Two Shrovetide Meditations from The Liturgical Year

There is a choice we make, as Archbishop Viganó says. We must fight for good or evil. There is no third way. We need to fight for good, and stand for truth. All this is to say we must be faithful to Christ. Below are entries from Thursday and Friday of Sexagesima Week from The Liturgical Year:

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Thursday of Sexagesima Week

God promised Noah that He would never more punish the earth with a deluge. But in His justice, He has many times visited the sins of men with a scourge which, in more senses than one, bears a resemblance to a deluge: the invasion of enemies. We meet with these invasions in every age; and each time we see the hand of God. We can trace the crimes that each of them was sent to punish, and in each we find a manifest proof of the infinite justice wherewith God governs the world.

It is not requisite that we should here mention the long list of these revolutions, which we might almost say make up the history of mankind, for in its every page we read of conquests, extinction of races, destruction of nations, and violent amalgamations which effaced the traditions and character of the several peoples that were thus forced into union. We will confine our considerations to the two great invasions which the just anger of God has permitted to come upon the world since the commencement of the Christian era.

The Roman Empire had made itself as pre-eminent in crime as it was in power. It conquered the world, and then corrupted it. Idolatry and immorality were the civilization it gave to the nations which had come under its sway. Christianity could save individuals in the great empire, but the empire itself could not be made Christian. God let loose upon it the deluge of barbarians. The stream of the wild invasion rose to the very dome of the Capitol; the empire was engulfed. The ruthless ministers of divine justice were conscious of their being chosen for this mission of vengeance, and they gave themselves the name of “God’s scourge.”

When later on the Christian nations of the east had lost the faith which they themselves had transmitted to the western world; when they had disfigured the sacred symbol of faith by their blasphemous heresies; the anger of God sent upon them, from Arabia, the deluge of Mahometanism. It swept away the Christian Churches that had existed from the very times of the apostles. Jerusalem, the favored Jerusalem on which Jesus has lavished His tenderest love, even she became a victim to the infidel hordes. Antioch and Alexandria, with their patriarchates, were plunged into the vilest slavery; and at length Constantinople, that had so obstinately provoked the divine indignation, was made the very capital of the Turkish empire.

And we, the western nations, if we return not to the Lord our God, shall we be spared? Shall the food-gates of heaven’s vengeance, the torrent of fresh Vandals, ever be menacing to burst upon us, yet never come? Where is the country of our own Europe that has not corrupted its way, as in the days of Noah? that has not made conventions against the Lord and against His Christ? (Psalm 2:2) that has not clamored out that old cry of revolt: Let us break the bonds asunder, let us cast away their yoke from us? (Psalm 2:3) Well may we fear lest the time is at hand when, despite our haughty confidence in our means of defense, Christ our Lord, to whom all nations have been given by the Father, shall rule us with a rod of iron, and break us in pieces like a potter’s vessel. (Psalm 2:9) Let us propitiate the anger of our offended God and follow the inspired counsel of the royal prophet: Serve ye the Lord with fear; embrace the discipline of His Law; lest at any time the Lord be angry, and ye perish from the just way. (Psalm 2:12)

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Friday of Sexagesima Week

God chastises the world by the deluge; but He is faithful to the promise made to our first parents, that the head of the serpent should be crushed. The human race has to be preserved, therefore, until the time shall come for the fulfillment of this promise. The Ark gives shelter to the just Noah and to his family. The angry waters reach even to the tops of the highest mountains; but the frail yet safe vessel rides peacefully on the waves. When the day fixed by God shall come, they that dwell in this Ark shall once more tread the earth, purified as it then will be; and God will say to them, as heretofore to our first parents: “Increase and multiply, and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1)

Mankind, then, owes its safety to the Ark. O saving Ark, that wast planned by God Himself, and didst sail unhurt amidst the universal wreck! But if we can thus bless this contemptible wood, (Wisdom 10:4) how fervently should we love that other Ark, of which Noah’s was but the figure, and which, for now two thousand years, has been saving and bringing men to their God! How fervently should we bless that Church, the bride of our Jesus, out of which there is no salvation, and in which we find that truth which delivers us from error and doubt, (John 8:32) that grace which purifies and heart, and that food which nourishes the soul and fits her for immortality!

