"What St. Paul's profound insights teach us is that sex is not an accidental characteristic of man and woman. A human person without sex is a strange abstraction. Sex entails the very identity of each person; sex plunges to the deepest mystery of each human person. St. Paul indicates this reality when he affirms that sexual sins involve persons up to the depth of their beings. He makes a sharp distinction between sins committed outside the body, i.e., outside the depths of one's being, and those committed against one's body, i.e., against what is destined for union with God as his temple and for resurrection and glorification with Christ. Hence the sexes, and the vocations pertaining thereto, are not interchangeable. Each person is called to serve God and his fellowman, accepting gladly the sex with which one is endowed and the vocation attached to that sex.
The Dutch scholar Buijlendijk has expertly unmasked a modern error concerning the sexes. In his book Woman he says that it is only at an embryonic state of modern 'feminism' that it is naively supposed that equality of women to men means women must do all things men usually do. This error fails to honor women for it neglects their positive, unique contribution to human society. Indeed, under the guise of advancing women to equality with men, this false principle makes a final attempt to subject women completely to the tyranny of purely masculine criteria.
Women cannot be made 'copy-cat' men without degrading them by unnaturally robbing them of their femininity. A bogus masculinity does not honor or liberate women. Woman is honored and left free when she is genuinely accepted as an integral woman with all the characteristic charms of femininity. For woman contributes to human society what she alone can contribute with consummate excellence - the mothering, nurturing and training of the human family through tender love. It is the sin of sham modernity to subject women to the imperialism of the egalitarians. This would destroy the identity, the very humanity, of woman, both of which are linked mysteriously to her femininity." (Father Vincent P. Miceli, S.J., The Antichrist).
A bogus masculinity does not honor or liberate women. Bearing this in mind, examine the photos taken at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts during the Easter Season. See here.
Does Father James Scahill accept the Church's teaching as expressed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, No. 4, that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church's faithful?
What do you think?
Related reading here.
Showing posts with label East Longmeadow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label East Longmeadow. Show all posts
Friday, May 07, 2010
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
Father James Scahill's Pastoral Associate belongs to a Religious Community which promotes the New Age Earth Charter
Sister Betty Broughan, SSJ, Father James Scahill's Pastoral Associate at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, is a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield. This Religious Community promotes the dissent group Pax Christi,* the New Age Labyrinth and the New Age Earth Charter. The Earth Charter is listed at their website as one of their "ongoing social justice actions." See here.
The Earth Charter is steeped in the New Age. As I mentioned in a previous post, "Speaking about the Earth Charter and related globalism, Msgr. Michel Schooyans has said that, "In order to consolidate this holistic vision of globalism, certain obstacles have to be smoothed out and instruments put to work. Religions in general, and in the first place the Catholic religion, figure among the obstacles that have to be neutralized."
According to its founders, the Earth Charter is "a declaration of fundamental principles for building a just, sustainable, and peaceful global society in the 21st century." The Earth Charter Commission hopes that the Charter will become the common standard "by which the conduct of all individuals, organizations, businesses, governments, and transnational institutions [such as the Roman Catholic Church, my note] is to be guided and assessed."
The globalists who are behind the Earth Charter seek to promote a New Age religion which will neutralize the supernatural faith of Roman Catholicism. In the words of Archbishop Javier Lozano Barragan, "Clearly, we are faced with the total denial of Christianity." Proponents of the Earth Charter hold that the Ten Commandments are out of date and will be replaced by the fifteen principles of the Earth Charter. (See my previous post here).
Archbishop Barragan is right. The Earth Charter represents nothing less than the total denial of Christianity. It is apostasy. No wonder Sister Broughan stands with a priest who has referred to the Mystical Body of Christ - the Holy Roman Catholic Church - as "insidiously evil." Her own community is working toward the neutralization of the Catholic religion.
Monday, May 03, 2010
Sister Betty Broughan, SSJ has promoted Sister Theresa Kane, RSM
Remember Father James Scahill, the angry priest who calumniated Pope Benedict XVI and referred to the Mystical Body of Christ as "insidiously evil"? Fr. Scahill's Pastoral Associate, Sister Betty Broughan, SSJ has promoted Sister Theresa Kane, RSM, a well-known dissident religious who promotes women's ordination. When Sister Kane was scheduled to give a talk entitled "Towards the 21st Century: A New Vision for Women in Church and Society at the Mont Marie Gymnasium in the Springfield Diocese back in 2006, Sister Broughan coordinated the event. See here.
