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Wednesday, February 29, 2012

INC vs. Nazareno devotees

The recent INC Grand Evangelical Mission was able to muster a measly 600,000 in spite of the massive "fetching" of the INC.  They have paid buses to shuttle their members to the Luneta Grandstand. And remember, they are forced to attend which INC members love to call "show of unity".

This Grand Evangelical Mission is a rare occasion.

Compare it with this.



A yearly event, this is.  The Feast of the Black Nazarene.

And it gets getting bigger.  The last one, in January 9, 2012, had eight million devotees coming

Just comparing.

Well, all I can think of is that the Nazareno procession is free of charge.  No need to pay your tithes.  While the other one...you get the picture.





Are the Jesuits in educational institutions guarding against enemies of the Faith?



Here is the troubling article of "catholic" Karalen Morthole why she is pro-contraception.

So what else is new?

The Jesuits cannot police their own ranks.  I know there are conservative Jesuits.  But what are they doing to those who are spreading heresy?


What happened to Ex corde ecclesiae?  What happened to those pro-RH Ateneo professors?

I guess they still have a job in the "Catholic" university of Ateneo.

Sorry, ALMS, I had to rant about this. 

Homosexual anti-Catholic Danton Remoto and agnostic/anti-Catholic Leloy Claudio still teaches at your university.  Wala na ba kayong makuhang iba?!

Rumored to be the next doctrinal chief is questionable

And it is about his doctrinal stand!

From Vaticanista, John Allen in the National Fishwrap.

***


Although speculation about who’s in line for top Vatican jobs is a favorite indoor sport in Catholicism, usually to be taken with a grain of salt, you can sometimes tell a rumor is serious when pot shots start falling on the would-be nominee.

By that standard, Bishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller of Regensburg, Germany, has to be considered a hot tip for the next prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican’s powerful doctrine office currently headed by American Cardinal William Levada.

Levada will turn 76 in June, and it’s long been rumored that Müller, 64, is a top candidate to take over. This week, traditionalist Catholics in Italy began circulating e-mails suggesting that Müller, a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and a lifelong friend of Pope Benedict XVI, is not a man of “secure doctrine.

Specifically, the e-mails faulted Müller for espousing suspect positions on the virginity of Mary (which he said in a 2003 book shouldn’t be understood in a “physiological” sense), the Eucharist (Müller has apparently counseled against using the term “body and blood of Christ” to describe the consecrated bread and wine at Mass), and ecumenism (last October, Müller declared that Protestants are “already part of the church” founded by Christ.)

Whatever evaluation one makes of those points, the e-mails suggest that rumors around Müller’s possible appointment have set off alarms in traditionalist circles.

Müller has long been something of a paradox. In Germany, he’s seen as a staunch defender of Catholic orthodoxy, often at odds with the liberal reform group “We Are Church”, and he clearly enjoys papal favor.

Aside from the fact that Müller is the bishop of the pope’s home diocese, where Benedict’s brother Geörg still resides, he’s also the editor of Benedict’s “Opera Omnia,” a comprehensive collection of all the pope’s writings.

Müller himself is a prolific author, having written more than 400 works on a wide variety of theological topics.

Despite his broadly conservative reputation, Müller actually earned his doctorate in 1977 under then-Fr. Karl Lehmann, who went on to become the cardinal of Mainz and the leader of the moderate wing of the German bishops’ conference. Müller’s dissertation was on the famed German Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer [Bonhoeffer sounds more Catholic now compared to most of our theologians here in the Philippines!  Ha!]

Moreover, Müller is a close personal friend of the renowned Peruvian theologian Gustavo Gutiérrez, considered the father of liberation theology. Every year since 1998, Müller has travelled to Peru to take a course from Gutiérrez, and has spent time living with farmers in a rural parish near the border with Bolivia.

In 2008, he accepted an honorary doctorate from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, which is widely seen as a bastion of the progressive wing of the Peruvian church. On the occasion, he praised Guttierez and defended his theology.

“The theology of Gustavo Gutiérrez, independently of how you look at it, is orthodox because it is orthopractic,” he said. “It teaches us the correct way of acting in a Christian fashion since it comes from true faith.”  [But Gutierrez sees "doing theology" as a way to liberate the social indifference in the world.  This is not the aim of theology.  It is salvation of souls not just social bondage.  Real theology is aimed at both, with the ultimate goal of saving souls.]

In the same speech, Müller described "neo-liberal capitalism" as the "infamy of our age."

All that suggests the church might be in for some surprises should Müller indeed inherit the Vatican’s top doctrinal job.

***

Keep tab folks and watch out.

Rumor mills in the Vatican are strong and credible.

I hope those protecting the pope are not ill-advised and this part of the bishop's track record does not get left out of his dossier, just like what happened to the dossier of Archbishop Tagle of Manila.  Remember how some things were conveniently left out?

Pope Benedict XVI becomes 6th oldest reigning Pontiff!

A special website for Lent!




Head over to www.xt3.com!

What the Jesuit Music Ministry offers

Lifted from this website.

***

What training workshops do we give? In order to have animated and vibrant liturgies, a guide to the ministry of music is important. [By stating just that, the Jesuits in their Music Ministry is tacitly admitting that our liturgy is not animated and not vibrant, which is synonymous to saying that it is dead!]

The following is a list of what we can give. A workshop can be designed using some of these contents viz the needs of a choir or a parish music ministry.

1. The Vocation of the Choir: a short prayer reflection that roots each choir member to the invitation of Christ to serve their specific community. I believe that a choir member will not find their ministry meaningful or the challenges they encounter bearable if it is not rooted in the personal call of Christ. This includes rooting their gifts and their ministry in scripture and the appropriate behavior of someone called to perform a special role in worship.  [Sounds like a Vocation Director giving a talk to prospective candidates.  :)]

2. The Liturgical Structure of the Mass: a brief description of each part of the mass. A choir should know the rationale of each part of the mass so that they know what songs are appropriate for each — or they get to appreciate the Eucharistic celebration.  [Uhm...sige na nga.]

3. The Three Judgments: three simple judgments that each choir member needs to choose appropriate songs. It includes getting to know the reference books such as the Lectionary or the Sacramentary to help them choose songs appropriate for a season, a celebration or the readings of the day.  [Which surprisingly, after some music directors attended a seminar on this subject, you still hear songs from Don Moen and Praise, Inc. being sung in our Masses!  Ugh!]

4. The Order of Importance of the Songs at Mass. It gives a choir member the songs that should be sung with the whole congregation (such as the Acclamations and the Processional songs), and those that allows instrumental music or simply silence.  [Now this is interesting!]

5. The Importance of the Music Ministry in the whole Liturgical Celebration viz-a-viz the other Ministries such as the Ministry of Lector and the Presider at Mass.  [The writer, who is a Jesuit priest, does not want to use the term, priest.  The priest just presides not offers a sacrifice, well, because anyway, we are a community.  Kumabaya!!!] What are the areas of collaboration and when does another ministry respect the role of the choir (eg. when commentators sing solo or a priest dominates a song when there is a choir).  [I challenge a music director or organist to tell the priest to stop singing on the microphone so as not to get the spotlight from the choir.  I dare you.]

6. The Responsibilities of Choir Musicians such as the Music Director, the musicians, and the singers. What are expected of persons assigned to perform these roles.

7. Organizational Structure for Parish Choirs. Often problems arise because of the leadership structure. Or some choirs are part of a bigger organization. This workshop helps a choir discern their needs and the leadership structure that would fit their group.

8. Workshop on Choosing Songs: Choirs are given a specific liturgical celebration (eg. Holy Thursday, Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Birth of Our Lord) and they are asked to make a line-up of songs, according to the guidelines given above, and the Music Guidelines given by their specific diocese. Note: The Jesuit Music Ministry respects the music guidelines drafted by their Diocese.  [There are younger priests who have been liturgically trained by more conservative and more obedient priests who know what songs to sing in what seasons and these priests also use Gregorian chant which I doubt if the Jesuit Music Ministry would even teach those who would avail their seminars!  I doubt!  If you have a conservative and liturgically obedient priest, trust him to make up the list if your diocese does not have one published.]

