Tradicat

+ JMJ      Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has passed away, may he rest in peace.   This will undoubtably cause much debate over whether his was a good or bad pontificate.  However, our opinions will not be weighed with the sight of God who sees not just the action, but the intent. P^3  Image from Rorate https://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2022/12/thank-you-joseph-ratzinger-well-always.html http://www.lmschairman.org/2022/12/farewell-pope-benedict-official.html  

 + JMJ   By Wilfredo Rafael Rodriguez Hernandez - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95206525    I don't understand why they're afraid of this Mass!    I remember clearly speaking in a dim parking lot on a cool November evening with a priest (RIP) for the diocese.  The local bishop had just refused permission for the Tridentine Mass requested by a group under the auspices of Summorum Pontificum. He stood there and said "I don't understand why they're afraid of this Mass!". The Bishop had made clear that if he proceeded with publicly offering the Mass, he services in the diocese would no longer be required and he would have to return to his order's Mother House.   He acquiesced to the bishop's order, however a few weeks later Universae Ecclesiae was promulgated and within two weeks we attended a meeting with the Bishop and the 'group' that had made the request and ... been in discussions with a Canon Lawyer to begin t

 + JMJ In my opinion, for all his faults, with Summorum Pontificum (link) and Universae Ecclesiae (link) Benedict XVI, did more for the Church than any other post-conciliar pontiff.  Even as Pope Francis attempts to undo this work, we Catholics have a duty and obligation to pray that Benedict has a good death and for his salvation. P^3    Source: BBC News (and others)  Other references https://aleteia.org/2022/12/28/vatican-spokesman-benedicts-condition-has-worsened-in-last-few-hours/     By Paul Kirby BBC News Pope Francis has said former Pope Benedict XVI is very ill and he has asked pilgrims at the Vatican to pray for him. Benedict, 95, became the first leader of the Catholic Church to stand down in 600 years in 2013, citing advanced age. At the end of the Pope's final audience of the year, he asked people to "pray a special prayer for Pope Emeritus Benedict". The Vatican then said the ex-Pope's health had worsened in recent hours. "The situation at the mom

 + JMJ     Wishing you a Merry (or Happy) Christmas and a Happy and Holy New Year! P^3 P.S. I'll be on a blogging holiday for a while!

 + JMJ    I don't think this is what she had in mind ... Don't lose your sense of humour, if someone else finds it, they'll never return it! P^3

   + JMJ Locus of Control refers to an individual's perception about the underlying main causes of events in his/her life. When you failed a test who did you think was responsible?  Was it yourself for not studying or do you blame the teacher because you feel the test was too hard? How you answer this and similar questions helps to define your 'Locus of Control.  In general, it seems to be psychologically healthy to perceive that one has control over those things which one is capable of influencing. With control comes responsibility.     So this leads to the concept of Divine Providence.  God arranges events etc for us to the best advantage. However, He does not take away our free-will to make decisions counter to the His Will. As mentioned previously, ultimately our decisions are our own, influenced by Grace, but still free.  So the next time you want to blame Pope Francis or someone else, think about what decisions you made, because I doubt Pope Francis made you do it. We don

 + JMJ     https://despair.com/products/mistakes?variant=2457302467 At some point in a competition, exhaustion starts to become an internal competition between the body and the will.  The same can be said for the continual struggle to be a good Catholic in this world.  I know, I know ... there are millions of Catholics who are not SSPX or even Traditional who are "good Catholics".  The key difference is how much they care about what has happened over the last hundred years.  Yes, you read that correctly. The fight for the soul of Catholicity started well before the Second Vatican Council.  That was when the closeted Modernists came out of their respective closets.  Since then, for those aware of the conflict, it has been a continual battle against the World, Flesh and Devil. The problem is that, if you just pour yourself into the battle without a strong protected supply chain (see list) then you will run out of energy for the fight, become discouraged and eventually exhaustip

   + JMJ For reference I have created a summary Map for the First Friday (Sacred Heart) and Saturday Devotions (Immaculate Heart) devotion.  P^3 First Friday Overview In 1688, during an apparition to Saint Margaret Mary, Our Lord Jesus Christ promised the grace of the Holy Death to those who would receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of the month, nine months in a row. This was called The Great Promise. Reparatory Communions on the First Fridays of the month: The Twelfth Promise was inserted in full in the Bull of Canonization of St. Margaret Mary on May 13, 1920, by Pope Benedict XV. He thus wanted to encourage the practice of reparatory communions on the nine first Fridays of the month, in honour of the Sacred Heart. Promises I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life. I will establish peace in their homes. I will comfort them in all their afflictions. I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all, in death. I will bestow abundant blessings up