Naturally, Sister Kane's talk portrayed women as "oppressed" within the Church. We've all heard the tired mantra of angry feminist religious who have a desire to be copy-cat men. But Sister Kane offered the following gem to her audience: "In Church history Mary was pedestalized and Eve was demonized." See here.
St. Louis de Montfort explains that, "What Lucifer lost by pride Mary won by humility. What Eve ruined and lost by disobedience Mary saved by obedience. By obeying the serpent, Eve ruined her children as well as herself and delivered them up to him. Mary by her perfect fidelity to God saved her children with herself and consecrated them to his divine majesty." (True Devotion to Mary, 53).
As Fr. William Most makes clear, "The beginning of the concept that Mary is a Queen is found in the annunciation narrative. For the angel tells her that her Son will be King over the house of Jacob forever. So she, His Mother, would be a Queen.
The Fathers of the Church soon picked up these implications. A text probably coming from Origen (died c. 254: cf. Marian Studies 4, 1953, 87) gives her the title domina, the feminine form of Latin dominus, Lord. That same title also appears in many other early writers, e.g. , St. Ephrem, St. Jerome, St. Peter Chrysologus (cf. Marian Studies 4. 87-91). The word 'Queen' appears abut the sixth century, and is common thereafter (Marian Studies, 4, 91-94).
The titles 'king' and 'queen' are often used loosely, for those beings that excel in some way. Thus we call the lion the king of beasts, the rose the queen of flowers. Surely Our Lady deserves the title richly for such reasons. But there is much more.
Some inadequate reasons have been suggested: She is the daughter of David. But not every child of a king becomes a king or queen. Others have pointed out that she was free from original sin. Then, since Adam and Eve had a dominion over all things (Genesis 1. 26) she should have similar dominion. But the problem is that the royalty of Adam and Eve was largely metaphorical.
The solidly theological reasons for her title of Queen are expressed splendidly by Pius XII, in his Radiomessage to Fatima, Bendito seja (AAS 38. 266): 'He, the Son of God, reflects on His heavenly Mother the glory, the majesty and the dominion of His kingship, for, having been associated to the King of Martyrs in the unspeakable work of human Redemption as Mother and cooperator, she remains forever associated to Him, with a practically unlimited power, in the distribution of the graces which flow from the Redemption. Jesus is King throughout all eternity by nature and by right of conquest: through Him, with Him, and subordinate to Him, Mary is Queen by grace, by divine relationship, by right of conquest, and by singular choice [of the Father]. And her kingdom is as vast as that of her Son and God, since nothing is excluded from her dominion.'
We notice that there are two titles for the kingship of Christ: divine nature, and 'right of conquest', i.e., the Redemption. She is Queen 'through Him, with Him, and subordinate to Him.' The qualifications are obvious, and need no explanation. Her Queenship is basically a sharing in the royalty of her Son. We do not think of two powers, one infinite, the other finite. No, she and her Son are inseparable, and operate as a unit.
Of the four titles Pius XII gave for her Queenship, we notice that two are closely parallel to those of Jesus:
(1) He is king by nature, as God; she is Queen by 'divine relationship' that is, by being the Mother of God. In fact her relation to her Son is greater than that of ordinary Mothers of Kings. For she is the Mother of Him who is King by very nature, from all eternity, and the relationship is exclusive, for He had no human father. Still further, the ordinary queen-mother gives birth to a child who later will become king. The son of Mary is, as we said, eternally king, by His very nature. (2) He is king by right of conquest. She too is Queen by right of conquest. We already saw that this title for Him means that He redeemed us from the captivity of satan. She shared in the struggle and victory. Since the Pope expressed her dependence on Him in a threefold way--something we would have known anyway--then it is clear that he did not have in mind any other restriction which he did not express. So, maintaining this subordination, "by right of conquest" means the same for her as it does for Him.
The other two titles: (3) She is Queen by grace. She is full of grace, the highest in the category of grace besides her Son. (4) She is Queen by singular choice of the Father. A mere human can become King or Queen by choice of the people. How much greater a title is the choice of the Father Himself!
