Zenit Corrects Cardinal Burke Interview Over "Communist Misconception" Quote

On the 25th of July, Zenit published an interview with Cardinal Raymond Burke about the importance of the Sacred Liturgy for the life of the Church, Catholic belief and morality.

Blogs and websites that carried the news of the article honed in on a quote we believed was from Cardinal Burke on the Liturgy in which it was reported widely that His Eminence responded to the following question with the following answer:

Zenit: Some argue the liturgy is mostly about aesthetics, and not as important as, say, good works done in faith. What is your view of this argument that one often hears?

Cardinal Burke: It’s a Communist misconception. First of all, the liturgy is about Christ. It’s Christ alive in his Church, the glorious Christ coming into our midst and acting on our behalf through sacramental signs to give us the gift of eternal life to save us." "It is the source of any truly charitable works we do, any good works we do," he continues. "So the person whose heart is filled with charity wants to do good works will, like Mother Teresa, give his first intention to the worship of God so that when he goes to offer charity to a poor person or someone in need, it would be at the level of God Himself, and not some human level.""

On 29th of July, Zenit issued a correction which has now been made to the original interview which Zenit maintain has come from His Eminence himself.

The article now reads...

Zenit: Some argue the liturgy is mostly about aesthetics, and not as important as, say, good works done in faith. What is your view of this argument that one often hears?

Cardinal Burke: It’s a common misconception. First of all, the liturgy is about Christ. It’s Christ alive in his Church, the glorious Christ coming into our midst and acting on our behalf through sacramental signs to give us the gift of eternal life to save us." "It is the source of any truly charitable works we do, any good works we do," he continues. "So the person whose heart is filled with charity wants to do good works will, like Mother Teresa, give his first intention to the worship of God so that when he goes to offer charity to a poor person or someone in need, it would be at the level of God Himself, and not some human level.""

Thought I would just point that out, in case anyone was in doubt over what His Eminence really said. I know I'm drinking too much coffee today but I must admit to feeling rather on edge.

Yuk!

What in the name of all that is holy is that thing?! Is that thing meant to be a Crucifix? Well, it was Brazil! 

I sincerely pray that that thing is not going to be promoted outside of His Holiness's meeting with the Brazil's Bishop's Conference. Yuk! It does not look like the kind of holy object that wards off demons! It looks more like it would attract them!

The Holy Father has given an excellent homily today on the Feast of St Ignatius of Loyola. It is well worth reading.

Afternoon Catholic Herald Must Read by Fr Alexander Lucie-Smith

Weeping for Rome? Our Lady of La Salette

One reason why I fled to the allotment on the day of the Holy Father's impromptu interview with journalists on the plane back to Rome was because in just one interview His Holiness appeared to be disconcertingly vague and excruciatingly diplomatic in his 'dialogue with the World' on many different subjects.

Fresh from a rip-roaringly successful WYD in Rio, Pope Francis was garrulous on nearly every 'sensitive' issue in the Church today, from homosexuality to divorce and remarriage, but inside each statement there is a kernal that gnaws away at the soul - an element that suggests that Catholics (and non-Catholics - even atheists) simply do not know what is round the corner in terms of this papacy.

Peter is the Rock - the Rock on whom the Faith of Christ is built - the Rock on which the Church is built by Our Lord and, much as it will displease readers to hear it, there is something worryingly 'un-Rock' like about the statements of the Holy Father.

The simple fact is that the Pope who generally refuses interviews for his own reasons has, in one interview, said things on different subjects that are literally taking days to digest. Not only are they taking days to digest but, not for the first time, if we recall what the Holy Father said about atheists and redemption, Catholics loyal to the Magisterium are being forced onto the back foot in order to positively present the Pope's words in total harmony with traditional Catholic teaching. The world is telling Catholics that 'your Pope is changing the Church' and we have to keep saying, 'No, no! You've got it all wrong. This is what His Holiness meant...' His Holiness does not want us to be indolent and he is certainly making Catholic bloggers work and even the Vatican itself - work hard to 'represent' his teachings.

In fact, we can go even further as to say that a Pope saying some quite woolly things doctrinally is fostering a hotbed of discussion on the internet about Catholic prophecies from La Salette to Fatima. Fr Alexander Lucie-Smith today pours over what His Holiness intimated about the issue of divorce and remarriage. His Holiness's words were as follows:

“I think this is the moment for mercy. The divorced may have access to the sacraments. The problem regards those who are in a second marriage … who cannot receive communion. But, in parenthesis, the Orthodox have a different praxis. They follow the theology of economy, and they give a second chance: they allow that. “But I think that this problem – and here I close the parenthesis – should be studied within the framework of matrimonial pastoral care.

