By the way are you aware that visiting Cemeteries are also deemed "unessential". Yes, praying in an aerobic environment is very dangerous and you definitely should NOT be visiting cemeteries! A lady I know was turned away by police, who had set up a road block at the entrance of Assumption Cemetery. She had intended to pray by the graveside of her daughter who died last year. The closing of cemeteries (as with churches) for private prayer is diabolical.
The "Church of the Accompaniment" is revealed as the "Church of the "Abandonment"
After this is over, there will be a lot of Catholics who will be deeply ashamed of themselves for being so easily fooled into hysteria, fear, and falling such easy prey to disinformation and propaganda. Everyday for Life, Canada carries a number of outstanding posts (here, here and here) on the moral and economic implications of this ongoing, lockdown that has been seized by the usual suspects to politicize the pandemic now a "plan-demic". Our vulnerable and elderly have not been protected (no surprise given the disastrous state of LTC facilities. Ontario's statistics indicate that over 70% of deaths are in LTC).
“ The official Church ”, they said, “ has now fallen into apostasy. We
are the only ones left. We must continue the Church, we must ensure her
survival and her future. ”
With those words, in 1969, the Abbe de Nantes describes the position held by Catholic priests who had taken it upon themselves (private judgment) to declare the See of Peter vacant. The position of these priests was to "...say Mass, hear confessions, baptize, and preside at marriages
universally, without asking anyone's permission and without worrying
about submission to the bishops or about jurisdiction". The Abbe relates that these schismatically priests were then joined by Fr. Guérard des Lauriers (who would eventually fall into schism). The priest's argument was as follows:
– “ I consider ”, replied Fr. Guérard des Lauriers, “ that the
hierarchy, in the person of the Pope and of the bishops, has
collapsed. ”
– “ It is not sufficient, my Reverend Father, to say
that the hierarchy has collapsed. Supposing you are right, it will still
be necessary to get the rest of the Church to admit this. ”
– “ It is self-evident ”, interrupted the other, “ self-evident ! ”
The
position of Fr. Guérard was instant, unambiguous, definite. The
hierarchy had disappeared. No more Pope ! No more bishops ! Since they
were heretics, they were spiritually dead and therefore cut off ipso facto from the Church.
It is important to relate this 1969 drama to 2020, as it is replaying itself - but in a more virulent form - in these past few years. Even laymen are making the same protestant declarations that only a few priests made 50 years ago. These confused laymen on innumerable occasions declare (without any authority) that Pope Francis has fallen into notorious heresy, and ipso facto (without a declarative judgement by the Church) is no longer Pope. Or, so another argument goes, he never was Pope to begin with, thus justifying their disobedience and bad break with the visible, hierarchical Church. Such beliefs also carry very serious consequences: attending illicit Masses and receiving invalid sacraments by priests without faculties (e.g. concubinage justified as "matrimony"). Similarly, hiding the bad break by duplicitous attendance at Mass in union with an "Antipope" is a very serious mortal sin. No matter how you cut it, if you believe that Francis is not Pope, you CANNOT attend any Mass by a priest in communion with him, nor confess to said priest (except in the danger of death), for you are giving according to your conscience, witness to a lie. And you will be judged by God accordingly. The logic of Francis not being the Pope is the collapse of the visible, hierarchical Church. The claim that Bishop Ratzinger is the Pope, is just a fudge to excuse a bad break. Arguably the world's greatest living canon lawyer believes Bishop Jorge Bergoglio is Pope. Is he infallible? No. But the odds are that he is right, and others are wrong. And don't tell me theology is easy. Actually it is one of the most difficult sciences to master. That is why Christ established a Hierarchy to teach. I'd rather follow Burke, than my own prideful self.
Douthat: You believe Francis is a legitimate pope?
Burke: Yes, yes. I’ve had people present to me all kinds of arguments calling into question the election of Pope Francis. But I name him every time I offer the Holy Mass, I call him Pope Francis, it’s not an empty speech on my part. I believe that he is the pope. And I try to say that consistently to people, because you’re correct — according to my perception also, people are getting more and more extreme in their response to what’s going on in the church.