Pius XII added that 'nothing is excluded from her dominion.' As Mediatrix of all graces, who shared in earning all graces, she is, as Benedict XV said, 'Suppliant omnipotence': she, united with her Son, can obtain by her intercession anything that the all-powerful God can do by His own inherent power.
In the Old Testament, under some Davidic kings, the gebirah, the 'Great Lady', usually the Mother of the King, held great power as advocate with the king. Cf. 1 Kings 2:20, where Solomon said to his Mother Bathsheba, seated on a throne at his right: 'Make your request, Mother, for I will not refuse you.' Here is a sort of type of Our Lady. (See here).
It's no great surprise that Father Scahill has a cult-following. The culture of dissent at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts has spread like a cancer. Which is why VOTF has found a home there.
Naturally, Sister Kane's talk portrayed women as "oppressed" within the Church. We've all heard the tired mantra of angry feminist religious who have a desire to be copy-cat men. But Sister Kane offered the following gem to her audience: "In Church history Mary was pedestalized and Eve was demonized." See here.
St. Louis de Montfort explains that, "What Lucifer lost by pride Mary won by humility. What Eve ruined and lost by disobedience Mary saved by obedience. By obeying the serpent, Eve ruined her children as well as herself and delivered them up to him. Mary by her perfect fidelity to God saved her children with herself and consecrated them to his divine majesty." (True Devotion to Mary, 53).
As Fr. William Most makes clear, "The beginning of the concept that Mary is a Queen is found in the annunciation narrative. For the angel tells her that her Son will be King over the house of Jacob forever. So she, His Mother, would be a Queen.
The Fathers of the Church soon picked up these implications. A text probably coming from Origen (died c. 254: cf. Marian Studies 4, 1953, 87) gives her the title domina, the feminine form of Latin dominus, Lord. That same title also appears in many other early writers, e.g. , St. Ephrem, St. Jerome, St. Peter Chrysologus (cf. Marian Studies 4. 87-91). The word 'Queen' appears abut the sixth century, and is common thereafter (Marian Studies, 4, 91-94).
The titles 'king' and 'queen' are often used loosely, for those beings that excel in some way. Thus we call the lion the king of beasts, the rose the queen of flowers. Surely Our Lady deserves the title richly for such reasons. But there is much more.
Some inadequate reasons have been suggested: She is the daughter of David. But not every child of a king becomes a king or queen. Others have pointed out that she was free from original sin. Then, since Adam and Eve had a dominion over all things (Genesis 1. 26) she should have similar dominion. But the problem is that the royalty of Adam and Eve was largely metaphorical.
The solidly theological reasons for her title of Queen are expressed splendidly by Pius XII, in his Radiomessage to Fatima, Bendito seja (AAS 38. 266): 'He, the Son of God, reflects on His heavenly Mother the glory, the majesty and the dominion of His kingship, for, having been associated to the King of Martyrs in the unspeakable work of human Redemption as Mother and cooperator, she remains forever associated to Him, with a practically unlimited power, in the distribution of the graces which flow from the Redemption. Jesus is King throughout all eternity by nature and by right of conquest: through Him, with Him, and subordinate to Him, Mary is Queen by grace, by divine relationship, by right of conquest, and by singular choice [of the Father]. And her kingdom is as vast as that of her Son and God, since nothing is excluded from her dominion.'
We notice that there are two titles for the kingship of Christ: divine nature, and 'right of conquest', i.e., the Redemption. She is Queen 'through Him, with Him, and subordinate to Him.' The qualifications are obvious, and need no explanation. Her Queenship is basically a sharing in the royalty of her Son. We do not think of two powers, one infinite, the other finite. No, she and her Son are inseparable, and operate as a unit.
Of the four titles Pius XII gave for her Queenship, we notice that two are closely parallel to those of Jesus:
(1) He is king by nature, as God; she is Queen by 'divine relationship' that is, by being the Mother of God. In fact her relation to her Son is greater than that of ordinary Mothers of Kings. For she is the Mother of Him who is King by very nature, from all eternity, and the relationship is exclusive, for He had no human father. Still further, the ordinary queen-mother gives birth to a child who later will become king. The son of Mary is, as we said, eternally king, by His very nature. (2) He is king by right of conquest. She too is Queen by right of conquest. We already saw that this title for Him means that He redeemed us from the captivity of satan. She shared in the struggle and victory. Since the Pope expressed her dependence on Him in a threefold way--something we would have known anyway--then it is clear that he did not have in mind any other restriction which he did not express. So, maintaining this subordination, "by right of conquest" means the same for her as it does for Him.
