions not yet in conformity with the Sea of Rome. My decision to employ this broader definition stems from what I find to be a much more symptomatic problem underlying Western Secularism as a whole and my own experience as a Latin Rite Catholic living in a regrettably Post Christian United States.
Yes, a group of French nuns have been forced out of their vows by a Modernist imposed upon them by the Vatican. Their crime: praying too much and adhering to tradition. This is what the institutional Church has become. We live in truly dark times, and it is only going to get worse.
Continue reading “Podcast Shownotes: Persecution of the Little Sisters of Mary”
By Teresa Baker-Carl
06/07/2019
Oh my Jesus;
my deeply wounded Lord,
have mercy on me , a sinner.
I come before You with a broken heart,
I come to You upon my knees;
before You I remember the suffering
You were willing to endure for me
and I weep in deep lamentation.
Continue reading “Guest Submission: The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Poetry)”
Disclaimer: Guest articles represent the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this site owner or any affiliated staff.
A Message to Pope Francis and a Call to Never Surrender Our Catholic Heritage
Damien’s work can be found on his YouTube channel.
No heart breaks more, than the one who wishes to keep it intact, while the other has decided to crush it. It is a sad reality, that we, faithful Catholics, are the ones holding on desperately to the ever-fading heart of the Roman Catholic Church, while all about us are men in red, and the one in white, seeking to deal the final blow.
It is with a profound sadness that we find ourselves here. Never did any of us imagine we would be here, faced with this dilemma. But here we are. And there is no escaping it. Recently, Pope Francis showed a hand in boldness that has surprised even those of us who cover these events on a daily basis by actually approving the changing of the Lord’s prayer. Now the changing of the line in question may seem innocuous enough, but it is not so much the substance of the change that is so troublesome here, it’s the fact that he dared to change it all.
To understand why we, as traditional Catholics are so outraged by this move of Francis and outraged by really every move of the hierarchy since the 60s, we have to take a look at how we view tradition. Just what is tradition to us?
To us, tradition has a sacred quality. Now to a modernist of course this seems absurd but to us it’s not. Why, they ask, should tradition be so sacred? Because it’s old? Well the answer to that is of course no. Tradition is sacred, because to us it represents a connection to our past, and when we carry on any tradition, whether they be family, national, or church ones, they signify a oneness with our ancestors. By the continuation of tradition, we keep those who came before us alive, we bring to mind their sacrifices, and we show our appreciation and humility in knowing that there are things worth keeping that we did not ourselves create. This, this is what tradition is to us. Each time we come together, and we light a candle in the center of the Christmas table for our grandfather who passed away ago; every time we lay flowers at the grave of an unnamed soldier; or every time we say the prayer that our fathers prayed, we keep the past alive, and, by doing so, we keep ourselves alive. This last element is what is most strikingly missing from the modernists philosophy.
Any man alive today, who is not aware of his past, not aware of where he comes from, who his ancestors were, who his family is, who walks in this world without tradition, is a rootless man. If man has stripped from him all memory of his past, his future means nothing. Look at where we are today. Does that sound familiar? Men of today are told that all that matters is the present, the past is irrelevant. But how can this be? The present is ever changing. The future is not known. This means then that man is hopelessly lost. But to the modernists, this is the purest of states. The state of being hopelessly lost is the ideal for all to reach, for it is in this state that a man is easier to be controlled and be used for the aims of evil men. This is the purpose of men such as Francis.
To the modernists, there is no value in the past. Yesterday is dead and gone and looking back gets in the way of now, right now. We must look ever in front of us because we know better how to live our lives today because we are alive today. But this is all foolishness and pride.
As traditionalists we reject this nonsense out of hand! There is indeed value in the past. Simply because someone died on Tuesday does not mean there is not value in how they lived their life that could help us on Wednesday. And this is the great lesson missed by the modernist fools such as Francis. Just because our ancestors did not have electricity or running water does not mean they didn’t have knowledge of how to build a beautiful church, or sing a gorgeous song. And simply because our forefathers did not have the internet or access to the second Pentecost of Vatican 2 or birth control, doesn’t mean they were incapable of putting to paper how to celebrate a Mass which moves one to tears each and every time it’s attended. Men who lived before us were smart too. Often times they were smarter than us. On some topics, such as that of God, the Sacraments, the Mass and so on, they were infinitely smarter. Men who lived before knew how to create beautiful things too. I would argue they knew how to capture beauty far better than we do today. Compare anything modern man creates today with what our ancestors created and ask yourself which wins the beauty contest? In music, who wins: Beethoven or Katy Perry? In art, Michelangelo, or Picasso’s degenerate paintings of the ugliness of nature? How about literature: Shakespeare or Fifty Shades of grey? And yes, what about the Mass: the Mass of All Time or, the Mass of Our time?
As traditionalists, we have asked ourselves these questions many times, and we know the answers to them. We know that there is tremendous beauty, depth, strength, joy, and intelligence in the annals of our ancestors. And we wish to continue carrying on the traditions of our fathers, their poetry, their Mass, their literature, their prayers. Our future would never have come to be without our past. And, looking at our past, it looks far, far better than the present. With that thought in mind, we turn to you Pope Francis and say, we will continue the Our Father of Our Fathers, and we will continue all our traditions, because by keeping our past alive, we know, with the grace of God and Our Lady, we can bring forth a glorious future.
Seriously, don’t fall into despair. That’s not the point of the work I and others in this area of commentary are doing. Instead, guard the faith, keep that flame alive, and help preserve it for the inevitable day when the faith is restored.
Continue reading “Podcast Show Notes: Francis: Tradition Must Be Cast Aside?”
By Bill Crofut
Abstract
The cockroach is one of the more popular extant biological organisms available for laboratory experimentation. It is identifiable in Carboniferous rock strata which has an assigned evolutionary age of 280-345 million years. Yet, the cockroach has an alleged phylogeny extending far back into Paleozoic time. This article reviews and critiques current evolutionary research and understanding.