Let us return back to 1969, to the drama that unfolded at Maison Staint-Joseph, when the Abbe de Nantes was being tempted by ill-informed and emotional priests to join them in rebellion against the divinely established order of the Catholic Church. Our contemporary, self-declared theologians, also proclaim Francis' "heresies" as "self-evident". To the "self-evident" argument put forward by the wayward priest the Abbe de Nantes replied:
– “I can well understand ”, explained Fr. de Nantes, “ that it is
evident to you, even self-evident. But you are not infallible. ”
The drama continued to unfold, where the Abbe de Nantes refuted the "self-evident" argument, beginning with the proposition that what is "self-evident" may in fact be error:
“ Suppose that you live at the top of a block of flats. Someone warns
you that your car is burning in the street. Looking out of the window,
you notice that your car really has caught fire. You are quite sure
about it… and yet it is not your car ! You believed you recognised it,
but you were wrong ! ” He then returned to the question of Paul VI's
heresy : “ You may reason, prove, and argue as much as you like in
formulating an accusation of heresy against Paul VI. But as long as the
magisterium of the Church has not passed a dogmatic sentence, your
thinking will be nothing more than the opinion of a theologian who could
be wrong. Therefore, it is essential to obtain a judgement. Even if the
Pope has fallen from office by virtue of having promulgated a heretical
and invalid Mass, it is still necessary that the whole Church should
recognise and acknowledge this. If you are alone in proclaiming this, it
does not count. ” The conversation then turned to Bellarmine's thesis
concerning the case of a heretical Pope. According to Fr. de Nantes,
Cajetan's thesis was more penetrating, and he concluded thus :“ A
judgement by the Church is needed if Pope Paul VI [or Pope Francis] is to be deposed. ”
One of the dissenting priests did not take kindly to the Abbe's logical reasoning, but reacted in a typically emotional and angry manner. A manner that is once again, sad to say, very prevalent in the Church today. Renouncing our reason, and allowing ourselves to be ruled by emotion because of outrageous and scandalous words or activities coming from Rome is a pitiful excuse for sinning ourselves. Emotions can be "right" but our conclusions wrong. Emotions told those at the foot of the Cross how could this man be the Son of God? Following emotions, the conclusion would have been to reject Jesus. After all, how could God allow Himself to be nailed up naked on a Cross and suffer this horrible, torturous death, while the crowds mocked Him? Emotion over reason is not Catholic. Yet, we see emotion causing one disastrous conclusion after another. In such an un-Catholic and emotional manner, a dissenting priest, Fr Coache responded to the Abbe:
“ Are you still harping on about that ! To expect the official Church
to pass a judgement deposing the Pope is quite ridiculous. It could
never happen ! The whole Church has foundered. How could she possibly
issue such a judgement ? ” It was evident that Fr. Coacheno longer had
any faith in the Church.
The Abbe de Nantes, shortly after these confrontations wrote the following warning:
“ To declare that the teaching Church had been deposed would be to fall
into the snare of the adversary and, believing oneself to have gone one
better than the hierarchy in their faltering faith, to fall oneself into
unbelief. No ! These appearances only deceive the impatient whose minds
are blinded by pride.”
In 1967 two years before these dissenters had declared their intent to break with the Church, the Abbe was already warning about the temptation to schism:
“ We do not have the right – nor is it something we have ever desired or
even dreamed of – to declare that we alone constitute the true Church,
rejecting this reformed postconciliar Church as schismatic and heretical
as though in our eyes it had become the accursed great Babylon of the
Apocalypse. This solution, the most stupid and most criminal possible,
may have excited the imagination of certain unfortunates who were
looking for an adventure. But it will never be our solution. One does
not throw oneself into schism when one has never woken up on a single
morning of one's life, over the last forty years, without smiling with
joy at the radiant, virginal and maternal face of the Church, and
without going to sleep at night filled with her immense wisdom and her
salutary blessings. There is nothing in me, absolutely nothing, which I
have not inherited from Her or which is not in accord with her holy
thoughts and desires. Let us not overlook the sordid side of our nature
and our sins, which are known to Her alone, since She has purified them.