The other two titles: (3) She is Queen by grace. She is full of grace, the highest in the category of grace besides her Son. (4) She is Queen by singular choice of the Father. A mere human can become King or Queen by choice of the people. How much greater a title is the choice of the Father Himself!
Pius XII added that 'nothing is excluded from her dominion.' As Mediatrix of all graces, who shared in earning all graces, she is, as Benedict XV said, 'Suppliant omnipotence': she, united with her Son, can obtain by her intercession anything that the all-powerful God can do by His own inherent power.
In the Old Testament, under some Davidic kings, the gebirah, the 'Great Lady', usually the Mother of the King, held great power as advocate with the king. Cf. 1 Kings 2:20, where Solomon said to his Mother Bathsheba, seated on a throne at his right: 'Make your request, Mother, for I will not refuse you.' Here is a sort of type of Our Lady. (See here).
It's no great surprise that Father Scahill has a cult-following. The culture of dissent at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts has spread like a cancer. Which is why VOTF has found a home there.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
"I shall strike the shepherds, I shall disperse the flock..."
From a prophecy given to Don Bosco:
"Now Heaven's voice is addressed to the Shepherd of shepherds. You are now in conference with your advisors. The enemy of the good does not stand idle one moment. He studies and practices all his arts against you. He will sow discord among your consultors; he will raise up enemies amongst my children. The powers of the world will belch forth fire, and they would that the words be suffocated in the throats of the custodians of my law. That will not happen, they will do no harm but to themselves. You must hurry. If you cannot untie the knots, cut them. If you find yourself hard pressed, do not give up but continue until the head of the hydra of error is cut off. This stroke will make the world and Hell beneath it tremble, but the world will be safe and all the good will rejoice. Keep your consultors always with you, even if only two. Wherever you go, continue and bring to an end the work entrusted to you. The days fly by, your years will reach the destined number; but the great Queen will ever be your help, as in times past, so in the future She will always be the exceeding great fortress of the Church.
"Ah, but you, Italy, land of blessings! Who has steeped you in desolation! Blame not your enemies, but rather your friends. Can you not hear your children asking for the bread of faith and finding only those who smash it to pieces? What shall I do? I shall strike the shepherds, I shall disperse the flock, until those sitting on the throne of Moses search for good pastures and the flock listens attentively and is fed.
"Of the flock and over the shepherds My hand will weigh heavy. Famine, pestilence, and war will be such that mothers will have to cry on account of the blood of their sons and of their martyrs dead in a hostile country.
"And to you, Rome, what will happen! Ungrateful Rome, effeminate Rome, proud Rome! You have reached such a height that you search no further. You admire nothing else in your Sovereign except luxury, forgetting that you and your glory stands upon Golgotha. Now he is old, defenseless, and despoiled; and yet at his word, the word of one who was in bondage, the whole world trembles.
"Rome! To you I will come four times.
"The first time, I shall strike your lands and the inhabitants thereof.
"The second time, I shall bring the massacre and the slaughter even to your very walls. And will you not yet open your eyes?
"I shall come a third time and I shall beat down to the ground your defenses and the defenders, and at the command of the Father, the reign of terror, of dreadful fear, and of desolation shall enter into your city.
"But My wise men have now fled and My law is even now trampled underfoot. Therefore I will make a fourth visit. Woe to you if My law shall still be considered as empty words. There will be deceit and falsehood among both the learned and the ignorant. Your blood and that of your children will wash away your stains upon God's law. War, pestilence and famine are the rods to scourge men's pride and wickedness. O wealthy men, where is your glory now, your estates, your palaces? They are the rubble on the highways and byways.
"And your priests, why have you not run to "cry between the vestibule and the Altar," begging God to end these scourges? Why have you not, with the shield of faith, gone upon the housetops, into the homes, along the highways and byways, into every accessible corner to carry the seed of My word? Know you that this is the terrible two-edged sword that cuts down My enemies and breaks the Anger of God and of men?"
