What Does The Prayer Really Say?
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On CNN’s "Late Edition" Donna Brazile said this to host Wolf Blitzer about Gov. Sarah Palin.

BLITZER: Let me bring Donna in on the whole issue of [Sen. Obama] being a community organizer. Now we know a lot of those community organizers are in the big urban areas and there are some suggesting that when they—when the Republicans, whether Giuliani or Sarah Palin went after Obama for being a community organizer there was a racial overtone there. Do you believe that?

BRAZILE: First of all, I don’t think they understand the role of a community organizer, often to help people who are in distress, they’ve lost their jobs, they’ve lost their homes, they’ve lost their health care. And for many of us, it’s a time honored tradition to give back, especially those who have been rewarded with so much.

The Bible says to whom much is given much is required and it comes out of that tradition. So it was insulting to see both, you know, the governor as well as Mayor Giuliani criticize people. There’s some on the Internet now that Jesus was a community organizer, Pontius Pilate was a governor. And perhaps they should understand the role of a community organizer, do help people in distress.

Hmmmm…

In interesting news, Denver’s Archbishop Charles Chaput’s book Render Unto Caesar: Serving the Nation by Living our Catholic Beliefs in Political Life is on the New York Times Beseller List at #27.

I wonder if you readers can help push it upward? 

I got a question by e-mail:

I’m a new subscriber to your blog, so naturally I thought of you after a recent conversation with our parochial vicar. He does not give blessings to children during communion. When my 3 year old asked why he didn’t receive a blessing Fr. M said (and I’m paraphrasing), that by not touching him, he "does not get host crumbs on your skin." I can respect the rationale behind his decision.

But when I asked, "why not just motion the sign of the cross and bless them?" He claimed that, "technically priests are not supposed to give multiple blessings during mass – that the blessing at dismissal should be the only one." This brought my next question, "then why do you place the host in parishioners hands (our family receives by mouth, but we are the minority), since the crumbs are bound to spill – not to mention all of the disastrous possibilities of giving someone the host?" He replied, "I know, and I feel strongly that people should receive in the mouth."

I felt a bit let down. I’m not sure if I should be offended – he won’t bless kids but he’ll place the host in someone’s hands. Why not stand up then and insist that parishioners at his mass receive only by mouth (since he’s calling the shots anyway). I probably wouldn’t be all worked up about it if it wasn’t for our other pastor and eucharistic ministers who DO bless the children.

What is your take on blessing children?

First, the people who help distribute Communion are not "Eucharistic Ministers".  They are "Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion".   But let’s move on.

The priest is correct is saying that the moment for blessing people, other than the deacon about the read the Gospel, is at the end of Holy Mass.  You yourself referred to this moment saying: "He does not give blessings to children during communion".

Communion time is for just that… Communion.

I wonder sometimes about this practice.  

Perhaps it evolved because people were going forward who knew they shouldn’t receive, but were embarassed not to go foward.  Getting rid of row by row Communion would help with that, as would reviving the three hour Eucharistic fast.

Perhaps it evolved because children fussed that "they didn’t get something too".  So, people came up with something for them to get.  That of course would have come from parents always bringing all their children forward.  

Once upon a time it might have been that many people could more easily get to Mass even by walking, and mom could watch the kids while dad went to Mass, and vice versa.  So.. there weren’t as many small children at Mass.  With the advent of travelling across town to a Mass you "like", parents have to bring their children along… everyone goes to Mass and… well… you see.

I think people should ask priests for blessings… outside of Holy Mass.  Holy Mass ends with the priest’s blessing, in the proper moment. 

 

Let Communion time be Communion time.

Finally, I think the priest’s argument was not very good: I don’t bless because of particles of the Host… etc..  But then he gives Communion in the hand.

Two things.  First, it is an unhappy fact that the law allows people to receive in the hand.  Father may not deny them Communion simply because they stick their hands out, unless there is danger of profanation.