Can I then deny, strike and abandon my Mother ? God forbid !
Once again, we must take extreme care about private judgment. I do not have the right or authority to declare so and so a heretic. Nor do you. The Catholic Church decides who is, and who is not a heretic. It comes back to what the Abbe de Nantes had noticed in the dissenting schismatical priests: they had lost faith in the Church, and therefore in Christ. We see this loss in the supernatural in those who go along with the complete boarding up of our churches during the coronavirus pandemic. You will notice that Cardinal Burke advocates churches remaining open within reason and good science. Not hysteria. As such, for the vast majority of parishes (unless the area be a hotspot, such as New York City), social distancing is very, very easy. Much more so, than your supermarket, your hardware store, your liquor and beer store, and the local pot shop. But I digress; let us return to the drama of contemporary schism. There is also the fact that we have moved far beyond 1969, where liberalism, modernism, protestantism, and other errors have so infiltrated mens' minds, that they are no longer able to discern truth from error. There is such confusion, that the rot has not only infected Modernists, but also Integrists; who, reacting with emotion, and abandoning Catholic reason, join the Modernists in attacking the spotless Bride of Christ.
Neither schism nor heresy. I shall remain Catholic. Pope Francis is the Pope until the Church declares otherwise.
Update: Upon further reflection, I have come to realize that perhaps I should have stayed mum on the subject. Many of the players involved are not terribly well-known in the wider scheme of things - only to the relevant audience, of which this writer is a member. The bias of availability does apply, and makes things seem bigger than they actually are. But I have written what I have written. As given in Proverbs, "The prudent man doth all things with counsel." (13.16)
On Easter Sunday, Taylor Marshall expressed his appreciation for being able to receive the Most August Sacrament from the Society of St. Pius X on the Solemnity of Solemnities. What ensued was nothing short of embarrassing, for out came the claws on the holiest of holy days. It was - and appears to continue to be - unnecessary and unjustified.
In the interests of full disclosure, I do not attend the Society. It is too far from my place of residence, and I have other concerns that would keep me closer to home than spend all of Sunday out of the house on a regular basis. This is what I used to do when I attended the Toronto Oratory, but the expenses and time commitment do add up. Besides, I consider it an act of charity to support the local chaplain's efforts to build up the TLM. Not only is he a friend of mine, but I have come to understand that he spends long hours on Sunday driving around the Archdiocese with little reward. If I show up at his Masses, I reason, that would make the effort worth it just a little more.
That being said, I do appreciate the Society. I like them. I have attended their Masses on occasion, and I did travel to their bookstore this past summer to look for a veil for a friend. We would be in a sorry state of affairs were they not around. We would not have the TLM in such abundance as we do today. The Fraternity, the Institute, and other religious orders would not be able to offer the TLM were it not for the SSPX.
So, please, leave the SSPX alone. They are not in schism. Nor do they exhibit extraordinary pride. They are not perfect, but is anyone? I daresay that people would not make these same assumptions and insinuations about the Fraternity, Institute, or any other TLM-exclusive religious order. That alone tells us something.
So, let us lay down our pens and swords, and worry about other matters that are far more pressing. Such as the fact Canada is in bed with communist China. The fact St. Peter's Basilica was host to an idol for much of last October. Or any other host of issues that are within our grasp to tackle and deal with practically, as opposed to the matter surrounding the Society, which we laypeople are unable to practically deal with.
In the meantime, I would suggest reading - and ruminating on - these posts by Father Z down in the States. He has had some first hand exposure with the status of the SSPX and offers some practical advice about the whole matter at hand.
When a prideful person is promoted, given an audience, they will usually go from bad to worse. Why wouldn't they? Spiritual narcissism is highly addictive and extremely deadly. St. John Chrysostom in "Concerning Lowliness of the Mind", compares the faith of the Pharisee to the publican. The former perverted his faith through pride, whilst the latter purified his through humility.