9. Vocal Training: Simple vocal training is given by a JMM Choir such as Canto Cinco (C5). Each part of the vocal structure is explained, and appropriate vocal exercises are suggested to warm up their body structure. A vocal CD is given for free.  [GREAT!]

10. Workshops for Musicians. A simple workshop for parish musicians such as guitarists, [UGH!  No guitars pleeeeaaaassseee!] keyboardists and those who know how to play other instruments. [WHAT OTHERS?!?!?!]  Often parish musicians are self-taught or beginners. Musica Chiesa is group of musicians from the UP College of Music. They handle these simple workshops. They can also give a workshop for improvising music instruments such as shakers using rice grains.  [Goodness gracious!  What music are talking about here?  Quaker Oats?!]

11. Spiritual Activities such as Retreats and Recollections are designed for choir members, musicians and dancers.  [What?!?!  Music Ministry has dancers?  Change the name: Call it Willing-Willie Ministry! ]

12. Liturgical Dance Workshop. The UP Filipiniana Dance Group, trained in cultural dances, adapts traditional movements to liturgical songs to make liturgical dancing meaningful and enhancing to worship.  [A secular school, that is trained for dancing traditional folk dances will teach Catholic

And here is a sample of their liturgical dance:



Now here is the tricky part. This dance and singing of the Papuri sa Diyos was not during the Mass, ok.

But it gives those attending the seminar the impression that they can do this at Mass since as you have read in the first part, there is a need to animate our liturgy to make it more vibrant.  If they intend NOT to disregard Redemptionis Sacramentum, then why teach litugical dance in the first place, UNLESS they want this in paraliturgical activities and NOT DURING THE MASS.


Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Hellish traffic courtesy of Iglesia ni Manalo


Traffic in downtown Manila is hellish brought about by the hellish group Iglesia ni Manalo because they have their thing called Grand Evangelical Mission (GEM) which is anything evangelical since they are preaching with their hordes of followers they shuttled from all around Manila and surrounding provinces, and the only mission it does is to collect MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!

So for all I care with this hellish pseudo-Christian, Masonic church of the rapist Felix Manalo Ysagun, I call...

GRAND EXTORTION MISSION!

It is a publicity stunt.  A show of force.  The audience is made up of mainly present INC members, so who are they evangelizing?

The cash register!  :)  Lots of envelopes will be passed around in the Luneta today.

Did you say SOBRE? ;)  (No not you!)

ROFL!

I'll get a lot of hate mails today.

***

UPDATE:  February 28, 2012, 4:39PM - The photo of the INC "church" or spaceship or DisneyLand - Cinderella Castle replica I originally used here is suddenly unavailable so I posted another one.  Beh!

The most beautiful woman to walk the Oscar's red carpet

Mother Dolores Hart when she arrived for this year's Oscars where a documentary about her life as a movie star to a cloistered nun is nominated for an Academy Award.  "God is the bigger Elvis" unfortunately did not win the Oscar for Best Documentary Film.

Here she is posing for photographers.  I do not know who was with her.  They maybe the filmmakers of her docu.  No, they did not do her make-up nor designed her "gown".

Here she is waving to the crowds.


And here she is blowing a whistle for the crowds.   She is really having a blast.  :)



Photo credits to (according to order) the Telegraph, 2Space, Deacon's Bench and Moviefone.com

You can read about her life story by reading a previous blog post I made about her in September 2010.

You can also read about her in this wonderful post in Deacon's Bench.

I will be watching out for the documentary.

Another TLM schedule



Monday, February 27, 2012

Reflection: The Temptation of Christ

The Temptation of Christ, a mural in the Basilica of St. Mark in Venice

The Gospel yesterday for both the Ordinary Form and the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, or in common tongue Novus Ordo Missae and the Usus Antiquor or Traditional Latin Mass, was about the devil's temptation of Christ.

We all know the story:  after fasting for 40 days and nights, Lucifer tempted Him 3 times:  to turn stones into bread, to prove that He is the Son of God by calling His angels to catch Him, and to receive all the wealth and power of the world if Christ falls down and worships him (Lucifer).

I guess you have heard it preached many a times:  Lucifer tempted Christ who did not have food or water for 40 days with the first temptation:  FOOD, that which satisfies the cravings of the stomach (GLUTTONY).  Satan then proceeds to challenge Christ and prove Himself to be God (PRIDE).  Finally, Lucifer showed Christ what he can give Him for as long as He would just bow down and worship Him (GREED).

Lucifer tempted Christ to commit the 3 out of the 7 Deadly Sins taught to us by the Church throughout the ages to avoid (as they kill the life of grace in us)  These 3 were the same sins our parent Adam and Eve committed.

Now, I am giving you my reflection on this as many Church Fathers and theologians have taught that it was pride that brought the downfall of man.  But as I reflected upon this passage, I noticed a parallelism in how our first parents fallen, and how Christ began to redeem us by saying NO to whatever Satan presented to Him.

He refused food (Gluttony is defeated by Temperance).  He refused to give in to the temptation of proving yourself, a dare by Satan (Pride defeated by Humility) by acknowledging that one can never ever tempt the Lord, one acknowledges who he really is in the eyes of God.  And finally Christ expels Satan by the   (Greed for power and wealth is defeated by Charity), the worship of the True God is an expression of one's love for the Lord.

At the end of it all, what Satan offers are things that would sustain us and feed our egos temporarily, momentarily.  They do not last eternally nor are they rooted in God.

Christ's every response to his temptation is all about being rooted in God:

"Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."

"Thou shall not tempt the Lord your God."

"Worship God and Him alone."

Christ invites us, through this Lenten season, to firmly root ourselves in God.  What sustains us?  What feeds our ego?  WHAT IS THE REASON FOR OUR BEING?

Christ Himself would prove what He will teach later:
"...If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life? (Mt. 16 24 -26)
This is the grace of Lent my friends.  We experience the desert, like Christ:

...through the liturgy (no Gloria and Alleluia, NO CLAPPING AND DANCING!!!, simpler vestments, no flower, eventual veiling of the images until the total stripping of the altar and the emptying of the tabernacle on Good Friday..) and the practice of fasting and abstinence, the praying of the Via Crucis, pilgrimages, more frequent Confession, retreats and recollections.

Christ went into the desert to fast and be tempted so that we can find God and be totally rooted in Him.
As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so live in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.  (Col. 2: 6- 7)

May God be the center of your observance this Lenten season my dear friends.

***


And quit planning for that out of town trip!

It's not for God!

Sorry. I JUST had to type that in. :)

EF Mass Schedule


Click the image for a larger view or right click to save it.

GULP Alert: Guess what he is doing


Uhm.....

Saturday, February 25, 2012

St. Simeon the Just


A few weeks ago, we celebrated the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple which we also call the Purification of the Virgin Mary, (not that she is "impure", She was just following the Mosaic Law), and Candelmas.

One of the persons in the Gospel narrative of the event is the holy man, Simeon also known as Simeon the Just.  But did you know that his relic is kept and preserved?

Yup.  This Biblical saint has his relics enshrined in the Church of St. Simeon in Zadar.

You can read more about the story of the relic of this Biblical saint by reading all about it here.

I too thought that there were no relics of him that are kept.



Friday, February 24, 2012

Join the March tomorrow!


FREE SEMINAR ABOUT THE NEW TRANSLATION



And it was organized and presented by SAMBUHAY!

Woohoo!!!!