However, nothing in the rubrics of Mass or the Church’s laws say that priests should give a blessing at Communion.

Vice Presidential candidate Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE) was on Meet The Press today with Tom Brokaw.

Two weeks ago, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was on MTP and committed scandal on a grand scale by her obfuscation of what the Church’s teaching is about the beginning of human life.  Also, she said that it shouldn’t make a difference when life started, insofar as abortion is concerned.  She and her spokesman later referred to ancient debates and quoted Augustine, etc. etc., despite the Church’s clear and well-known teaching about the sanctity of human life and abortion.

Now Catholic pro-abortion Senator and candidate Biden steps into the cage. Brokaw through him the necessary knuckler.

Here is the transcript and link to video.  My emphases and comments.

MR. BROKAW: You’re a lifetime communicant in the Catholic Church. You’ve talked often about your faith and the, and the strength of your feelings about your faith.

SEN. BIDEN: Actually, I haven’t talked often about my faith.  I seldom talk about my faith. [Ironically, when he is next asked about Sen. Lieberman, he says "We Catholics believe in redemption".  I think he might talk about it fairly often in some way or another.]  Other people talk about my faith.

MR. BROKAW: I’ll give you an opportunity to talk about it now.

SEN. BIDEN: Yeah.

MR. BROKAW: Two weeks ago I interviewed Senator Nancy Pelosi—she’s the speaker of the House, obviously—when she was in Denver. When Barack Obama appeared before Rick Warren, he was asked a simple question: When does life begin? And he said at that time that it was above his pay grade. That was the essence of his question. When I asked the speaker what advice she would give him about when life began, she said the church has struggled with this issue for a long time, especially in the last 50 years or so. Her archbishop and others across the country had a very strong refutation to her views on all this; I guess the strongest probably came from Edward Cardinal Egan, who’s the Archbishop of New York. He said, "Anyone who dares to defend that they may be legitimately killed because another human being `chooses’ to do so or for any other equally ridiculous reason should not be providing leadership in a civilized democracy worthy of the name." Those are very strong words. If Senator Obama comes to you and says, "When does life begin? Help me out here, Joe," as a Roman Catholic, what would you say to him?

SEN. BIDEN: I’d say, "Look, I know when it begins for me."  [When it begins… for him...] It’s a personal and private issue.  [Okay… for me, Sen. Biden, it begins, say… just after your next calendar birthday, whatever that may be.]   For me, as a Roman Catholic, I’m prepared to accept the teachings of my church. [Okay.] But let me tell you. There are an awful lot of people of great confessional faiths—Protestants, Jews, Muslims and others – who have a different view.  They believe in God as strongly as I do. They’re intensely as religious as I am religious. They believe in their faith and they believe in human life, and they have differing views as to when life – I’m prepared as a matter of faith to accept that life begins at the moment of conception. But that is my judgment. For me to impose that judgment on everyone else who is equally and maybe even more devout than I am seems to me is inappropriate in a pluralistic society. [WHOA!  Wait a minute.  In a pluralistic society people can go to the polls and vote for representatives who will legislate and deliberate in a way that is harmonious with their views and the common good.  Who wins, wins.  It is not an imposition of a private judgment.]  And I know you get the push back, "Well, what about fascism?" Everybody, you know, you going to say fascism’s all right? Fascism isn’t a matter of faith. No decent religious person thinks fascism is a good idea. 

MR. BROKAW: But if you, you believe that life begins at conception, and you’ve also voted for abortion rights...  [In other words, you believe one thing and do another in a matter of great private and social consequence.]