For humbleness of mind is the foundation of the love of wisdom which pertains to us. Even if you should have built a superstructure of things innumerable; even if almsgiving, even if prayers, even if fastings, even if all virtue; unless this have first been laid as a foundation, all will be built upon it to no purpose and in vain; and it will fall down easily, like that building which had been placed on the sand.
There is a particular website (but it is in no way unique) that carries, and continues to carry objectively gravely sinful headlines, distortions, calumny, and detraction. A favourite activity on this website is daily mocking of the Pope. The Holy Father is "Francis of the Holy Virus", "Virus Pope", and other horrible, nasty names. Do you think God is pleased with this? Approves of this?
There seems to be a diabolical glee about the alleged "sins" of others. This is a monstrous evil.
But as usually happens when there is a disagreement amongst judgmental and prideful people: they turn on each other. The question MUST be asked. Where were the enablers of this operator of this website when he was engaging (and continues) in objectively gravely sinful activity? Where are they now? Is it permissible to mock the Pope, and others (under the pretext that he/they are evil sinners), but not permissible to mock a sick man?
St. Francis de Sales quoted St. Bernard, regarding the mocking of others: "...the Devil has possession both of the slanderer and of those who listen to him, of the tongue of the one, the ear of the other".
We are supposed to pray for sinners, not mock and degrade them. What does Our Lord say?
You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous" St. Matthew 5: 43-45
You see the irrationality, and cherry picking of sin? Once again: where does this evil come from?
It comes from PRIDE
Pride is a KILLER
Mockery can be a very serious mortal sin."A spirit of mockery is one of the worst imperfections of the mind, and displeases God greatly, so that He has often punished it most severely". St. Francis de Sales (Introduction to the Devout Life).
All of this comes from the devil who loves confusion, hatred, rage and anger. The rage, the hate on social media has its source in the demonic (Latin Mass attendance, notwithstanding). None of this is from the Holy Spirit.
Look for "Corona Wars" to get much worse, as the spiritual virus of pride has spread rapidly amongst Catholics. After years of virally overloading with pride from years of mocking, degrading, detracting, and even hating those whom they (by their very own words) claim are sinners, the fratricidal Catholics are now going into the ICU, spiritually gravely ill from pride. I know: I was there. It was not good. It was evil and sinful.
Whereas coronavirus may kill the body, pride will kill the soul. The Pharisees were infected with this disease, and they, in their spiritual blindness (but so fastidiously "religious") committed the greatest crime in history: Deicide, and crucified the Son of Man. Now Catholics set about crucifying each other. In doing so, they re-crucify Christ. How sad, how tragic.
Here again God writes straight with crooked lines, He is exposing false "friendships", where people were not true brothers and sisters in Christ, but were only sought out as echo chambers to play back what we like to hear, mirrors to reflect back our own vain image.
Please pray for those Catholics who have succumbed to this terrible, fatal virus of pride. Pray that they seek out the Divine Physician, who is the only one who can cure them, and bring them the peace of mind and soul they so lack.
George Pell has recently been declared by the Australian Courts to be not guilty of sexually assaulting two young men in a cathedral. But, as Joseph Sciambra noted a few days ago, should Pell be held up as a Catholic hero, given his mishandling of sexual abuse cases from the past? Sylvia's Sitecarries a lot of information on the coverups in Australia by monstrous pedophile priests.
In asking these very questions, Sciambra apparently was attacked online (Here we go again with the evil toxic online sub-culture generated by "Catholics" that I have referenced a number of times). Sciambra accurately notes: "I am starting to believe that the Catholic Church (in either conservative or liberal spheres) is no place for the inquiring mind".
Sadly, he is substantially correct.
Sciambra wrote:
Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.” – Luke 12:48 Cardinal George Pell told an Australian Royal Commission he did not help a teenage boy who complained to him in 1974 that a Christian Brother named Edward Dowlan of St Patrick’s College (in Ballarat) was “misbehaving with boys”. “I didn’t do anything about it,” he said. When asked why, Pell told the Commission it was because: “The boy wasn’t asking me to do anything about it…"
Years later, Dowlan would plead guilty to 33 counts of indecently assaulting boys under the age of 16.