In our own time, the germ ideas of a one-world religion are already being sowed. And this false humanitarian religion will burst into poisonous flower when enough hearts have grown cold and have abandoned the true religion. As Jane Le Royer explained in prophecy: "When the time of the Antichrist is near, a false religion will appear which will be opposed to the unity of God and His Church. This will cause the greatest schism the world has ever known."
Can you not see the emerging signs? How do we find the Church today? The Mystical Body of the Crucified One - the Holy Catholic Church - is climbing Calvary, carrying a heavy cross. She is experiencing the hour of abandonment and betrayal. Her body is being tormented by the scourges of sin which strike at it and by numerous sacrileges which open up deep wounds in it. A Catholic priest openly calls her "evil" just as the Pharisees suggested Our Lord was evil and demon possessed (Matthew 11:18; 12: 24). And his parishioners applaud.
Indeed, Our Lady told Father Gobbi,"The hour of Calvary has arrived for the Church, called to offer herself in holocaust and to be immolated on the cross of her bloody martyrdom. The hour of Calvary has arrived for this poor humanity, which is already beginning to live the painful hours of its chastisement..' (Rome, May 1, 1994).
But too many are proud. Their eyes blinded by sin and egoism. Like the Pharisees before them, they are incapable of reading the signs of the times because their spiritual eyes are closed. They cannot hear the Spirit because their ears are closed. They cannot feel the promptings of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus because their hearts are closed. Such people cannot endure sound teaching but have itching ears and will continue to accumulate teachers who suit their own likings, teachers who will cater to their lusts by providing them with myths (2 Timothy 4: 3, 4).
And still so many of our shepherds remain silent like mute dogs. They have not begged God to end these scourges. They have not wept between the vestibule and the altar. They have not taken up the shield of faith to protect their flocks. Their judgment will be all the more severe, for God expects more from His ministers (Luke 12: 48).
Now is the hour of decision. Will we stand with the Holy Father and the Holy Roman Catholic Church. Or will we rise up as did the parishioners at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts and shout "Crucify Him!"? Will we remain fortes in fide or will we desert Our Lord Who alone has the words which lead to eternal life? (John 6: 68).
There can be no sitting on the fence. We must choose between the Mystical Body of Christ and the Mystical Body of Antichrist.
Related reading here.
"Now Heaven's voice is addressed to the Shepherd of shepherds. You are now in conference with your advisors. The enemy of the good does not stand idle one moment. He studies and practices all his arts against you. He will sow discord among your consultors; he will raise up enemies amongst my children. The powers of the world will belch forth fire, and they would that the words be suffocated in the throats of the custodians of my law. That will not happen, they will do no harm but to themselves. You must hurry. If you cannot untie the knots, cut them. If you find yourself hard pressed, do not give up but continue until the head of the hydra of error is cut off. This stroke will make the world and Hell beneath it tremble, but the world will be safe and all the good will rejoice. Keep your consultors always with you, even if only two. Wherever you go, continue and bring to an end the work entrusted to you. The days fly by, your years will reach the destined number; but the great Queen will ever be your help, as in times past, so in the future She will always be the exceeding great fortress of the Church.
"Ah, but you, Italy, land of blessings! Who has steeped you in desolation! Blame not your enemies, but rather your friends. Can you not hear your children asking for the bread of faith and finding only those who smash it to pieces? What shall I do? I shall strike the shepherds, I shall disperse the flock, until those sitting on the throne of Moses search for good pastures and the flock listens attentively and is fed.
"Of the flock and over the shepherds My hand will weigh heavy. Famine, pestilence, and war will be such that mothers will have to cry on account of the blood of their sons and of their martyrs dead in a hostile country.
"And to you, Rome, what will happen! Ungrateful Rome, effeminate Rome, proud Rome! You have reached such a height that you search no further. You admire nothing else in your Sovereign except luxury, forgetting that you and your glory stands upon Golgotha. Now he is old, defenseless, and despoiled; and yet at his word, the word of one who was in bondage, the whole world trembles.
"Rome! To you I will come four times.
"The first time, I shall strike your lands and the inhabitants thereof.
"The second time, I shall bring the massacre and the slaughter even to your very walls. And will you not yet open your eyes?