SEN. BIDEN: No, what a voted against curtailing the right, criminalizing abortion. I voted against telling everyone else in the country that they have to accept my religiously based view that it’s a moment of conception. [First, you don’t have to depend only on religious views, on the teachings of the Church.  You can appeal as well to natural law and, simply put, common sense.  The other part of this how religious views are hereby to be shoved out of public discourse, out of the public square.  Religion is a matter of the private, not the public, sphere.]  There is a debate in our church, as Cardinal Egan would acknowledge, that’s existed. [Okay… what the heck was that.  There is a debate that existed.  But that debate doesn’t exist now.  This is not the 5th or even the 13th century.]  Back in "Summa Theologia," when Thomas Aquinas [+1274] wrote "Summa Theologia," [Summa Theologiae] he said there was no - it didn’t occur until quickening, 40 days after conception. [It is hard to beleive that, after all the holy hell raised in the last two weeks, Sen. Biden could put his foot so firmly in it, again.  For most liberal, progressivist Catholics, the history of the Church didn’t begin until Pope John XXIII opened the Second Vatican Council.  Now, all of a sudden, these CHINOs are quoting Augustine and Aquinas.  Do they seriously believe that the Catholic Church is debating whether or not "quickening" takes place at 30 days for males and 90 days for females?  Has Sen. Biden not read a single bit of what bishops have clarified in the last 14 days?  I think people should send him copies.]  How am I going out and tell you, if you or anyone else that you must insist upon my view that is based on a matter of faith? And that’s the reason I haven’t. But then again, I also don’t support a lot of other things. I don’t support public, public funding. I don’t, because that flips the burden. That’s then telling me I have to accept a different view. [So, it is okay to resist it when it is a matter of money, but not just because it is human life, as he says he believes it is.] This is a matter between a person’s God, however they believe in God, their doctor and themselves in what is always a – and what we’re going to be spending our time doing is making sure that we reduce considerably the amount of abortions that take place by providing the care, the assistance and the encouragement for people to be able to carry to term and to raise their children.  [Hmmm… :carry to term" ... is this a slight modification of the "provide contraception" under the guise of health care?]

 

What is so disturbing about this is the Senators eagerness to shove religion entirely out of the public square.

The problem is… what then is the basis of desiring to lower the number of abortions or help women carry children to term?  What is the basis of any of the social agenda they might have?  If there is nothing of religious conviction to it, then it must be some natural law basis for the agenda.  But if you can apply natural law to other social issues, then you can apply it to abortion as well, and not say you are imposing religious views.

No… his answer is just a slippery dodge without any foundation in truth.

Secondly, Senator Biden – absolutely incredibly – tracks back to the debates of the past about the "quickening" of the foetus, when the human soul is infused… whatever.  The mind reels. 

Regardless of what theologians said, and their teachings are the equivalent of the Church’s teaching, they always affirmed that abortion is gravely wrong.

And will Senator Biden, since he is living in the 13th century now, also debate with us such questions as whether women are fully human?  After all, those questions were raised!  Or how about… since the ancients wondered about quickening… do females come to be quickened only after 90 days? 

Hey!  There is a great question in the Summa Theologiae about whether heretics ought to be put to death.  Aquinas says, well… yes… we can burn them at the stake, but… we should remember mercy.  

Is Sen. Biden okay with that?

WDTPRS: Senator, since you are comfortable with a 13th century understanding of embryology and since you seem not to need to take modern pronouncements into consideration, what do you say to those who want Speaker Pelosi, such a powerful public individual, and possibily a heretic, to be burned at the stake if she doesn’t change her views?

BIDEN: Well… that’s outrageous!  She is a great civil servant!  What … what… who would suggest that could ever be tolerated?

WDTPRS: But lot’s of people have strong religious convictions that that is the right thing to do.  Take a look at Summa Theologiae II. q.10 a.3…. I happen to have a copy here….  And may I remind you that St. Augustine argued that heretics and schismatics should be compelled by force to reenter communion with the Church?  Speaker Pelosi quotes Augustine.  You quote Aquinas.   

So, Senator, if Archbishops Wuerl and Niederauer say Speaker Pelosi can’t receive Communion, will you advocate the use of force to compell Speaker Pelosi to alter her position or, barring that, she should go to the stake?