Catholic Trivia: Praying before the Crucifix Indulgence during Lent


 Taken from a paper from the Supreme Council of the Order of the Knights of Columbus:


On any Friday during Lent a plenary indulgence is granted the Christian faithful who, after Communion, devoutly recite the above prayer before an image of Jesus Christ crucified. On other days of the year the indulgence is a partial one.
Handbook of Indulgences

One can obtain a plenary indulgences for himself. However, we can offer that plenary indulgence for a soul in purgatory. This is an act of charity and spiritual tithing to do during Lent.  A plenary indulgence is gained every Friday in Lent by saying the following prayer before a Crucifix after receiving Holy Communion. The usual requirements for a plenary indulgence also apply

PRAYER BEFORE A CRUCIFIX

Behold, O kind and most sweet Jesus,
I cast myself upon my knees in Your sight,
and with the most fervent desire of my soul I pray and beseech You
that You would impress upon my heart 
lively sentiments of Faith, Hope, and Charity,
with true repentance for my sins, 
and a firm purpose of amendment,
while with deep affection and grief of soul
 I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate
Your five most precious Wounds;
having before my eyes the words which David in prophecy
spoke concerning Yourself,
O good Jesus:
“They have pierced my hands and feet;
they have numbered all my bones.





Conditions to Obtain the Indulgence

Handbook of Indulgences, Norms

An indulgence is the remission in the eyes of God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose culpable element has already been taken away. The Christian faithful who are rightly disposed and observe the definite, prescribed conditions gain this remission through the effective assistance of the Church, which, as the minister of redemption, authoritatively distributes and applies the treasury of the expiatory works of Christ and the Saints.

1. Besides the exclusion of all attachment to sin, even venial sin, the requirements for gaining a Plenary Indulgence are the performance of the indulgenced work and fulfillment of three conditions: Sacramental Confession, Eucharistic Communion, and prayer for the Pope’s intentions.

2. Several Plenary Indulgences may be gained on the basis of a single Sacramental Confession; only one may be gained, however, on the basis of a single Eucharistic Communion and prayer for the Pope’s intentions.

3. The three conditions may be carried out several days preceding or following performance of the prescribed work. But it is more fitting that the Communion and the prayer for the Pope’s intentions take place on the day the work is performed.

4. If a person is not fully disposed or if the prescribed work and the three mentioned conditions are not fulfilled, the Indulgence will only be partial ...”

5. The condition requiring prayer for the Pope’s intentions is satisfied by reciting once the Our Father and Hail Mary for his intentions (Pater Noster and Ave Maria); nevertheless all the faithful have the option of reciting any other prayer suited to their own piety and devotion.”

Defending the Faith, PUBLICLY!

Michael Voris and our friends at Catholic Faith Defenders in Davao slugging it out not to get the praises of the crowd listening, but to help them realize the Truth!

God bless these men!

I knew about this since it happened but I deferred to Michael for the Vortex episode.  :)

And Kudos to our friends at Couples for Christ as well!  :)




For all those engaged in apologetics, here is the rule of thumb.

As much as possible, if you see and feel that the one you are debating up against is someone who needs to know the Truth and is just confused with what he had, keep your cool and DO NOT ATTACK HIS PERSON. Much less if you are someone of stature let's say, uhm, a priest or religious. Keep your cool. Don't curse readily. Yup, I know, that Christ cursed the Pharisees but it was after He probably lost His temper. He did not outright condemned them.

Yeah, I know, I too am not perfect. I lose my cool too.

But what these guys do in Davao City Hall plaza is AMAZING!

Imagine the stress you would have to put up with just to debate these people?!

Patience indeed is a virtue and what we are hoping for is to have bring someone into the ONE FOLD OF JESUS CHRIST.

And by the way, if you want to stress something, YOU CAN ALL CAPS THE WORDS.

But Internet etiquette dictates that if you all caps your words, it means you are shouting Bro!

Honestly, you either look dumb or you need a new pair of glasses. Ha!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

All About the Liturgy: To which house do you belong?

You'll get the point when you visit the pages.  :)






The creators of the page are in no way connected to the two priests.

They are connected to Orthodoxy in Faith, Morals and Liturgy.  :)

***


Here are the Links:


Fr. Tim Ofrasio, SJ

Fr. Anscar Chupungco, OSB


***

Come to think of it, they are not for Fr. A.  LOL!

UPDATE:  Feb. 24, 2012   6:30AM

The pages are now temporarily unavailable!

2,000 years of existence is the Church's Resume

From the Business Insider

***

Painting the Catholic Church as "out of touch" is like shooting fish in a barrel, what with the funny hats and gilded churches. And nothing makes it easier than the Church's stance against contraception. [And who whines a lot?  Modernist "Catholic" theologians, feminists...]


Many people, (including our editor) are wondering why the Catholic Church doesn't just ditch this requirement. They note that most Catholics ignore it, and that most everyone else finds it divisive, or "out-dated." C'mon! It's the 21st century, they say! Don't they SEE that it's STUPID, they scream.  [It's because "someone" did not teach them or taught them that it is ok to disobey the Church's teaching on contraception?  Shall I rant again about those schools?]

Here's the thing, though: the Catholic Church is the world's biggest and oldest organization. It has buried all of the greatest empires known to man, from the Romans to the Soviets. It has establishments literally all over the world, touching every area of human endeavor. It's given us some of the world's greatest thinkers, from Saint Augustine on down to René Girard. When it does things, it usually has a good reason. Everyone has a right to disagree, but it's not that they're a bunch of crazy old white dudes who are stuck in the Middle Ages. [And some Googler thinks they are smarter.]

So, what's going on?

The Church teaches that love, marriage, sex, and procreation are all things that belong together. That's it. But it's pretty important. And though the Church has been teaching this for 2,000 years, it's probably never been as salient as today.

Today's injunctions against birth control were re-affirmed in a 1968 document by Pope Paul VI called Humanae Vitae. He warned of four results if the widespread use of contraceptives was accepted:
  • General lowering of moral standards
  • A rise in infidelity, and illegitimacy
  • The reduction of women to objects used to satisfy men.
  • Government coercion in reproductive matters.
[Interesting tidbit:  Cardinal Wojtyla played a major part in the drafting of Humanae Vitae.  Ever surprised why Evangelium Vitae came out?]


Does that sound familiar?

Because it sure sounds like what's been happening for the past 40 years.

As George Akerloff wrote in Slate over a decade ago, By making the birth of the child the physical choice of the mother, the sexual revolution has made marriage and child support a social choice of the father[It's all about what I want, when I want it and how it should be given to me.  The planet has evolved to host a bunch of whiners who want them all!]

Instead of two parents being responsible for the children they conceive, an expectation that was held up by social norms and by the law, we now take it for granted that neither parent is necessarily responsible for their children. Men are now considered to be fulfilling their duties merely by paying court-ordered child-support. That's a pretty dramatic lowering of standards for "fatherhood."  [Pretty "normal" nowadays for politicians and businessmen who have fathered children left and right.]

How else are we doing since this great sexual revolution? Kim Kardashian's marriage lasted 72 days. [Yet, she is always in the media.  How did she get famous in the first place? Put her XXX video on the web?]  Illegitimacy: way up. In 1960, 5.3% of all births in America were to unmarried women. By 2010, it was 40.8%. In 1960 married families made up almost three-quarters of all households; but by the census of 2010 they accounted for just 48 percent of them. Cohabitation has increased tenfold since 1960. [And you hear Modernist theologians tell you that this is the winds of age, the call of the times.  So if the call of the times legalizes the killing of Modernist theologians, will we do it?  As much as it sounds, uhm, "enticing, NO!  Killing is killing is killing is murder is a grave mortal sin!  No matter how we hate the Modernist theologian, we stilll seek his or hers conversion before he or she sits before the Judgment Throne.]

And if you don't think women are being reduced to objects to satisfy men, welcome to the internet, how long have you been here? 

Government coercion: just look to China (or America, where a government rule on contraception coverage is the reason why we're talking about this right now)[There is a provision in RH that anyone who refuses RH services will be sent to jail.  Ain't that democracy, eh?]

Is this all due to the Pill? Of course not. But the idea that widely-available contraception hasn't led to dramatic societal change, or that this change has been exclusively to the good, is a much sillier notion than anything the Catholic Church teaches.