Following his acquittal for charges of sexual abuse, Cardinal George Pell was described by some Catholic bloggers, commentators, and journalists as a “hero,” a “martyr,” and even a “saint.”
I am starting to believe that the Catholic Church (in either the conservative or liberal spheres) is no place for an inquiring mind. A few days ago, I merely posted some questions about Cardinal Pell on my Facebook wall (I also shared my thoughts concerning his alleged mishandling of sexual abuse cases while he was a priest in Ballarat, when he was Bishop, and an Archbishop) – and then I got attacked.
The Catholic Church needs to seriously expand Her online presence. The Oxford Oratory is trying to do just that. You can subscribe to their Youtube channel by linking here.
As with everything, there is a right way and a wrong way of doing things. The Oxford Oratory seems to be getting it right. Here is a seriously normal video of the priests relaxed, in their home, and wishing all a Holy Easter.
Children are the future of the Church. Here is another seriously normal video of a Father of the Oratory with an Easter Reflection for children.
Spiritual knowledge without practical life (purification of the heart) is the theology of demons
St. Maximos the Confessor
I understand that the other week a brother in Christ attacked another brother in Christ on social media, mocking his hospitalization from coronavirus. There now seems to be all out "civil war" between ultramontane Catholics, who until "corona" appeared, devoted most of their energies to mocking, degrading, and slandering Pope Francis. They nearly, at times, seem to take a pathological delight in seeking out every opportunity to drag him into the mire. We have heard everything from "he is the antichrist", to "he is not the pope", etc., etc. And worse. Far, far worse.
I wrote the other week about this "civil war", with the rise of "Gnostic Catholics" engaged in pitched social media battles with "Corona Catholics". Sadly, you reap what you sow. When the prideful turn in a circle and open up on each other - there will be no man left standing. Do not get engaged with trolls. Social media is not a framework for debate with anonymous unsolicited individuals. The warnings contained in Canon de Saint-Laurent's, "The Art of Conversation" though written in 1951, is very applicable in today's toxic social media environment. He warned against the "know-alls", who expressed themselves not with opinions, but with their so-called doctrines. He warned of the "scandal monger", who seeks out third parties to expose others' "faults". The immediacy and anonymity of the internet amplifies the ease with which one can fall into lack of charity towards our brothers and sisters in Christ. These trolls seem to be the veritable descendants of those who swept across north Africa, scimitar in hand crying, "convert or die".
We must ask ourselves: how is it possible for a Christian to mock another Christian? How is it possible to mock any man, (even a sinner, or perhaps especially a sinner?) for everyman is a called by Christ to become a Christian?
During this Easter Week, let us reflect on what we are doing, where we are going. Are we living the Gospel? Does hatred consume us? Are we constantly seeking out "errors", "heresy" (yet many times ignoring our own heresies?), and "apostasy" (yet not realizing that we too might not have lost the Faith, but are already well on the way to losing it).
Mass will belive this Easter Monday morning from Mater Ecclesiae Chapel from the Diocese of Camden.
Thank-you Fr. Pasley for preaching during every Mass!!!
EVERY day of Easter week is but one continuation of the great Feast of Easter Sunday. Every day, as befitting a great Feast Day, must have a sermon. To exclude a sermon (and ESPECIALLY during this time of Catholics being locked out of their churches) reeks of clericalism.
This Easter Triduum, I followed the online Liturgy according to the pre-1955 ancient Rites of the Church.
This was truly a moving experience; showing that there still are truly devoted pastors who care for the Sheep. A truly parish experience was created throughout the Triduum.
Especially meaningful during this time of being shut out of our churches was his reaching out to us through his Sermons. He was not detached, remote, but, like Our Lord, reaching out to us. So much work was put into preparing this Triduum for the faithful. Why? Because after Our Lord, the faithful come first. And Fr. Pasley knows this and lives this. The priest is there for one purpose: to serve the faithful to help him to get to Heaven. Anything less reeks of elitist clericalism.