BIDEN: This is absurd!  What about the Vatican Council’s document on religious liberty?

WDTPRS: What about the Vatican Council’s Gaudium et spes 51, which calls abortion a heinous crime?

BIDEN: That’s different…. that’s …. that’s…. I don’t want to impose my views on anyone.  I don’t talk about my faith.

 

 

I take note of a scrap of video posted at Creative Minority Report taken from Gov. Sarah Palin’s speech at the GOP Convention.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx5TrD0mHws]

 

I got word that an emeritus  President of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei", Antonio Card. Innocenti, has died.

May he rest in peace.

He was 93 years of age.

From Levabo, which recently gave us another little tune in Latin a while back.

Thanks!

One of my best friends will go to the proseminary in Novosibirsk soon. And what I’m doing? I write the new Latin verse. More, it is a song. Melody – "Greensleeves"

In hospita Siberia
te vocant, frater, studia.
In muris proseminarii
expectant Jesuites.

Chorus:
"Dic nigrum, rubrum fac" -
memento, frater, verba haec.
Usque ad tuum obitum
dic nigrum et fac rubrum.

Persolves horas canonicas,
ad Missam quoque servies,
disce, ora et labora,
sed noli hoc oblivisci:

Chorus:
"Dic nigrum, rubrum fac" -
memento, frater, verba haec.
Usque ad tuum obitum
dic nigrum et fac rubrum.

Et quando eris presbyter
et celebrabis primitiam,
manus tuas deosculans
cum reverentia dicam:

Chorus:
"Dic nigrum, rubrum fac" -
memento, pater, verba haec.
Usque ad tuum obitum
dic nigrum et fac rubrum.

The American Papist has been keeping and undated list of US Bishops who have issued statements about remarks made by Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Meet The Press. 

Speaker Pelosi effectively said that the Church does say when human life begins and, even if we knew, it shouldn’t make a difference in the free choice of abortion.

We need some unity amongst bloggers to keep us all up to date on what is going on.  We need to educate people about the issues.

Speaker Pelosi made scandalous statements on a grand scale, on one of the most important TV interview programs in the world.  The consequences must be public.

Here is the complete list of American bishops who have responded to Nancy Pelosi’s comments so far:

   1.      Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver was the first American bishop to respond
   2.      Bishop James Conley, his auxiliary, joined him
   3.      Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington DC responded twice, first in a press release and second in a statement to The Hill. He has also appeared on Fox News, I am told.
   4.      Cardinal Justin Regali of Philadelphia, chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities, issued this statement through the USCCB website…
   5.      Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, chairman of the Committee on Doctrine, joined him
   6.      Cardinal Edward Egan of New York publised a strongly worded statement of his own
   7.      Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo issued a letter correcting Pelosi’s claims
   8.      Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh
   9.      Bishop Michael Sheridan of Colorado Springs have chimed-in
  10.      Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio, CNA reports has added his voice …
  11.     Bishop Oscar Cantu, his auxiliary bishop, has joined him
  12.      Bishop William Murphy of Rockville has published an extensive letter
  13.      Bishop Edward Slatter of Tulsa adds himself to the list
  14.      Bishop Kevin Farrell of Dallas has joined the USCCB’s efforts
  15.      Bishop Gregory Aymond of Austin is on-board
  16.      Bishop James Slattery of Tulsa has a detailed response
  17.      Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston mentions the USCCB on his blog
  18.      Bishop Thomas Wenski of Orlando has written at length
  19.      Archbishop John Nienstedt of Saint Paul/Minneapolis challenges Pelosi’s statement
  20.      Cardinal Francis George of Chicago, President of the US Bishops, has weighed-in
  21.      Bishop Robert Vasa of Baker, OR publishes in the Catholic Sentinel
  22.      Bishop Jerome Listecki of La Crosse, WI responds in a word document
  23.      Bishop Joseph Gossman of Raleigh, N C responds to the misrepresentation
  24.      Bishop Richard Lennon of Cleveland, OH will comment in his September 5th column (PDF)
  25.      Bishop Ralph Nickless of Sioux City, IA has one of the very best responses I’ve read
  26.      Archbishop George Niederauer of San Francisco has invited Pelosi to a "conversation"

I am getting strange and even hysterical e-mail from quite a few people about VP candidate Sarah Palin being an "apostate Catholic". 