So is the notion that it's just OBVIOUSLY SILLY to get your moral cues from a venerable faith (as opposed to what? Britney Spears?).  [And MTV, and CNN, and Oprah and.......]

But let's turn to another aspect of this. The reason our editor thinks Catholics shouldn't be fruitful and multiply doesn't hold up, either. The world's population, he writes, is on an "unsustainable" growth path.

The Population Bureau of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations sees (PDF, h/t Pax Dickinson) the rate of population growth slowing over the next decades and stabilizing around 9 billion in 2050…and holding there until 2300. (And note that the UN, which promotes birth control and abortions around the world, isn't exactly in the be-fruitful-and-multiply camp.[This is the greatest stupidity that the UN does not see.  The world population growth is slowing down and yet they still want to curb population growth.  Europe is losing its people.  Most of those who populate the once vastly Christian continent are migrants from Islamic countries!  By the way, I still think the UN is the biggest piece of useless entity this world has ever seen.  Don't ask.  Just ask someone who worked with them!  Ha!]


More broadly, the Malthusian view of population growth has been resilient despite having been proven wrong time and time again and causing lots of unnecessary human suffering. For example, China is headed for a demographic crunch and social dislocation due to its misguided one-child policy[An economist debunked the Malthusian theory one of them is Prof. Gary Becker's Human Capital concept.]

Human progress is people. Everything that makes life better, from democracy to the economy to the internet to penicillin was either discovered and built by people. More people means more progress. The inventor of the cure for cancer might be someone's fourth child that they decided not to have.

So, just to sum up:
It's a good idea for people to be fruitful and multiply; and
Regardless of how you feel about the Church's stance on birth control, it's proven pretty prophetic.


***

And here is Michael Voris' seconding the motion!  :)


And no matter how hard these atheists and secularists try, the Church has been thinking about life 2,000 years ago.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

The best way to observe Lent


Christ Himself instituted it.

If you cannot keep up with your penitence, get back in the box and approach Jesus there.  He is waiting!

And don't forget to pray this prayer!


Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The new home of the EF Mass in the Diocese of Cubao

This is the map of the Holy Family Parish Church where Traditional Latin Mass is regularly celebrated!

Weekdays and Saturdays EF Masses are every 8:30 A.M. The regular Sunday Missa Cantata is at 2:00 P.M.

This is also the home of the Societas Ecclesia Dei, Sancti Ioseph - Una Voce Philippines.

Just try, you won't succeed


Someone is dreaming


He may be a cardinal but he was not created in consistory.

God created him like you and me.

So respect life!  Most especially HUMAN LIFE!

An anti-Catholic rant on my comments page

And I couldn't help but post it here.  :)

***

Tell me Queen of heaven defenders [Ooooo,  I like the title!  Thanks!]  how are you gonna pay your historical crimes, [the what now?] the bloody jihad/crusades, [Muslims attacked and what do you do?  Read history books laddie and you'll see what good the crusades did.]  the people you killed in the reformation era, [like who?  Reformation?  is it just the Catholics?  Protestants did it too.  Ever heard of St. Thomas More?]  is the 6.5 murdered Jews (Holocausts), [Dumb.  Nazi thing becoming a Catholic thing.  Duh!]  the Spanish inquisition, [Ever read that the Pope was asking the Spanish Crown to stop the Inquisition?  Guess you did not read that part also.] your priests who killed Rizal, [Who did? Did what?  Good grief!  Jesuit priests were present during his execution.  Rizal recanted Freemasonry because of Catholic priests!]  the altar boys/gals your perverted priests raped, [Yeah there were those.  But never heard of altar girls getting raped....Hmmm...Dan Brown wrote that or the tooth fairy told you so.  Well, ever heard of Born-again pastors raping his followers?  Guess you did not read that also, eh?]  the present spiritual prostitution-Universal Ecumenism with pagans, etc. [Do I smell someone from SSPX around here?]  If the Biblical Christ [What Bible are you using, dude?  66 books or all 73 of it?]  will come are you 100% assured He will recognize you? [Are you?]  Remember he said not everyone who said to me Lord lord will enter the kingdom of God but only those who do the will of my Father.

***

Great thing he said those last lines..

Because 2,000 years of unbroken lineage from Jesus Christ to Peter to St. Pius V to Pope Benedict XVI is your assurance that the Catholic Church is the Church founded by Christ on earth.  Kingdoms and empires have fallen.  Emperors, monarchs, despots and dictators have risen and fallen but the Catholic Church still stands.

So go ahead, read the Bible.  It's a noble and righteous thing to do.

But do not use it against the Catholic Church and Her sons and daughters.  The very Church you are attacking is the same Church that gave you that Book you are holding.

If you could ever find a piece in history that tells you that it  was not the Catholic Church that gave you the Bible then I will CONVERT.  I will meet you in public and I will CONVERT.  If you cannot, then I invite you to attend a catechism class in a Catholic parish near you.

Being young, left along in your room by your parents, and reading conspiracy theories won't get you anywhere.

Study, earn a living through decent and honest work, and be a good citizen of this country.

And best of all:  REPENT AND BELIEVE THE GOOD NEWS which only COMES from the CATHOLIC CHURCH.

Enjoy the video:


The Media is corrupting our nation

What do you expect?

CNN anchors wannabe.

Educated in college either by communists or by anti-Catholic professors, who more often than not are either homosexuals or radical feminists?

So what do you get?

Hateful and vengeful, biased broadcasters...

Programs that promote sex and immoral behavior...  Right Howie?

Thank goodness we still have a bishop like Bishop Vicente Navarra who publicly support the efforts of Michael Voris and Real Catholic TV.com.

Parents should watch out what their kids watch on TV. I personally hate Cartoon Network with the kind of foul language the cartoon characters belt out on TV. My kids themselves told me that they do not want to see a particular show.

The Filipino bishops who were interviewed by Michael Voris so far are:

Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu
Bishop Vicente Navarra of Bacolod
(If I forgot some, please chime in.)

I do not want to give names here which have not been shown yet by Voris and his team.

Tomorrow is an important Wednesday in your life


Don't just go to the church to have the ashes imposed on you!

Go to confession, go to Mass, receive Holy Communion, and if you are of age, FAST and ABSTAIN.

Ash Wednesday only comes once a year, in case you forget.

Monday, February 20, 2012

To those who say I support the SSPX

NO!

But I hope they "harden not their hearts" and come back to the one fold left by Christ to Peter.

And here is the reason why.

Taken from this link:



***


Should Traditional Catholics Attend the "Indult" Mass?

The Society of Saint Pius X could never profit by Rome's Indult, first because of the conditions attached to it, and, in particular, that of acknowledging the "doctrinal and juridical" value of the Novus Ordo Missae which is impossible and second, but more fundamentally, because such acceptance of the Indult would amount to saying that the Church had lawfully suppressed the traditional Latin Mass, which is certainly not the case.

But other priests have profited by it, some jumping at the chance to say the traditional Latin Mass, others only because requested by their Bishop, and the odd one or two who would always say the traditional Latin Mass anyway but have accepted to do so under the auspices of the Indult for "pastoral reasons".


Can We attend Their Masses?

If we have to agree to the doctrinal and juridical value of the Novus Ordo, then NO, for we cannot do evil that good may ensue.

This condition may not be presented explicitly, but by implication, such as:
  • by a priest who celebrates the Novus Ordo on other days of the week or at other times;
  • using Hosts consecrated at a Novus Ordo Missae;
  • or with communion in the hand;
  • new lectionaries, Mass facing the people, etc;
  • by a priest who was ordained in the New Rite;
  • by sermons that are modernist in inspiration (much to be feared if the celebrant habitually says the Novus Ordo Missae);
  • by offering only the revised forms of the other sacraments, eg. penance.

***

You think I'd support men with this kind of view!

So stop sending those emails and those wall posts.