How strange it was that a Catholic living in Toronto had to seek out a priest in New Jersey for bread.
Dear Catholic friends, I pray you found bread this Easter, and not stones.
Here, is Fr Pasley's Sermon from today's Easter Morning Mass. The Sermon also includes a lesson to us all: especially when he warns us (without mentioning them) of those who become obsessed with externals to the point of a fetish. Religion is no longer doctrine, but theatre. How beautiful it is to hear voices singing for the love of God! Far more preferable (don't you think) than hiring paid singers (some who lead grossly immoral lifestyles) to merely provide music (all the while despising Jesus Christ and His Church). God will not be mocked. Please keep Fr. Pasley in your prayers. Please visit his website. Please start following his Liturgies, if you have not yet begun! A Happy and Holy Easter to you all. Christ is Risen, truly He has Risen. Alleleuia.
The full Easter Mass can be found at the links at Mater Ecclesiae.
You can watch the Easter Vigil of Holy Saturday according to the pre-1955 rites celebrated by Fr. Robert Pasley of Mater Ecclesiae, Diocese of Camden (Berlin, NJ). The pre 1955 Holy Week is incredibly important, as it has none of the modernist tendencies and surrenders that followed one upon another, beginning with the 1955 disastrous changes.
The pre-1955 rites firmly proclaims Jesus Christ as King over all Nations and peoples, without exception. There is no surrender to Protestantism, to Judaism, to Freemasonry. The pre-1955 rites firmly proclaims that Jesus Christ is truly God. That is why these rites had to go. With their destruction, the virus of religious indifferentism penetrated most men's minds.
Link for Easter Vigil: https://www.facebook.com/MaterEcclesiaeChurch/videos/235981440856446/
There is a deadly virus dwelling deeply in the Catholic Church: it is Freemasonry.
The Polish Archbishop, Jan Pawel Lenga, identified this evil sect as one of the major threats to the Catholic Church in his wide ranging discussion on wRealu24.
The Archbishop referencing Our Lord's words, I know mine and my own know me (John 10:14), stated that the vast majority of the bishops have abandoned the faithful:
"...the shepherds no longer care for the flock, when they should be doing it faithfully. Christ is the Good Shepherd, and cared for the Flock, 'I know mine'. But you bishops, you do not know your flock.
They only recognize the collections they take up. The pastors no longer recognize their people. They conduct their ministry as if in secrecy.
They are no longer carrying their cross behind Christ. In their churches and dioceses they are no longer showing the path to be walked ...they only seek to take and not give".
The real world of evidence, shows that coronavirus overwhelmingly hits vulnerable populations (yes, there are always outliers, but these people are not being tested for co-pathgens, nor do we know anything about their immune systems etc.).
The IFR is actually very low. If Ontario did absolutely nothing (which I am not advocating) it would still be 0.75%. A search of the website of Health Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Health, as well as the websites of Toronto and Ottawa Public Health and have no published data on correlation between age, comorbidities and the novel coronavirus.
However, New York Public Health has been transparent, and here are statistics:
Here are current world statistics:
The Centre for Evidence Based Research (CEMB) Oxford, includes the following:
Comorbidities will have a significant impact to increase the IFR: those with ≥ 3 comorbidities are at much higher risk. Modelling the data on the prevalence of comorbidities is essential to understand the CFR and IFR by age (the prevalence of comorbidities is highly age-dependent and is higher in socially deprived populations). It is also not clear if the presence of other circulating influenza illnesses acts to increase the IFR (testing for co-pathogens is not occurring). And whether certain populations (e.g., those with heart conditions) are more at risk.
In those without pre-existing health conditions, and over 70, the data is reassuring that the IFR will likely not exceed 1%.
Mortality in children seems to be near zero (unlike flu) which is also reassuring and will act to drive down the IFR significantly.
It is now essential to understand whether individuals are dying with or from the disease.Understanding this issue is critical. If, for instance, 80% of those over 80 die with the disease then the CFR would be near 3% in this age group as opposed to 15%. Cause of death information from death certificates is often inaccurate and incomplete, particularly for conditions such as pneumonia. These factors would act to lower the IFR.