"I shall come a third time and I shall beat down to the ground your defenses and the defenders, and at the command of the Father, the reign of terror, of dreadful fear, and of desolation shall enter into your city.
"But My wise men have now fled and My law is even now trampled underfoot. Therefore I will make a fourth visit. Woe to you if My law shall still be considered as empty words. There will be deceit and falsehood among both the learned and the ignorant. Your blood and that of your children will wash away your stains upon God's law. War, pestilence and famine are the rods to scourge men's pride and wickedness. O wealthy men, where is your glory now, your estates, your palaces? They are the rubble on the highways and byways.
"And your priests, why have you not run to "cry between the vestibule and the Altar," begging God to end these scourges? Why have you not, with the shield of faith, gone upon the housetops, into the homes, along the highways and byways, into every accessible corner to carry the seed of My word? Know you that this is the terrible two-edged sword that cuts down My enemies and breaks the Anger of God and of men?"
In our own time, the germ ideas of a one-world religion are already being sowed. And this false humanitarian religion will burst into poisonous flower when enough hearts have grown cold and have abandoned the true religion. As Jane Le Royer explained in prophecy: "When the time of the Antichrist is near, a false religion will appear which will be opposed to the unity of God and His Church. This will cause the greatest schism the world has ever known."
Can you not see the emerging signs? How do we find the Church today? The Mystical Body of the Crucified One - the Holy Catholic Church - is climbing Calvary, carrying a heavy cross. She is experiencing the hour of abandonment and betrayal. Her body is being tormented by the scourges of sin which strike at it and by numerous sacrileges which open up deep wounds in it. A Catholic priest openly calls her "evil" just as the Pharisees suggested Our Lord was evil and demon possessed (Matthew 11:18; 12: 24). And his parishioners applaud.
Indeed, Our Lady told Father Gobbi,"The hour of Calvary has arrived for the Church, called to offer herself in holocaust and to be immolated on the cross of her bloody martyrdom. The hour of Calvary has arrived for this poor humanity, which is already beginning to live the painful hours of its chastisement..' (Rome, May 1, 1994).
But too many are proud. Their eyes blinded by sin and egoism. Like the Pharisees before them, they are incapable of reading the signs of the times because their spiritual eyes are closed. They cannot hear the Spirit because their ears are closed. They cannot feel the promptings of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus because their hearts are closed. Such people cannot endure sound teaching but have itching ears and will continue to accumulate teachers who suit their own likings, teachers who will cater to their lusts by providing them with myths (2 Timothy 4: 3, 4).
And still so many of our shepherds remain silent like mute dogs. They have not begged God to end these scourges. They have not wept between the vestibule and the altar. They have not taken up the shield of faith to protect their flocks. Their judgment will be all the more severe, for God expects more from His ministers (Luke 12: 48).
Now is the hour of decision. Will we stand with the Holy Father and the Holy Roman Catholic Church. Or will we rise up as did the parishioners at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts and shout "Crucify Him!"? Will we remain fortes in fide or will we desert Our Lord Who alone has the words which lead to eternal life? (John 6: 68).
There can be no sitting on the fence. We must choose between the Mystical Body of Christ and the Mystical Body of Antichrist.
Related reading here.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Message to Father James Scahill: a humble mea culpa and not an arrogant vestra culpa is necessary...
Father James Scahill of Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts has just said, "My life's purpose is to celebrate the teachings of Christ but in order to do that - in order to rebuild his Church - we must acknowledge and atone for our mistakes." See here:
http://stmichaelsel.org/PDFS/FrScahill%20OpeningStatement%204-18-10.pdf
It would appear, then, that Father Scahill has failed in his life's purpose. For he has referred to the Mystical Body of Christ as "insidiously evil." The Church which is the unblemished bride of the unblemished lamb.
Father Scahill says he wants to help "rebuild the Church." He can best accomplish this by rebuilding his own faith life. Rather than arrogantly issuing a vestra culpa (your fault), Father Scahill would do well to issue a humble mea culpa (my fault). His failure to notify the proper authorities with regard to Father Richard Lavigne's "bothering children" and having sleepovers at the rectory has been documented. His public calumny against Pope Benedict XVI constitutes [objectively speaking] a mortal sin. His reference to the unblemished Church as "insidiously evil" constitutes an act of blasphemy.