You're wasting your time.

A Catholic Apologist


Courtesy of Neil Sator

Meet the New Henry VIII



Obama-care is no care at all!

Obama-care is the same as the RH BILL.

So every Catholic is spiritually and morally bound to stop whatever Obama is doing in his country and the world he slowly tries to destroy!

Time Magazine has an article about the war Obama is waging against the Catholic Church.

Mother Dolores Hart, OSB goes back to the Oscars!


 I have been receiving emails about the news that Mother Dolores Hart, OSB the former Hollywood actress, once Elvis Presley's leading lady, whose life and her journey from Hollywood to the monastery, is made into a documentary, which is nominated to this year's Oscars.

And the best part of it all, she was invited to this year's Academy Awards and she will, uhm, "strut the red carpet", wearing her black Benedictine habit!

Woohoo!!!

While the rest of Hollywood "royalty" will be parading their designer gowns, these Lady of God will be parading her habit designed for the Lord, as a bride of Christ!  :)

Read more about this wonderful story in Women of Grace



I have blogged about Mother Dolores Hart, OSB way back in 2010.

The 2012 Public Consistory and Announcement of Canonizations

Blessed Pedro's canonization is announced

Yeah I have read about it over the weekend and even saw it on TV.

I got lots of reports about in on Facebook, and read the news on my phone, so just so I was able to report it:



HIMAYA SA DIYOS!!!

VIVA SAN PEDRO CALUNGSOD NG CEBU!!!
 



 


PRAYER TO THE NEW SAINT

Blessed Pedro Calungsod,
Young migrant, student, catechist,
missionary, faithful friend, martyr,
you inspire us by your fidelity in times of adversity,
by your courage in teaching the faith in the midst of hostility,
and by your love in shedding your blood for the sake of the Gospel.
Make our troubles your own (here mention your request),
and intercede for us before the throne of Mercy and Grace
so that as we experience the help of heaven we may be encouraged
to proclaim and live the Gospel here on earth.

***

A little trivia for you folks:

Did you know that the model for the beatification icon of Blessed Pedro Calungsod was a not so well-known college athlete (back then, duh!) named RONALD TUBID?  Incidentally, Tubid is from Iloilo, a Visayan like our new saint.

Yup that' his face below folks.


And here are some comparison shots for you folks.


Here are articles in the Internet about this:  here and here and here:

Now there are a lot of dumb discussion about this choice for Tubid.  One anti-Catholic writer writes:  'So when Catholics bow down and kneel before the statue of Calungsod, who are Catholics worshipping, Calungsod or Tubid?"

Ugh!

First, we, Catholics, do not worship saints!  We ONLY WORSHIP God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Second, we, Catholics, pray to saints to ask them to pray for us much like what Bible totting Evangelicals ask their pastors to pray for them and lay hands on them during the altar call.

Thirdly, we, Catholics, will PRAY and TALK to Pedro Calungsod who is in Heaven, as attested by the miracles he brought to people who asked for his intercession, miracles HE PRAYED TO GOD for us who are here on earth still 'working out our salvation with fear and trembling."  When we look at the image, we see Pedro Calungsod, the young Visayan boy, catechist, martyr and SAINT.  We do not see Ronald Tubid the basketball player.  We will not talk to Ronald Tubid the basketball player.  We will NOT pray to Ronald Tubid the basketball player.  We will pray FOR Tubid instead.

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Good riddance!


 Dr. Sylvia Claudio has publicly declared it because the Catholic Church will never ever approve her advocacy for contraception and abortion!

Pray for this woman.  She just bought her own express ticket to hell and booked it online via Carlita Celdran's Facebook wall.

Uhm, yeah I think I am that...


The new bishop of Lourdes is a traditionalist!


And there is a VERY HIGH CHANCE that he will celebrate the Traditional Mass in one of the most famous, if not the most famous Marian Shrine in the world!

Philip Gerard Johnson even has a photo of the bishop celebrating the Traditional Mass at the Basilica of St. John Mary Vianney in Ars with the FSSP.

Read more about this story here.

***

PS from the same article:

The appointment came earlier than expected, since Brouwet's predecessor, Bishop Jacques Perrier, in office since 1997, passed the retirement age of 75 last December 4, and has therefore had just a couple of months of "prorogatio." [Or the bishop is given 2 or 3 more years to stay on the job until his successor comes.]

The choice of Brouwet, like that of Moraglia, did not go through the scrutiny of the cardinals and bishops of the relevant congregation in one of their regular Thursday meetings. Both will take possession of their respective dioceses on March 25, the feast of the Annunciation.  [Did not pass the scrutiny of bishops and cardinals?  Maybe the Holy Father wants more like minded bishops in sees around the world.  He learned something from the appointment of Luis?  LOL!  It also means that traditional priests have a chance of being appointed bishop!  And you know who I talking about!  Sensing the Sacred somewhere?  ;)]

Friday, February 17, 2012

Michael Voris, live tonight!

Forget the concerts!

The nourishment of your soul is of importance.

From our friends at Couples for Christ

***



Our friend, Michael Voris of Real Catholic TV is back in the Philippines! He has scheduled events in Cebu and Bacolod this time. And he will be speaking to our community again on Feb 17, Friday. Open to everyone. Invite your family and friends. In celebration also of Pro-Life month.

Michael was in the Philippines last year and spoke at our Truth and Dare event. Our media arm, FLiQ Media, spent three weeks in Detroit at his studios. And our World Youth Day delegation attended his talk in Madrid.

 And this one from our friends here at Davao!

Saturday at 1:00pm until Sunday at 6:00pm
Kadayawan Hall, NCCC Mall of Davao

We are proud to be Catholic!

Want to become a better Catholic? Have any doubts about anything Catholic?

Then prepare to be inspired!

Michael Voris of RealCatholicTV.com is coming to Davao.


Below is the intial schedule. Please RSVP to be updated of the final schedule.


February 18, Saturday
==============
12:30pm - 01:00pm - Registration
01:00pm - 03:00pm - Talk #1 - The Bible is a Catholic Book
03:00pm - 04:00pm - Break
04:00pm - 06:00pm - Talk #2 - Finding Christ's Church
06:00pm - 09:00pm - Dinner Fellowship (by invitation only)

February 19, Sunday
=============
12:30pm - 01:00pm - Registration
01:00pm - 03:00pm - Talk #3 - Non-Catholic Christianity
03:00pm - 04:00pm - Break
04:00pm - 06:00pm - Talk #4 - Heavenward
06:00pm - 09:00pm - Dinner Fellowship (by invitation only)

On February 20, Monday, he will speak at the Stella Maris Academy of Davao in the morning.

***

Modernists, dissidents and pseudo Catholics who love to contracept must be in a nutty! LOL!

See you in NCCC! ;)

Voris: Noynoy Aquino is like Obama. He wants to wage war against the Catholic Church



What makes me a fan of Michael Voris is that he says it like it is, even if it be the Presidents of the Philippines or the US or even erring and sleeping-on-the-job bishops or priests!

So, for the fans of that YouTube priest who said Mass on his yacht, so the Willie Revillame wannabe priest in SM Megamall and the theologians of St. Vincent School of Theology who sent me scathing emails for attacking their IDOLS, here's for you!

ALTER CHRISTUS MY FOOT!

I am not attacking their person as a priest! I am attacking their despicable act!

Love the sinner, hate the sin.

Remember that.

So I will not back down.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

More leaks from the Vatican...Bertone still the reason.

Why the leaks are, uhm, being leaked...and more reason to fire Bertone!

From Catholic Culture

***


Just a day after the director of the Vatican press office released an unusual statement responding to leaked internal documents, the release of still more confidential information added to the Vatican’s embarrassment.