O sacred Ark! thou art inhabited, not by one family alone, but by people of every nation under the sun. Ever since that glorious day when our Lord launched thee in the sea of this world, thou hast been tossed by tempests, yet never wrecked. Thou wilt reach the eternal shore, witnessing, by thy unworn vigor and beauty, to the divine guidance of the Pilot who loves thee, both for thine own sake, and for the work thou art doing for His glory. It is by thee that He peoples the world with His elect, and it is for them that He created the world. (Matthew 24:22) When He is angry, He remembers mercy (Habakkuk 3:2) because of thee, for it is through thee that He has made His covenant with mankind.

O venerable Ark! be thou our refuge in the deluge. When Rome’s great empire, that was drunk with the blood of the martyrs, (Apocalypse 17:6) sank beneath the invasion of the barbarians, the Christians were safe, because sheltered by thee; the waters slowly subsided, and the race of men that had fled to thee for protection, thou conquered according to the flesh, was victorious by the spirit. Kings, who till then had been haughty despots and barbarians, kissed reverently the hand of the slave who was not their pastor and baptized them. New peoples sprang up and, with the Gospel as their law, began their glorious career in those very countries which the Cæsars had degraded and forfeited.

When the Saracen invasion came sweeping into ruin the eastern world and menacing the whole of Europe, which would have been lost had not the energy of thy sons repelled the infidel horde, was it not within thee, O Ark of salvation! that the few Christians took refuge who had resisted schism and heresy and who, while the rest of their brethren apostatized from the faith, still kept alive the holy flame? Under thy protection they are even now perpetuating, in their unfortunate countries, the traditions of faith, until the divine mercy shall bring happier times, and they be permitted to multiply, as did of old the sons of Sem, in that land once so glorious and holy.

Oh! happy we, dear Church of God! that are sheltered within thee, and protected by thee against that wild sea of anarchy, which the sins of men have let loose on our earth! We beseech our Lord to check the tempest with that word of His omnipotence: “Thus far shalt thou come, and no further, and here shalt thou break thy swelling waves.” (Job 38:11) But if His divine justice has decreed that it prevail for a time, we know that it cannot reach such as dwell in thee. Of this happy number are we. In thy peaceful bosom, dear mother, we find those true riches, the riches of the soul, of which no violence can deprive us. (Matthew 6:20) The life thou givest us is the only real life. Our true fatherland is the kingdom formed by thee. Keep us, O thou Ark of our God! Keep us, and all that are dear to us, and shelter us beneath thy roof, until the deluge of iniquity be passed away. (Psalm 56:2) When the earth, purified by its chastisements, shall once more receive the seed of the divine word which produces the children of God, those among us whom thou shalt not have led to our eternal home will then venture forth and preach to the world the principles of authority and law, of family and social rights: those sacred principles which came from heaven, and which thou, O holy Church, art commissioned to maintain and teach, even to the end of time.

Beatings of the Dead Horse Will Continue until the Coroner Does His Job

I have written many times in the past, as have much better people than myself, about the inability of any person to abrogate the ancient Mass. It is not possible. It is not licit, nor is it valid. The timeless Mass is handed down over ages; it is of immemorial custom. It has the force of law.

I have also written many times in the past, as have much better people than myself, about the putative abdication of Pope Benedict XVI and whether it was valid, noting that there are, AT LEAST, LEGITIMATE QUESTIONS concerning its validity. If the Pope did not abdicate, there was no vacancy of the See. If there was no vacancy of the See, there was no lawful conclave and Bergoglio could not have been elected Pope. Please tell me I’ve mentioned this before?

And yet, here we are, seemingly led by sleepwalking or worse prelates who all believe, or pretend to believe, that Bergoglio is pope. But, but I’m a father of 8, you may say. What difference does it make to my duties of my state of life just who is the pope? I need to focus on my salvation, my own personal holiness!

In the most basic sense, of course, that sentiment is true– whether we have a good pope, bad pope, or antipope, we need to remain in the state of grace, have faith, hope, charity and final perseverance. The identity of the pope matters not in many areas of our lives, whether we sin, whether we pray, etc.