One of the themes that the Council of Cardinals will consider in the meeting in … October is how to proceed in relation to matrimonial pastoral care. A few days ago I met with the secretary of the Synod of Bishops, for the theme of the next Synod and, speaking … we saw this anthropological theme: how faith helps in the planning of the person, in the family, and enters into the pastoral of matrimony. We are on the way towards a deeper matrimonial pastoral care. This is a problem for many people.”

Yikes! The implication of the Holy Father's words are that a new epoch may possibly require a new attitude from the Church to the divorced and remarried. Before we go on any further, can you imagine how his words are being taken in the offices of The Tablet, the National Catholic Reporter and by heterodox Catholics, including the large amount of heterodox Bishops and Priests around the World? If Archbishop Charles Chaput was correct to say that Francis will disappoint both traditionalists and liberals, then why does His Holiness keep offering an olive branch to those who despise Catholic teaching or who wish to overthrow it?

Unhelpfully, St Francis prophecised a 'destroyer' Pope

October will be a busy month indeed. I predict that the press, lapping up Francismania will be encamped at Assisi IV, hoping to hear Pope Francis say something distinctly loose about ecumenism, religious liberty and salvation.

Conspiracy theorists who believe Freemasons are hard at work inside and outside the walls of the Vatican attempting to build a 'One World Religion' will be sitting on the edge of their seats. According to the Pope, October will also see a 'review' of the Church's position on the divorce, remarried and the Sacraments. There is little doubt that, doctrinally, at least, the 'Pope of the New World' is not going to great effort to affirm teaching with clarity in the face of the World's hopes, fears and expectations. Already His Holiness has, either deliberately or accidentally, provided the enemies of the Church much hope, be it false hope or not, that the Church's future will be one not of just dialogue with the World, but an openness to overturning Her teachings for worldly acceptance.

Marriage is in crisis across the Western world and elsewhere. The Church is built on Peter, but if the pillar of the Church's teaching on divorce and remarriage with regard to the Sacraments goes, the pillar that will be removed will be the Lord's own teaching on marriage that He taught while He was Himself on Earth, since Jesus Christ did not teach 'accommodation and pastoral care' in this regard (much as genuine pastoral care is needed), but instead called those who divorce and remarry adulterers!

Of course, a 'moment of mercy' in terms of 'deeper pastoral care' that recognises the position of the Orthodox Church could simply mean firm guidance for priests in how to care pastorally for those in the Church in this situation. Or, alternatively, it could mean the overturning of the Lord's own teaching on marriage, divorce and remarriage by dispensing the Sacraments to all and sundry, regardless of their marital state. If one pillar of the Catholic Church gets knocked down, the whole building will likely collapse!

Both Fatima and La Salette as well as other prophecies from Saints and Blesseds have predicted such horrific events that "Rome will lose the faith" and "become the Seat of Antichrist". Meanwhile, as if those shaken by recent statements have not enough to contend with, there is a woman who calls her 'prophetic' role 'Maria Divine Mercy' who claims to be receiving messages from Jesus and Mary that Benedict XVI was the last true Pope and that Pope Francis is the false prophet spoken of in Revelation - the implication being that the man who sits upon the Chair of Peter is an atheist! Order your foil hats, which can also be used as mantillas for ladies now from www.ourladysfoilhats.co.uk!

Our Lady's tin foil hats: They even double up as mantillas.

Not surprisingly, the Church's Hierarchy have condemned the woman who predicted a 'wicked gesture' by the Pope during Holy Week, and her 'visions'. Among vast changes in doctrine that will be used to destroy the Church and Her mission, she is even alleging that what will transpire in this papacy will be the end of the Mass, as those in the Vatican conspire to deliberately erase Our Lord's presence from the Eucharist by changing the words of consecration, thus causing Sanctuaries to be without Jesus our Eucharistic Lord! Anyone familiar with the prophecy of Our Lady of Good Success will know that one vision of Mother Mariana involved the extinguishing of the Sanctuary Lamp. I sincerely hope and trust and pray that this 'prophetess' is a first class fruitloop of the highest order sent by the Devil to cause disunity and sow schism in Holy Mother Church, the Bride of Christ and should thus be utterly ignored.