The most recent leaks, published by Il Fatto Quotidiano, included a memo in which Cardinal Attilio Nicora, the head of the Vatican’s newly created Financial Information Authority, complained that the recent changes in Vatican rules for financial transfers may not go far enough to satisfy the concerns of Italian bank regulators. Cardinal Nicora said that loopholes in the Vatican’s regulations could “create serious alarm in the international community, as well as among international anti-money laundering organizations.”  [30 pieces of silvers?  And a kiss?]

Cardinal Nicora’s worries--expressed in a memo that was addressed to both the head of the Vatican bank and the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone—are particularly damaging because the Vatican has been struggling to fend off reports of financial mismanagement. The new leaks also renew concerns that Cardinal Bertone is facing serious internal opposition among Vatican officials[Bertone looks to be an untouchable?]

Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, had decried earlier leaks in a February 14 statement. "There is something very sad in the fact that documents are dishonestly passed from the inside to the outside in order to create confusion,” he said. The Vatican spokesman denied that the leaks are evidence of an escalating conflict within the Vatican, which some Italian journalists have characterized as a “mutiny of the monsignors.”  [I have something for Fr. Lomabardi about this.]

The Vatican newspaper, in a February 14 article about the 30 years that Pope Benedict XVI has spent at the Vatican, mentioned that the Pontiff “is not stopped by wolves.” When asked whether the “wolves” in question included those who had leaked documents, one anonymous “senior Vatican official” told the Reuters news service: “They certainly are not boy scouts.

***

 Fr. Lombardi is correct in saying that it was improper for the leaks:  You do not wash your dirty linens in public, but.......

ARE WE EVEN WASHING OUR DIRTY LINENS IN PRIVATE?

Another Filipino artist Catholics MUST NOT support

Has been, washed up, nobody cares...because he is pro-RH just like his fellow Atenean, Jim Paredes who is also a has been, washed up, nobody cares artist.

Oh by the way, this guy "retired" because he invested his money in a large scale mining operation in Southern Mindanao.

Now, there's someone who really cares!

What an abortionist is


Wednesday, February 15, 2012

The New Translation of the Roman Missal

I have missed this for so many days.  I almost forgot about it until I visited the Monk's Hobbit.

I am reprinting it here for your guidance.  Gotta love Fr. Tim!


***
Fr. Timoteo Ofrasio, SJ
Fr. Timoteo Ofrasio, SJ: The New English Translation of the Roman Missal and Liturgical Renewal


(FYI.  Fr. Tim Ofrasio has a Doctorate in Sacred Liturgy from Rome unnlike his mentor, THAT Benedictine monk, who has a Doctorate in Sacred Theology.)

(This talk was given this January 11, 2012, 10:30-12:00 at the Cardinal Sin Center, Loyola House of Studies, Ateneo de Manila)


Introduction

Forty-seven years after Vatican II and 43 years after publication of the Roman Missal of Paul VI, a new English translation of the third typical edition of the Roman Missal is now in use in the English speaking world. The role of the Roman Missal is vital in the ongoing liturgical renewal desired by Vatican II. PCP II twenty years ago also listed ‘liturgical renewal’ as one of the tasks of the Church in the Philippines in its goal of renewed integral evangelization. It lists the Eucharist, particularly the Sunday celebration, as among the more vital areas of renewal.[1]

As early as 2009 when the new translation of the Ordinary of the Mass was made available on the web by the USCCB, voices of alarm were raised from all quarters. Rumours of a reform of the reform had been circulating since Pope Benedict became pope in 2005 and the new English translation was seen as part of that alleged reform. The issuance of the Instruction Summorum Pontificum issued motu propio in 2007 which allowed the more liberal use of the pre-VAtican II Tridentine Latin Mass further buttressed the belief in a perceived papal policing of the Roman liturgy. There were fears of a return to the pre-Vatican II liturgy, and that the new English translation would revert the Church back to the old Latin Liturgy. The truth of the matter, if we care to look back, is that Liturgicam Authenticam is a product of Pope John Paul II’s document Vigesimus quintus annus, marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of Sacrosanctum Concilium, which called for an opportune stock-taking, not least in the area of faithfulness in translation. The editio typica of the Missale Romanum on which the new English translation is based, was published by the Holy See in 2002, when Blessed John Paul II was still gloriously reigning, and Liturgicam authenticam on which the new English translation was based, was published by the Holy See in 2001, again during the pontificate of Blessed John Paul II. If anything, the present pope, Benedict XVI, is only implementing, and continuing, the changes set in motion by his predecessor.

On the other hand, the English translation of the editio typica of the Missale Romanum of 1969 and the editio typica altera of 1975 was based on the translation principle of dynamic or functional equivalence as elucidated in the document Comme le prevoit– On the Translation of Liturgical Texts for Clebrations with a Congregation issued by the Consilium for Implementing the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy on January 25, 1969. Dynamic equivalence attempts to convey the thought expressed in a source text (if necessary, at the expense of literalness, orginal word order, the source text’s grammatical voice, etc.)

The new English translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal of 2002, is based on the principle of formal equivalence as explained in the Instruction Liturgiam authenticam issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on 28 March 2001 requiring that in translations of the liturgical texts from the official Latin originals, “the original text, insofar as possible, must be translated integrally and in the most exact manner, without omissions or additions in terms of their content, and without paraphrases or glosses. Any adaptation to the characteristics or the nature of the various vernacular languages is to be sober and discreet.”

The two approaches represent emphasis, respectively, on readability and on literal fidelity to the source text. There is no sharp boundary between dynamic and formal equivalence. All the polemics and reactions for and against the new English translation are based on these two principles of translation.

Bishop Arthur Roche of Leeds in England, and Chairman of ICEL, notes that objections to ICEL’s translation work are really objections to Liturgiam authenticam. Stipulations of this instruction differ markedly from those of the earlier document, Comme le prevoit. These two documents do not have the same status: the earlier document was issued by the Consilium, the latter by the Congregation. At the heart of Comme le prevoit was the idea of “dynamic equivalence”, as achieved when a translator detaches the “content” of an utterance from the “form” in which it is expressed.

Bishop Roche cites, for example, the Third Eucharistic Prayer when we say ‘so that from east to west a perfect offering may be made,’ to translate the Latin ‘ut a solis ortu usque ad ocasum oblatio munda offeratur.’ The poponents of dynamic equivalence say that ‘from east to west’ conveys the same information as ‘from the rising of the sun to its setting’, which is how the new translation renders it. But the meaning of this phrase is richer: it is an expression found in Malachi 1:11:

See from the rising of the sun to its settinbg all the nations revere my Name and everywhere incense is offered to my Name as well as a pure offering.

The expression is likewise found in the Psalms. It has been said by those who did not understand the context of the expression that to complete it, it should be rendered as ‘from north to south, and from east to west…’ whcih is not exactly the point of the expression; certainly the original Latin text does not have that sense in the expression.

Another example cited by Bishop Roche is found in the Fourth Eucharistic Prayer in the phrase, ‘ex genimine vitis repletum’ rendered in the new translation as ‘the fruit of the vine’ in the Institution Narrative. The present translation says, ‘He took the cup filled with wine.’ Some argue that ‘the fruit of the vine’ means the same as the single word ‘wine,’ and that the simpler expression should be preferred. But the words ‘the fruit of the vine’ are said by the Lord Himself in all three synoptic Gospels–this phrase has a powerful salvific resonance because of the symbolic value accorded to the vine and the vineyard in Scripture, as recalled by Jesus’ elaboration in John 15 of the image of Himself as the true vine, His Father as the vinedresser, and ourselves as the branches. This echoes back an even earlier usage in Isaiah 5–the famous “Song of the Vineyard”–and the Lord’s lament at the degeneracy of his once choice vine in Jeremiah 2. Of course, the word wine connects with this Scriptural patrimony, but it does so les evidently than does the phrase ‘fruit of the vine’ which, upon each hearing, encourages us in our imaginations to see the particular Eucharistic event as part o fthe unfolding of God’s universal plan within history to rescue us from the destruction and chaos occasioned by our sinfulness and bring us into communion with Himself and with each other in Christ.[2]

And so, the new English translation of the Roman Missal is not meant to revert the Churchback to the old Latin liturgy, as many fear. Forty-eight years after Sacrosanctum Concilium, and thirty-eight years after the first publication of the English Sacaramentary, the Holy See through the new International Commision on English in the Liturgy (ICEL)[3] and Vox Clara Committee[4] thought that it was now time to revise the English translation of the Roman Missal which was published as the English Sacramentary. ICEL and Vox Clara both felt that there was a need to make a new translation that would be more thorough, clearer and nearer to the Latin original text. Why this preoccupation with fidelity of the vernacular translation to the original Latin text? We will shortly answer this sensitive question.