In Catholic moral theology,blasphemy, which can be either directly against God or indirectly against Him by blaspheming the Church or her saints, is a sin against the virtue of religion; Aquinas terms it a sin against faith. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (which Fr. Scahill should familiarize himself with) teaches us that: "Blasphemy is directly opposed to the second commandment. It consists in uttering against God - inwardly or outwardly - words of hatred, reproach, or defiance; in speaking ill of God; in failing in respect toward him in one's speech; in misusing God's name. St. James condemns those 'who blaspheme that honorable name [of Jesus] by which you are called.' The prohibition of blasphemy extends to language against Christ's Church, the saints, and sacred things..." (2148).
It is admirable to want to "rebuild the Church." But one must always begin an authentic reform by reforming one's own life. One cannot, after all, pass along to others faith, hope and charity when one does not possess these theological virtues himself.
http://stmichaelsel.org/PDFS/FrScahill%20OpeningStatement%204-18-10.pdf
It would appear, then, that Father Scahill has failed in his life's purpose. For he has referred to the Mystical Body of Christ as "insidiously evil." The Church which is the unblemished bride of the unblemished lamb.
Father Scahill says he wants to help "rebuild the Church." He can best accomplish this by rebuilding his own faith life. Rather than arrogantly issuing a vestra culpa (your fault), Father Scahill would do well to issue a humble mea culpa (my fault). His failure to notify the proper authorities with regard to Father Richard Lavigne's "bothering children" and having sleepovers at the rectory has been documented. His public calumny against Pope Benedict XVI constitutes [objectively speaking] a mortal sin. His reference to the unblemished Church as "insidiously evil" constitutes an act of blasphemy.
In Catholic moral theology,blasphemy, which can be either directly against God or indirectly against Him by blaspheming the Church or her saints, is a sin against the virtue of religion; Aquinas terms it a sin against faith. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (which Fr. Scahill should familiarize himself with) teaches us that: "Blasphemy is directly opposed to the second commandment. It consists in uttering against God - inwardly or outwardly - words of hatred, reproach, or defiance; in speaking ill of God; in failing in respect toward him in one's speech; in misusing God's name. St. James condemns those 'who blaspheme that honorable name [of Jesus] by which you are called.' The prohibition of blasphemy extends to language against Christ's Church, the saints, and sacred things..." (2148).
It is admirable to want to "rebuild the Church." But one must always begin an authentic reform by reforming one's own life. One cannot, after all, pass along to others faith, hope and charity when one does not possess these theological virtues himself.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Parishioners stand behind dissident priest Father James Scahill who calumniated Pope Benedict XVI
WWLP 22News is reporting that parishioners at Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts gave dissident priest Father James Scahill a standing ovation after he gave his homily yesterday, the first since he called upon Pope Benedict XVI to step down. Even though Fr. Scahill has calumniated the Holy Father, even though he has referred to the Mystical Body of Christ as "insidiously evil," even though he knew about Father Richard Lavigne molesting childen and didn't act on it, he has his supporters.
This should not come as a surprise. Even within the Catholic Church, charismatic individuals can inspire a cult-following. Religious communities (and a parish is a religious community) can fall victim to the cult phenomenon. In his book "Cults, Sects, and the New Age," Father James LeBar, who has served as a Consultant on Cults for the Archdiocese of New York, notes, "...to be sure,..cultic behavior is possible at any time in any place. It has also been demonstrated that some legitimate actions of Catholic Church groups can be carried to excess, so that the cult label is applied....Church leaders must be vigilant to make sure that cultic practices do not creep into otherwise legitimate groups." (p. 99).
As I noted in a previous post, the Catholic Church is the Mystical Body of Christ. This is the authentic and authoritative teaching of Vatican II: "The head of this body is Christ. He is the image of the invisible God and in him all things came into being. He is before all creatures and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body which is the Church." (Lumen Gentium, No. 7). But Father Scahill has referred to Christ's Body as "insidiously evil." This statement constitutes heresy* as it is a clear statement accusing Christ Jesus Himself of being "evil." Heresy is the post-baptismal denial or doubt by a Catholic of any truth that must be believed as part of Divine Revelation (See Canon 751 of the Code of Canon Law). Heresy, if formal, is the deliberate resistance to God's authority, punishable by automatic excommunication (See Canon 1364).