Antibody testing will provide an accurate understanding of how many people have been infected so far, and permit a more accurate estimate of the IFR.
Read the latest (Updated April 3, 2020) fullreport
John Hopkins University also carries updated information, go read ithere.
Notice what keeps coming up again and again? Pre-existing health conditions, and additional comorbidities. I have neighbours who have been induced into a near state of panic. Another person told me she knows of someone so terrified, she has not been out of her home for a couple of weeks.
The data is becoming clearer every day. Even the "stark" numbers projected by Ontario needs to be unpacked to see the proper picture. We are not dealing with the Black Death. Not even close.
Less than an hour ago, according to Australian time, Cardinal George Pell was acquitted of all of his convictions regarding the alleged abuse of two choir boys in Melboure Cathedral in the 1990s.
He is now a free man. He will not be serving his sentence any longer.
This is a good start to Holy Week. Thanks be to God.
Catholics will remember those bishops and priests who indiscriminately boarded up our churches without any distinction or logical reasoning.
Faithful Catholics are looking for St. Damien, the Leper Martyr of Molokai. They are looking for Bishop Michael Power, the Typhus Martyr of Toronto. They are looking for bread, but being given stones.
Catholics will remember those bishops who even preempted the secular authorities in their mad scramble to lock us out of our churches.
Catholics will remember those bishops and priests who have gone into hiding, served by underlings in their mansions and plush houses.
Catholics will remember the cowardice, the betrayal, the treachery.
These men have gone so far as to close the churches for private prayer.
I can tell you from personal experience that dropping into a church during the day you will be by yourself 19/20. Even during corona, as I wrote earlier, in my parish, there was at one time only three people.
But no, all the parishes without distinction have to be boarded up. Even those up on (e.g.) Georgian Bay.
If coronavirus was raging in downtown Toronto, with 100 deaths per day, yes, lock the parishes in the downtown. But to be locking up churches far north of the city? This is not based on science, this is based on hysteria.
But Catholic will ALSO remember something else.
Catholics will remember the few bishops and priests who were faithful. The bishops and priests who WERE seen, and not hiding under their beds.
Catholics will remember those bishops who came out publicly and blessed the city with the Blessed Sacrament.
Catholics will also remember those priests who came out publicly and blessed
the parish, the neighbourhood with the Blessed Sacrament.
Friends, extraordinary times requires extraordinary measures. Catholics will remember those faithful priests who placed the Blessed Sacrament in the Window, so that the faithful passing by, could adore.
Here in Archdiocese of Toronto ALL churches are boarded up without distinction. That means EVERY church, even those far north of the dense city, in the countryside. This is madness.
And the Catholics who follow them? Sheep. The blind following the blind.
Here is a beautiful Latin Mass organized in a parking lot, following all appropriate measures to ensure more than enough safety. This could be replicated in so many archdiocese, especially in smaller towns, where the Mass can be safely celebrated. You are going to tell me this cannot be done in some of the parishes in your diocese or archdiocese?
Some Catholics have been blessed. They have not been given stones, but bread. Catholic bishops (very, very few) have, such as Bishop Strickland been seen in public blessing his people (even as he said also nonbelievers, for every man without exception has Jesus Christ is under Jesus Christ). We also know that a number of priests in Italy have given their lives for the faithful.
When this is all over, the lines will have been drawn. Just as Coronavirus is showing us those bishops and priests who did abandon the faithful, the virus also revealed those who did not. A separate issue, but very concerning too is the eagerness with which far too many Catholics joined these men of little faith, in cheering them on.
The following are screenshots from Dioceses and Archdiocese where the Bishop still has Catholic common sense. You may be surprised by some of the bishops: but God ways are mysterious. During a crisis we will see what we do not expect: the "novus ordo" Catholic stepping up for the Faith and becoming a martyr, and the "traditional" Catholic falling away into apostasy. Our ways are not God's ways.