As early as 1992 when the old ICEL issued a proposed new translation of the Ordinary of the Mass of the Missal of Paul VI (presumably that project is now moot and academic since the disbanding of the group) until the appearance of “semi-offcial” English translation in 2009 of the Ordo Missae of the Missale Romanum editio typica tertia, I was hopeful for the revision of the Missale Romanum editio typica of 1969, and the editio typica altera of 1975, both under the pontificate of Paul VI. Both earlier typical editions appeared in English translation of the Roman Sacramentary published by the old ICEL, and in Tagalog and other vernacular translations published by various diocesan liturgical commissions.

Reasons to be Hopeful

Hopeful, because

I thought that finally some needed corrections could be put into place in this latest edition of the Roman Missal, vis-a-vis the presidential prayers: the axiom lex orandi, lex credendi could be applied to the text of the prayers. This is my response to the question I just posed concerning the fidelity of the vernacular translation to the Latin original. With the present translations–in English, Tagalog and Cebuano–I somehow have the feeling that they were hurriedly done given the exigency in 1969 of coming up with a workable translation for use in Masses in the vernacular[5]. In the process, the truths of the Catholic fraith were watered down in paraphrases and generalizations, and the results are vague statements and platitudes that do not explicitly express the Catholic faith. In other words, some truths were somehow “lost in translation.”
I am also hopeful for the revision because I have always felt even before my priestly ordination in 1979 that the language of the Missal in the vernacular, since it is addressed to God, should be above the casual manner of human speech. In other words, it should be elegant and dignified, respectful but not distant, nor detached, or cold. With the new translation I thought that this situation could finally be remedied.

These are the two main reasons for my high hopes for the new Englsih translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal. There is reason to hope that the postconciliar liturgical renewal will continue with, and be enhanced by, this new English Missal.

At the time I wrote this article, I had not yet seen the entire published Englsih Missal. I have a soft copy of some parts of it which also includes the new Ordo Missae. I have noted the verbal changes in various parts of the Ordinary of the Mass, and as a whole, I like them. I have also read quite a number of articles pro and contra published in the web, and have noted the merits and demerits of the points they raised.

The Case of the Tagalog Missal: Aklat ng Pagmimisa sa Roma

It seems to me that the present situtation of the new English translation can be compared to the introduction in 1981 of the then new Tagalog translation of the Missal, the current Aklat ng Pagmimisa sa Roma spearheaded by my friend and classmate in the minor seminary, the late Monsignor Moises Andrade. I was a young priest then, and I remember how fellow priests protested and created stir against the new translation which was so different fro the translation then in use, the Misal Romano of Monsignor Jose Abriol. For one I questioned the quaint title of the book: Aklat ng Pagmimisa sa Roma. I realized it was a literal translation of the Latin, Missale Romanum, which was formerly translated as Misal Romano (from the Spanish). Then, too, I thought the language of the Aklat ng Pagmimisa was archaic and difficult to proclaim, the sentences/phrases of the orations were in many places convoluted, such that by the time one got to the end of the prayer, one did not know exactly what one prayed for. The Aklat also used a somewhat stilted, poetic style–with measure and rhyme–which I felt was rather too contrived and artificial. One of the disputed words in the Aklat was ‘hinawakan Niya ang tinapay’ for ‘He took the Bread’ in the Consecration formula, which many of us then thought would have been better translated as ‘kinuha Niya ang tinapay,’ which is the more accurate translation of the Latin accepit panem. Another word that was disputed was ‘pagindapatin,’ for ‘to make worthy’ which we felt would be more naturally translated as ‘marapatin’. These expressions and others like them might have sounded familiar and normal speech in Bulacan, but certainly not in all of the Tagalog-speaking regions. When I asked Monsignor Andrade why the Tagalog translation did not undergo a trial period for corrections and reactions the way the old ICEL did with its green and gray books, he told me that the process was tedious and would take long. Let the priests wrestle with it, he said; there is no other offical Tagalog translation approved by the Holy See. Thjat was thirty years agao. Today, the Aklat ng Pagmimisa is the standard liturgical book in all parishes in the Tagalog region, and while there are still occasional complaints about the Tagalog vernacular translation, all seems quiet on the pastoral front.


First-Hand Experience of the New Translation

Since Advent 2011, the whole English-speaking world-except the Philippines–has started to use the new English translation. In the Diocese of Novaliches, where I serve as pastor in a subdivision parish, the Local Ordinary, Bishop Antonio Tobias, decided to have the new English translation used in English Masses in order to, in the bishop’s own words, “slowly acquaint the parishioners with the language of the new translation.” Although I would have preferred the this were done more systematically withy proper catechesis, I plunged into it head-on, and the results were unexpected.

For one, the change was no big deal for the Mass-goers. They responded to the dialogue without difficulty; there was no big deal about ‘And with your spirit…,’ no big deal about ‘through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault’ in the Confiteor, no big deal about ‘consubstantial,’ about ‘sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall‘ in the Eucharistic Prayer II, about ‘I am not worthy that you enter under my roof…’ They were quite attentive and conscientious in their responses.

What I myself found out was because I was so familiar with the old translation to the point of having committed to memory the Ordinary of the Mass–three of the Eucharistic Prayers included–realized that I could very easily trip on the words of the new translation for the simple reason that I thought I knew exactly what was coming, but o my surprise the phrasing was different from what I have gotten used to. Hopefully this will eventually be remedied with constant use.

So how do I find the English of the new translation, particularly the presidential prayers? The first thing I observed is that the translation has mostly retained the courtliness and stateliness of the Latin original. Compared to the simple and direct language of the former translation, the language of the new translation bespeaks of a healthy recovery of formal language, the language we address to God. There is in the prayers a rich theological density or complexity, a whole theology that makes us attuned to God and thus transfigures us, in contrast to the accessible, bland, flat and abstract language of the former translation. Another obvious quality of the prayers is the poetry, the Biblical metaphor and concrete imagery they contain.

The Importance of Language in Worship

At this point the obvious argument in favour of the translation based on the principle of dynamic equivalence would be the use of simple, succinct and direct language which so appeals to our postmodern sensibilities. Why use a language pattern in worship that is so estranged to the speech of the ordinary person? Should not the language of worship reflect a speech pattern identical to that of the ordinary person’s in his communication?

In response to this, liturgical scholar Uwe Michael Lang comments that “[l]anguage is not only an instrument that serves to communicate facts, which it seeks to do in the most simple and efficient way, but it is also the means to express our mind in a way that involves the whole person. Consequently, langauge is also the means by which we express thoughts and religious experiences.[6]

The use of the sacred language–and this rightly includes Latin–in the liturgical celebration is part of what St. Thomas Aquinas in the Summa Theologiae calls ‘solemnitas’. The Angelic Doctor teaches: “What is found in the sacraments by human institution is not necessary to the validity of the sacrament, but confers a certain solemnity, useful in the sacraments to exercise devotion and reespect in those who receive it”[7]. Sacred language, being the means of expression not only of individuals, but rather of a community that follows its traditions, is conservative: it maintains the archaic linquistic forms with tenacity. Moreover, introduced in it are external elements, in so far as associated to an ancient religious tradition. A paradigmatic case is the Hebrew bibilical vocabulary in the Latin used by Christians (Amen, Alleluia, Hosanna, etc), as St. Augustine already observed.[8]

The Old and the New Prayers Compared

At the beginning of this talk, I said that there is much hope for the continuation of the postconciliar liturgical renewal with the new English translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal. It attempts to capture concepts of the faith contained in the Latin text more accurately, and thus embodies the axiom lex orandi, lex credendi, specifically in the euchology of the Missal. The prayers we pray at Mass ought to clearly express what we believe. By way of example, let us take a look at the Collect Prayer for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time. This Collect was in the pre-conciliar 1962 MR, the so-called “Tridentine” Missal, for the 5th Sunday after Epiphany.