Papal tin-foil hat modelled by Pope Leo XIII

The trouble is that ambiguity in statements of the Holy Father springing from a perfectly reasonable desire to 'dialogue' with the World over such issues as those on which Fr Alexander Lucie Smith today reports will not help those who believe, quite correctly, that communion with, reverence for and loyalty to the Successor of St Peter is fundamentally necessary for Salvation.

Why? Because this sense of ambiguity and the vulnerability of Francis's statements to a multiplicity of interpretations from different audiences will continue to feed the fires of disunity and concerns that Rome itself could eventually fall into schism. You may say, and you may well be right, that blogposts like this do not help, but Our Lord, St Peter and St Paul and a Cloud of Witnesses told us to be vigilant if not totally paranoid.

The immense and surprising popularity of Pope Francis, the open battles over the meaning of his public statements and his commendable desire to reach out to the World is, while attracting enormous interest in the Catholic faith, simultaneously creating suspicion and a sense of dis-ease within the Church among those who hold fast to doctrine that had hitherto been understood to be 'off-limits' in terms of alteration. The result is that we can take heart and be cheered that following the impromptu interview, Peter Tatchell, at least, is not taken by the new Pope, but be rather concerned that Terence Weldon perceives the Holy Father's words to be an endorsement of his agenda for 'the Masses'.

Pray for the Holy Father, for holy Priests and holier Bishops,and pray especially for those who by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, govern Holy Mother Church against which the Gates of Hell shall never prevail.

An English Bishop Who Cannot Be Spun

Bishop Egan's has released a statement following the legalisation of 'same-sex marriage'. It is wonderful to hear a Bishop speaking with such courage and clarity.

“As Catholics, like Israel in Egypt, we now find ourselves in an alien land that speaks a foreign language with unfamiliar customs. For what we mean by matrimony, sexual intercourse and family life is no longer what today’s world, the Government, the NHS and policy-makers understand by marriage, sex and the family."

“Parliament’s Orwellian attempt to redefine marriage radically changes the social context and this presents a massive challenge to the Church in England and Wales: to those who wish to marry in our churches, to Catholic parents bringing up children, to teachers in our Catholic schools, and to the clergy engaged in pastoral ministry. It may also be a legal minefield, although we will have to wait before the full implications of the new legislation take effect.”

“We will certainly need to review our preaching, teaching and school curricula, which henceforth must recognise that our Catholic system of meanings and values is strikingly different from what secular culture now deems normal or acceptable.”

"The Church loves homosexual persons, even if we hold firm to our Christian conviction that sexual relations find their true place within marriage”.

"As Catholics, let us be on our guard, and continue compassionately to warn our society of the wrong turns it is taking.”

Bishop Egan said that the passing of the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill was “the inevitable outcome of a process that has been gathering pace since the sexual revolutions of the 1960s.”

While the World opines about what the Pope did say or didn't say, it is refreshing to hear an English prelate stating the truth in charity.

How do you 'discipline' an order?

Hair shirt? Been there, done that

Now, if I was in the higher echelons of the clergy in Rome (thank heavens that I am not) and was given the task of disciplining an Order - just how would I set about it?

That question is, of course, purely hypothetical as we do not know what indiscretions the Order is supposed to have committed.

But, I think I would start at the penitential end; I might consider asking those in the Order to undertake some form of penance such as dedicating one day each week to mortification and prayer.

Or, possibly, abstaining from meat for three months, or wearing hair shirts - but, perhaps the good Friars already do those sort of things.

These days, punishments are supposed to be given in a positive manner. Thus, if the sixth form at school had corporately committed some offence, they might be required to give up their free periods or time to works of good mercy, maybe even praying for a specific period before a crucifix.

If you applied this to the Friars, you could impose on them the duty to increase the number of EF Masses they attend daily....to beneficially open up the potential for an increase in God's grace and a greater spiritual depth to those in the Order.

It was just a thought.

"Who Am I to Judge?"

Okay, I'm just going to put this 'out there'. As someone who has committed the particular sin and who carries the cross of homosexuality, I am pleased that the Holy Father is 'reaching out' to homosexuals, as the media puts it and, as someone who has sinned so greatly against Heaven, I too would say of another, 'Who am I to judge?' But does that mean I cannot tell someone the truths of the Church's teaching on homosexuality or explain it?