But that is not the entire story by a long shot. Leaving aside the defined doctrine that it is absolutely necessary for salvation for every human being to be subject to the Roman Pontiff (Unam Sanctam), let me list a few questions that may convince you that it may in fact matter very much whether Bergoglio is or is not the pope. These quesions, at the moment, are hypothetical:

Can the pope forbid a priest from ever celebrating the traditional Mass, or the faithful from assisting at it?

Can the pope excommunicate a priest for celebrating this Mass, or a layman for assisting at it?

If the pope places under interdict or excommunicates an Order, Society of Apostolic Life, a Diocese, a Parish, or a Priest or Bishop, is it permissible for a layman to assist at a Mass celebrated by such person or group? Does it satisfy my Sunday obligation?

If the pope excommunicates such a group, is it valid? What effect does it have?

If the pope excommunicates YOU for assisting at the timeless Mass, is it valid? What effect does it have?

Will a person under a sentence of excommunication for celebrating or assisting at the traditional Mass go to hell for that?

Let’s pause.

Do I have your attention? Because I think we can all agree that any order or rule or disciplinary action or exercise of raw power by an antipope has zero effect morally. That all of the above questions, if “antipope” is substituted for “pope”, could easily be answered with a resounding “NO”.

And yet, if we assume arguendo that Bergoglio is pope, we are going to be made very uncomfortable indeed. And we will be reliving the journey of the priests and faithful who followed Archbishop Lefebvre. They had to face these questions a generation ago.

I will not speculate on the response of anyone else, whether layman, priest, bishop or institute. But I wish the College of Cardinals OR MEMBERS of the College OR EVEN ONE MEMBER of the College had done a serious study on the question of the abdication– you know, the thing that doesn’t matter in our daily lives. Because now, should the response be to finally declare a belief in the abdication’s invalidity, it will seem a matter of convenience. And if one still maintains the legitimacy of the abdication and subsequent conclave, who will have the courage or moral authority to resist?

I submit that any monster who has the unmitigated temerity to try to destroy the Mass will have no qualms in destroying an order, an institute, a diocese, a bishop, a priest, or a layman who stands in the way.

Christ help us.

Lumen ad Revelationem Gentium

The Feast of Candlemas, which derives its origin from the local observance of Jerusalem, marks the end of the Feasts included in the Christmas cycle of the liturgy. It is perhaps the most ancient festival of Our Lady. It commemorates, however, not only the obedience of the Blessed Virgin to the Mosaic Law in going to Jerusalem forty days after the birth of her Child and making the accustomed offerings, but also the Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple, and the meeting of the Infant Jesus with the old man Simeon– the Occursus Domini, as the Feast was anciently termed. This is the principal theme of the liturgy on this day: Jesus is taken to the Temple “to present Him to the Lord.” So the Lord comes to His Temple, and is met by the aged Simeon with joy and recognition.

The procession on this day is one of the most picturesque features of the Western liturgy. The blessing and distribution of candles, to be carried lighted in procession, preceded the Mass today– a symbolic presentation of the truth proclaimed in the Canticle of Simeon: Our Lord is the “Light for the revelation of the Gentiles.” The anthems sung during this procession, eastern in origin, well express the joy and gladness of this happy festival, and the honor and praise we give to our Blessed Lady and her Divine Son by this devout observance.

Entry for the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the New Marian Missal

Wishing you and yours one last, heartfelt Merry Christmas! this season. May the beauty, hope, and joy of Our Savior’s glorious incarnation and birth arm us for the dreadful fight ahead. Septuagesima is coming this Sunday, of course, and I need not remind you of the evil of our times.

May we all beg Our Incarnate Lord and His Blessed Mother for the gift of final perseverance and a happy death, and then face the daily battle with confidence in the help of heaven.