 + JMJ  So - this is an important point in this crisis of the Church - the Seal of Confession is now grounds for prosecution and therefore persecution. All that has to happen is someone to 'fake' a confession and see if it is reported to the authorities. P^3   Courtesy of FSSPX.News Australia: Law Against Secrecy of Confession Takes Effect November 27, 2022 Source: fsspx.news     Western Australian Parliament The law applies to Western Australia, the largest of the Australian states. Entering into force on November 1, 2022, it obliges ministers of religion to report all cases of child abuse, including those for which the information obtained would have been within the framework of the Sacrament of Penance. These changes are part of new laws introduced by the government of Mark McGowan, currently Premier of Western Australia. However, this law was passed in October of 20

+ JMJ     There is a lot of confusion these days. Things within the Church are lacking order (disordered), difficult to understand (obfuscation reigns), and lack clear distinctions. This is a fertile field for disagreements and conflict. So what is a person to do?     First pray, a strong spiritual life (not a scrupulous one) will of great aid in keeping a broad perspective on the events, actions and words of others.   Second, go to the source documents on what the Church Teaches and try to understand what they contain.    Third, hold judgement in check until you've been able to critically review the event, action and words.  It is highly unlikely that these things that happen in the Church require immediate action. Most require a carefully considered and measured action. Fourth, learn how to argue in a manner that is useful and not inflammatory. Trying to outshout someone else isn't very useful.  I recently watched a debate with Jordan Peterson and Cathy Newman that provides v

+ JMJ  A decade ago, in the height of the 'will the SSPX be regularized' discussion, I was called many things by denizens of various forums (Cathinfo, Ignis Ardens and Angel Queen) this included Mezingite and Tragical.  Periodically, I was thanked for being a voice of reason amongst all the screaming of the 'resistors' warning of dire consequences if the SSPX accepted a no-compromise regularization. When that compromise failed to materialize at their magic words, they concocted examples of a compromise within the SSPX ranks.  One resistor even wrote a 'book' of the 101 compromises - including a reference from this blog. That all seemed so important back then.  I'm a decade older and, while not regretting the combat and spiritual fatigue that it engendered, it was a great learning opportunity.  This set the stage for in person argumentation - I got a lot of practice there and had led me to today's thought. Start now, tomorrow is a wish, not a promise. The

+ JMJ Introduction What are the extents and limits of the Commandment to Honour Thy Father and Thy Mother? As children get older and they become adults, there is bound to be a transition in the relationship between themselves and their parents.   While some may experience this earlier in the teenage years, from a moral point of view, the real onset where it matters is when they reach adulthood. Understanding the context and obligations in the two states (emancipated vs unemancipated) is probably going to be an important factor in how smoothly the transition occurs. I’m going to undertake this study using three resources: Catechism of the Council of Trent (aka The Roman Catechism) – ~1562 Translation 1923 based on translations from 1902, 1907 and 1914 Handbook of Moral Theology (Fr. Dominc Prummer OP) – 1955 Moral Theology (Frs. McHugh and Callan) – 1958 Discussion The first question to resolve is what does it mean to Honour someone? To honour i

 + JMJ  This seems to be a natural follow-up to "What is a Woman?". However, much of the article could apply equally to Woman such as: Man is not a body plus a soul-which would make of him two individuals; but a body that is what it is (namely, a human body) by reason of its union with the soul. Frankly, I find that the discussion on Woman was more useful for today. I will schedule this for posting, but will update when I find a reference that is more useful in defining 'What is a Man?" from a Catholic perspective. P^3 Source: Catholic Encyclopedia   (Anglo-Saxon man =a person, human being; supposed root man =to think; Ger., Mann , Mensch ). I. THE NATURE OF MAN According to the common definition of the School, Man is a rational animal. This signifies no more than that, in the system of classification and definition shown in the Arbor Porphyriana , man is a substance, corporeal, living, sentient, and rational. It is a logical definition, having reference to a

 + JMJ  I was recently shown a video titled: "What is a Woman" that went to various people to ask this question. Finally, a woman gave a straight and simple answer: "A woman is an adult female". Some people would be tempted to ask, "What is a female"?  Scientifically, the answer is a female is someone who has two 'X' chromasomes This got me thinking about how some things that seem to simple can be made complex in later times and I wondered if the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia would have articles on 'Woman' and 'Man'. I think that the article is interesting in its definition of life-task: As an individual woman has the high destiny obligatory upon every human being of acquiring moral perfection. As a member of the human race woman is called in union with man to represent humanity and to develop it on all sides. Beyond this, the article provides some insights to what were the main issues surrounding Women at that time and perhaps some ke