"BUT FATHER! BUT FATHERFATHERFATHER! WHY aren’t YOU paying ATTENTION to THIS???!?".

Some e-mail is reasonable and mature.  Some includes lots of SHOUTING and UNDERLINING. 

Tip for the future:  If you write e-mail like that to me, I delete it, mostly unread.

However, about Sarah Palin as "apostate", ...

To my knowledge Gov. Palin was baptized in the Catholic Church, but her parents left the Catholic Church for some Protestant sect when she was around 12 years old.

I don’t hold twelve-year-old children accountable for the actions of their parents.

Would that be even slightly rational?

I understand she attends a non-denominational Christian church of some sort.

"Apostasy" is accomplished by a formal act, not by being taken away from the Church as a child and then growing up in a Christian sect. 

I wish she were a Catholic!  I wish everyone were Catholic!  But she’s not, and it seems not to be her fault.

Some who are Catholic really aren’t… and in the case of some politicians that is their fault.

Until it is revealed that Gov. Palin has made some sort of formal act of apostasy from the Catholic Church or done something anti-Catholic, I think you ought to breathe deeply and regularly, trying breathing into a paper bag, and maintain some control.

And stop shouting at me about it. 

Following on various entries concerning ad orientem worship, and my request that people post their experiences of Holy Mass celebrated ad orientem.... Fr. John Trigilio now posts this, about implementing ad orientem worship in his parish.

My emphases and comments.

Tonight was the maiden voyage, so to speak, and the comments after Mass were overwhelmingly POSITIVE. In fact, not one complaint and only compliments on the REVERENCE of the Mass, which is accentuated, I believe, by celebrating AD ORIENTEM. I also preached on PROPER FRATERNAL CORRECTION which means people MUST speak to me PRIVATELY IN PERSON if they have any complaints, problems, questions or issues we can discuss them confidentially and charitably. I told them if they choose to whisper behind people’s backs and gossip, then they need to go to confession. Gossip is a sin and the Catechism spells out three bad fruits of gossip: rash judgment, calumny (slander) and detraction. Too many of my colleagues are afraid of celebrating AD ORIENTEM because of gossip and the infamous rumor mill. [I suppose that is true in many cases.]  Best to be out in the open with the people and they with their pastor. I told my people I am more than happy to explain the liturgical and theological reasons for what we do as Roman Catholics, including all legitimate options. BTW, people loved the analogy of the airplane pilot and the bus driver. [Good tip for for priests.] Are they turning their backs on the passengers OR are they facing the same direction as everyone else in the hope of arriving at the same destination?

 

Thank you Fr. Trigilio for your confident work to deepen the participation of your people at Holy Mass.  You are playing your part in the Benedictine "Marshall Plan".

UPDATE:

This is from Fr. Trigilio’s site The Black Biretta

FROM THE PASTOR:

Another aspect of our human life is the work we do in sacred worship. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is also called the Sacred Liturgy. His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI has set the stage for a renewal and renaissance of Catholic worship. This was the intention and objective of the Council Fathers at Vatican II. As mentioned before, we will be learning and using some Latin for common parts of the Mass on one weekend a month. The first Sunday (and evening before) in Marysville and the last Sunday (and evening before) in Duncannon, we will be using the Kyrie (Greek: Lord Have Mercy), Gloria (Latin: Glory to God), Sanctus (Latin: Holy, Holy), Pater Noster (Latin: Our Father), and Agnus Dei (Latin: Lamb of God). They are found in #862-869 of the large Music Issue of Today’s Missal. ‘Catholic’ comes from the Greek word katholikos which means ‘universal’ One obvious and poignant way to demonstrate the universality of our church is to use a universal language as well as our own vernacular.