Masses at St. Francis de Sales Oratory today: Low Masses at 8am and 12:15pm; Solemn High Mass preceded by blessing of candles and procession, 6:30pm

Man Up

This is a good time to repost the quote of St. Athanasius at the bottom of this blog. The Mass is the hill we die on. It cannot be abrogated and any attempt must be resisted:

YOU ARE THE ONES WHO ARE HAPPY; YOU WHO REMAIN WITHIN THE CHURCH BY YOUR FAITH, WHO HOLD FIRMLY TO THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE FAITH WHICH HAS COME DOWN TO YOU FROM APOSTOLIC TRADITION. AND IF AN EXECRABLE JEALOUSY HAS TRIED TO SHAKE IT ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS, IT HAS NOT SUCCEEDED. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO HAVE BROKEN AWAY FROM IT IN THE PRESENT CRISIS. NO ONE, EVER, WILL PREVAIL AGAINST YOUR FAITH, BELOVED BROTHERS. AND WE BELIEVE THAT GOD WILL GIVE US OUR CHURCHES BACK SOME DAY.

Friendly Reminders

It is not possible for a pope to abrogate the Traditional Mass. See Quo Primum.

Even if a pope could abrogate the TLM, and even if we assume arguendo that Bergoglio is pope, Traditiones Custodes did not abrogate the Traditional Mass.

Any excommunication for assisting at a Traditional Mass celebrated by a Catholic priest is invalid.

Just in case this post becomes personally relevant to you.

I Can’t Watch It

I will not be watching the funeral Mass of Pope Benedict XVI, orchestrated and “presided” over by his enemies. The enemies of the Holy Mass. The enemies of the Church. I simply cannot do it.

I will not be a part of it.

I was persuaded to watch that abomination in St. Peter’s square where Bergoglio glowered down on Jesus on the cross. I watched it with increasing horror, moved to tears by the destruction of that beautiful medieval crucifix left in the rain, while Bergoglio sat nice and dry a few feet away.

I watched the Russia/Ukraine consecration feint in hopes it might have gone otherwise.

I won’t watch this.

I won’t watch this man spiking the ball.

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Instead I will be assisting at a Solemn High Requiem Mass for Pope Benedict XVI tonight at 6 p.m. at the Oratory. I don’t have to worry about whether the Mass is Catholic, or whether the celebrant is offering it for the repose of the pope’s soul.

Eternal rest grant unto him, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen. May the soul of Pope Benedict XVI, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen

Well, Don’t Worry. Noooooooothing Can Possibly be Done about It

This is fine.

/SARCASM OFF/

We are so comfortable watching it all burn. God have mercy on us.

Grateful

For the Faith. For the Mass. for the Institute. For all the graces showered on me by Christ the King. Thy Kingdom come!

Blessed and happy feast day to you all.

If Roche Calls You a Protestant…

…then praise God in Heaven, because you have tangible proof you are still Catholic.

The Devil is the Father of Lies

The oily, smarmy technospeak of the Cupich’s spokesman in responding to press inquiries about his crushing of the Mass and the ICRSP in Chicago is infuriating to read. Here is an excerpt from the story at the Chicago Sun-Times:

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[A representative of the Shrine restoration effort] said the ban came from the archdiocese under a directive issued early this year to bring parishes and shrines in line with a papal decree aimed at limiting Mass being celebrated in Latin. Christ the King Church only celebrates Mass in Latin.

But a representative of the archdiocese disputed Blackman, saying the decision to stop the Masses was made by the church.

“They chose to discontinue the Masses and sent the archdiocese a letter [on July 31] stating that they would stop offering Mass and other sacraments at the Shrine,” said Susan Thomas, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese. “They were not denied. We did not ban them. They chose to discontinue altogether.”

“The Shrine had the option to continue Latin Mass under the guidelines and decided not to,” Thomas added. “It is a false statement that we have a citywide Latin Mass ban. That’s simply untrue. Latin Mass is offered in the archdiocese.”

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To draw an analogy, if Cardinal Cupich and his spokesman had been government officials they would have denied causing the deaths of people they forced to take the gene serum by responding, “That is a false statement. They voluntarily chose to get the vaccine. They simply could’ve allowed us to take away their jobs and their children and their ability to travel and their ability to buy food or go anywhere or have a life or go to church and worship or any of the other things to make human life worthwhile. There are many people in our diocese who did not actually die.”

The devil is very pleased with those advancing his agenda in Chicago.