Competent ecclesiastical authorities need to initiate an investigation into the ministry of Father James Scahill and the parish he serves. Let's all pray that this matter will be treated with the seriousness it deserves. It is not enough to call Father Scahill's remarks "unfortunate." They are more than that. They are heretical.
* "The Church...is held, as a matter of faith, to be unfailingly holy. This is because Christ, the Son of God, who with the Father and the Spirit is hailed as 'alone holy,' loved the Church as his Bride, giving himself up for her so as to sanctify her; he joined her to himself as his body and endowed her with the gift of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God. The Church, then, is 'the holy People of God,' and her members are called 'saints.'" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 823).
This should not come as a surprise. Even within the Catholic Church, charismatic individuals can inspire a cult-following. Religious communities (and a parish is a religious community) can fall victim to the cult phenomenon. In his book "Cults, Sects, and the New Age," Father James LeBar, who has served as a Consultant on Cults for the Archdiocese of New York, notes, "...to be sure,..cultic behavior is possible at any time in any place. It has also been demonstrated that some legitimate actions of Catholic Church groups can be carried to excess, so that the cult label is applied....Church leaders must be vigilant to make sure that cultic practices do not creep into otherwise legitimate groups." (p. 99).
As I noted in a previous post, the Catholic Church is the Mystical Body of Christ. This is the authentic and authoritative teaching of Vatican II: "The head of this body is Christ. He is the image of the invisible God and in him all things came into being. He is before all creatures and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body which is the Church." (Lumen Gentium, No. 7). But Father Scahill has referred to Christ's Body as "insidiously evil." This statement constitutes heresy* as it is a clear statement accusing Christ Jesus Himself of being "evil." Heresy is the post-baptismal denial or doubt by a Catholic of any truth that must be believed as part of Divine Revelation (See Canon 751 of the Code of Canon Law). Heresy, if formal, is the deliberate resistance to God's authority, punishable by automatic excommunication (See Canon 1364).
Competent ecclesiastical authorities need to initiate an investigation into the ministry of Father James Scahill and the parish he serves. Let's all pray that this matter will be treated with the seriousness it deserves. It is not enough to call Father Scahill's remarks "unfortunate." They are more than that. They are heretical.
* "The Church...is held, as a matter of faith, to be unfailingly holy. This is because Christ, the Son of God, who with the Father and the Spirit is hailed as 'alone holy,' loved the Church as his Bride, giving himself up for her so as to sanctify her; he joined her to himself as his body and endowed her with the gift of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God. The Church, then, is 'the holy People of God,' and her members are called 'saints.'" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 823).
Monday, April 12, 2010
Father James Scahill accuses the Holy Father of being untruthful...
More hypocrisy from the liberal corner of the Catholic Church.
Fr. James Scahill, pastor of Saint Michael's Parish in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, used his pulpit yesterday to call upon Pope Benedict XVI to step down. Father Scahill accused the Holy Father of not being truthful but failed to back up his wild accusations with anything of substance. In other words, Father Scahill is merely regurgitating what he's heard from the liberal media or other anti-Catholic sources.
Interestingly, Father Scahill has received the "priest of integrity" award from the radical dissent group "Voice of the Faithful" - VOTF, an organization which has been referred to by many Bishops as "anti-Catholic." See here. One is known by the company one keeps. But enough of Father Scahill's fantasy. His groundless accusations are a matter for the Catholic League to address.
But I am reminded of a pro-life prophet I defended some two years ago at this Blog. Remember Deacon Tom McDonnell from the Diocese of Buffalo, New York who was criticized by his own Bishop, Edward Kmiec, and many throughout the Catholic media (mostly those in liberal circles) - but sadly also Deal Hudson - for having the courage to correct the errors of U.S. Representative Brian Higgins (for his pro-abortion positions) from the pulpit? Bishop Kmiec issued a statement saying that, "The pulpit is not the appropriate place for confronting a member of the congregation..." I refuted this silly notion here.
Why are the Catholic media not saying the same thing now? If the pulpit is "not the appropriate place" for confronting a Culture of Death politician, should it be used to attack the Vicar of Christ with false accusations?
Anyone?
Related reading here.
Washington Post: Pope did not impede defrocking of priest.
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