Collect–Latin text (2002 MR):

Familiam tuam, quaesumus, Domine, continua pieta custodi, ut quae in sola spe gratiae caelestis innititur, tua semper protectione muniatur.[9]

A quasi-literal English translation would render it as:

Guard your family, we beseech you, O Lord, with continual mercy, so that that (family) which is propping itself up upon the sole hope of heavenly grace may always be defended by your protection.

The Old ICEL, using the principle of dynamic equivalence in 1973, rendered it in English translation as:

Father, watch over your family and keep us safe in your care, for all our hope is in you.

The new, corrected version of the new Roman Missal, using the principle of formal equivalence, renders the prayer thus:

Keep your family safe, O Lord, with unfailing care, that, relying solely on the hope of heavenly grace, they may be defended always by your protection.

Comparing the two versions of the Collect prayer, it is quite obvious that the version used in the 3rd edition MR has more substance to it than the rather lame and bland rendition of the 1970 MR. For one, the idea expressed in the ut-clause–reliance on the hope of heavenly grace–in the 3rd edition MR is absent from the 1970 MR.

In general, with the new translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal, the Liturgy will be more formal and theologically deeper, more evocative emotionally and intellectually.[10]

Conditions for the Continuation of Liturgical Renewal

For the liturgical renewal to continue, however, it will need more than just the third edition of the Roman Missal. Several factors play an important role in achieving this renewal. There may be others, but these are the more obvious ones:

instill love and respect for the Liturgy, especially the Mass, in the seminary training of candidates for Orders–in the classroom, in the chapel and in the apostolate;
review the ideas/concepts behind the ars celebrandi of priests when they celebrate the Mass;
fidelity-not rigidity–to the directions or rubrics in the Roman Missal.

In terms of directions or rubrics, aside from the suggestion for adlibbing, as in “in these or similar words,” all three editions of the Roman Missal are clear and if adhered to by celebrants (“say the black, do the red,” as they say) can contribute to a reverent, God-centered celebration of Mass.
For postconciliar liturgical renewal to continue, the seminary formation of candidates for Orders will have to be seriously looked into, both in classes on sacraments and liturgy and in seminary community liturgical celebrations. What is taught in the classroom must be practiced must be practiced in the seminary daily liturgical celebrations so that a tradition of ars celebrandi is established and imbibed by seminarians preparing for Holy Orders. It is from the healthy interweaving of sound theologico-liturgical studies and praxis that we can produce priests who have a sense of the sacred, a sense of awe and wonder before the majesty of God, a sense of the mysterium tremendum in the liturgical action they carry out for God’s people in the Church. If seminary liturgies are sloppily and carelessly celebrated; if seminarians are allowed to “tinker” with, and make unauthorized changes in the Mass, chances are, after ordination, they will repeat the same abuses in the parishes where they will be assigned. Qualified professors of liturgy and sacraments who know Church Tradition and have a healthy respect for it, need to instill in the hearts of the candidates for Ordination a respect and love for the Liturgy, especially the Mass.

Conclusion

Ultimately, however–and this is my conclusion to this paper–the right direction for liturgical reform depends on the individual celbrant and how he celebrates the Mass: his belief, his attitude, his devotion or the lack of it. A priest is a steward of the mysteries of God in the Church. Aas steward (other than acting in persona Christi capitis), the Mass is a treasure entrusted to him by the Church which he must cherish, guard, and preserve. It is not something he is free to tinker with and make changes to, depending on his understanding or the need of the moment that he perceives. The Mass he celebrates is not “his” mass; it is the Church’s.

If the priest does not honestly beieve that through his agency simple bread and wine become the precious Body and Blood of the Lord both during Mass and after it; in other words, if he does not dvoutly believe in Transubstantiation and the REal Presence as transmitted to us by the Church and Sacred Tradition, and instead interprets it according to how he understands it; if he does not believe that the Mass is above all the making present of the sacrifice of Christ on Calvary in an unbloody manner, that it is also the sacrifice of the Church in union with that one sacrifice of Christ; if he sees the Mass solely as a community meal that memorializes the Last Supper; if he regards the Mass primarily as a feast, which celebrates the coming together of the community, and not as the highest form of worship that the Church can render to God under the headship of Jesus Christ the High Priest, then, no matter what revisions the Roman Missal undergoes, liturgical renewal as desired by Vatican II in Sacrosanctum concilium and as envisioned by PCP II will continue to be held hostage by pseudo-liturgists and celebrants who see the Liturgy and the Mass as their “property” and thus indulge in “creative” tinkering to entertain themselves and their audience.

References


[1] Secretariat, Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II), Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, 1992, Acts and Decrees, nn. 176-181, pp. 66-67.


[2] Cf. Bishop Arthur Roche of Leeds, Chairman of ICEL, Address to the USCCB, 15 June 2006.


[3] The International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL) is a mixed commission of Catholic Bishops’ Conferences in countries where English is used in the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy according to the Roman Rite. The purpose of the Commission is to prepare Englsih translation so the each of the Latin liturgical books and any individual liturgical texts in accord with the directives of the Holy See.


[4] Vox Clara is a committee of senior Bishops from Episcopal Conferences throughout the English-speaking world formed by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on July 19, 2001 in order to provide advice to the Holy See concerning English-language liturgical books and to strengthn efective cooperation with the Conferences of Bishops in this regard.


[5] The 1973 English translation of the Roman Missal was based on the principle of dynamic equivalence, which is the preferred model for translation in the Instruction Comme le prevoit.


[6] Uwe Michael Lang CO, “The Language of Celebration”


[7] Ibid, Summa Theologiae III, 64, 2; cf. 83, 4.


[8] Ibid., cf. “De doctrina Christiana” II, 34-35 [11-16].


[9] Custodio means “to watch, protect, keep, defend, guard.” It is common in military language. Innitor, a deponent verb, means “to learn or rest upon, to support one’s self by any thing.” Innitor also has military overtones. The thorough and replete “Lewis & Short Dictionary” provides examples from Caesar and Livy describing soldiers leaning on their spears and shields” cf. Caesar, De bello Gallico 2.27). Munio is similarly military term for walling up something up, putting in a state of defense, fortifying so as to guard. Are you sensing a theme? We need a closer look.


We must make a distinction about pietas when applied to us and when applied to God. When pietas is attributed to God, it means “mercy”. Pietas gives us the English word “piety”. L&S says pietas when applied to persons is “dutiful conduct toward the gods, one’s parents, relatives, benefactors, country, etc., sense of duty.” It furthermore describes pietas in Jerome’s Vulgate in both Old and New Testament as “conscientiousness, scrupulousness regarding love and duty toward God.” The heart of pietas is “duty.” Pietas is also one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (cf. CCC 733-36; Isaiah 11:2), by which we are duly affectionate and grateful toward our parents, relatives and country, as well as to all men living insofar as they belong to God or are godly, and especially to the saints. In loose or common parlance, “piety” indicates fulfilling the duties of religion. Sometimes “pious” is used in a negative way, as when people take aim at external displays of religious dutifulness as opposed to what they is “genuine” practice (cf. Luke 18:9-14). (Prayer analysis by Father John Zuhlsdorf, What Does the Prayer Really Say blog, 07 February 2011)


[10] Jerry Filteau, “Liturgy will be more formal, theologically deeper” in Roman Missal, website of the USCCB.