If you watch the TV Mass on EWTN, you will be familiar with these. Even though only once a month, we will become more comfortable and familiar with our rich patrimony. Eastern Orthodox Americans speak fluent English yet use plenty of Greek in their weekly worship just as Jewish Americans use Hebrew in theirs. Latin is the official and traditional language of the Roman Catholic Church and coexists with the vernacular.

Once a month we will also utilize one of the options afforded the celebrant. Every priest is allowed to celebrate Mass facing the people (versus populum) or facing the Tabernacle (versus apsidem). I will do the latter once a month so you can appreciate and experience one of our beautiful customs going back to antiquity. Originally, all priests had to celebrate the Sacred Liturgy AD ORIENTEM, i.e., facing east. Churches were literally built so that the priest AND congregation both faced EAST during public worship. The reason was that the sun rose each day in the east. The Son of God rose from the dead on Easter morning, when the sun rose in the East. Hence, Christians were keen to respect that by facing east when they worshipped their Lord and Savior. Churches were built from Ancient to Mediaeval times facing east. The priest was not seen as ‘turning his back’ on the congregation, rather, BOTH priest and congregation were facing east TOGETHER. Does the bus driver or airplane pilot have his/her back toward the passengers OR rather is he/she facing the same direction of the destination everyone hopes to arrive at?

One of the dangers of exclusively celebrating Mass versus populum (facing the people) is that the Celebrant may be tempted to see himself as performing for the congregation. He is not on stage as an actor nor is a director or conductor guiding those in the audience. He is a LEADER of prayer and leaders POINT in the right direction. Great Generals led their armies in battle and both faced the same direction to victory. When the priest and the people both face the same direction, they are also doing the same thing, i.e., worshiping God.

The Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches, the Byzantine Catholic Churches, and many Lutheran and Anglican churches have worship services where the celebrant faces east with the congregation. Where it is geographically impossible to face east (ad orientem), the custom arose for the priest and people to face the Tabernacle (versus apsidem) since that is where the Body & Blood, Soul & Divinity of Christ was always present. Facing the Blessed Sacrament was in essence facing east since the east symbolized the Rising SON (and not just the rising SUN). Therefore, once a month, I shall celebrate Mass facing the Tabernacle, just as you do every time you sit in the pews. WE will be facing the same direction TOGETHER and not me turning my back on you as some would erroneously claim. It is only once a month but I think it important to do since it is part of our legacy, it is done all the time in the Extraordinary form of the Roman Rite (Tridentine Mass) and it is a valid and licit option in the Ordinary form (Novus Ordo or Vatican II Mass). The Scripture readings and homily will still be given facing the people since they are directed toward you. The prayers of worship directed toward God, however, will be facing Him as He IS present in the Tabernacle. Just as we have a diversity of music and language, we have a diversity of proper liturgical forms as part of our Catholic heritage. We should embrace the fullness of whom we are and how we worship.

The Bishop of Sioux City, Iowa, Most Rev. R. Walker Nickless in his diocesan paper The Catholic Globe has issued a statement about Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her distortions of Catholic teaching on human life.

This is actually like a short pastoral letter about voting and how to think about your vote.

Let’s have a look with my emphases and comments.

Understanding the issues and what’s at stake

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

If any of us thought that we could avoid political chatter this fall, the past two weeks of conventions and speeches have been a dose of unpleasant reality. In truth, I hope that all of us are paying at least a little attention. When leading politicians who claim to be Catholic misrepresent so badly the basic teachings of the Church, we Catholic citizens must call them on it. [Not just bishops, he is saying, but the rank and file as