I know we are all sinners in need of God's mercy. I agree very much with the sentiments of the Holy Father that the Church should not 'marginalize' persons with a same-sex attraction. The Church wants to gather her chicks to Her breast, as Christ said as He lamented over Jerusalem. I do wish His Holiness had not decided to adopt the secular usage of the word 'gay' since this word has been stolen. Even if it is the language of the man on the street or even the lay Catholic in explaining Catholic teaching, it is, I think, a little unbecoming of a Pope.

I know that priests are human like all of us are human and, being priests, their weaknesses are even more targeted by the Devil than our own, since the Devil wants most to strike the Shepherd, so that the flock may scatter.

I know that His Holiness talked of the 'sins of youth' in reference to Mgr Ricca and that Cardinal Keith O'Brien's admission suggested that his lifestyle had been something long-term and persistent.

I'm just wondering when the Church authorities can, would or should make a judgment call on someone's suitability to the Priesthood. It seems to me that 'Who am I to judge?' as an attitude must have been one factor in the huge amount of time it took for Cardinal Keith O'Brien to 'come clean'. By the time he did, because he'd been 'told on', the Catholic Church in Scotland was sent into disarray.

The gentleness and compassion of Pope Francis is indeed most endearing and wonderful. He gives the impression that His Holiness is tender-hearted and merciful. That said, if nobody - nobody -  makes a judgment call on a gay man's suitability in the Priesthood at any point in his career then the Church suffers greatly later on.

When a priest acts on his homosexuality it causes great problems not least for the priest's spiritual life, but also he can become a target for blackmail. It also means that when he, as a priest does what a priest needs to do - preach the Church's teaching on homosexuality - he becomes vulnerable to being 'taken down' should anything come to light. It undermines both faith and belief - it undermines the credibility of the Church and of the priesthood and opens the man who teaches the Truth about human sexuality to charges of hypocrisy.

A gay man, as a Catholic, may fall and fall again, but this cannot be the way with the seminarian or the priest - not if he is serious about upcoming or already taken vows. Who is to say that any priest or seminarian is not a person of 'good will' or 'seeking God' - only God actually knows what is 'in a man'. This language is - in the current state of play in the Catholic Church - a little vague. Unless seminaries have ultra-holy rectors who can see into men's souls exactly how, in the light of the Supreme Pontiff's comments, is he to know whether a candidate is suitable for the Sacred Priesthood?

Perhaps I am making a mountain out of a molehill as we bloggers sometimes do. As far as I know there is no 'total outright ban' on homosexual clergy - just the seeking of reassurances that active homosexuality is something that the candidate has substantially and honestly left behind - just as a heterosexual hopefully isn't out womanising his local district in the run up to his entrance into the seminary or ordination. The Church, I believe, looks for candidates with a spiritual maturity that means that the candidate not only believes what the Church teaches concerning the condition of homosexuality, but who is not, or no longer is, mastered by his inclination.

Much as it is unpleasant to judge people's personal qualities, is it not a lack of due judgement of people's personal qualities the reason why the Barque of Peter has taken on so much water in the past 50 years? That is, unless of course, we don't really care anymore.

St Francis Shows Brazil's Bishops How it is Really Done

Pope Francis Suffers First Negative Media Reports

Pope Francis: Is the honeymoon over?

Time Magazine's Tim Padgett has posted an article arguing that the Successor of St Peter has not gone far enough on homosexuality in the wake of his impromptu interview with journalists on the flight back from Rio.

Tim Padgett writes...

'Papal statements often get the same breathless scrutiny that’s usually lavished on cryptic symbols in Dan Brown novels. So it’s hardly surprising that the world, especially Roman Catholics like myself, is breathlessly decoding what Pope Francis told reporters on his flight back to Rome from Brazil on Monday regarding homosexuality:

“If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” 

As TIME’s Stephen Faris has noted, while the Pope’s remarks might be a welcome and humane sentiment, they hardly represent a break with Catholic church doctrine, which still condemns homosexuality. The Vatican’s catechismal stance regarding the LGBTs in our midst remains the same: The church may love the sinner, but it hates the sin. And since Francis was referring specifically to gay priests—who like other Catholic clerics take a vow of celibacy and so don’t commit the “sin”— His Holiness wasn’t exactly going out on a theological limb.'

When are non-Catholics going to understand the basics of Catholicism?

The Pope is Catholic. The Catholic Church has always condemned homosexual acts as contrary to Divine and natural law and no Pope will ever have the authority to remove or erase the Truth from the Deposit of Faith. There will always be a large section of society - perhaps even a large section of the Church - who cannot accept what the Church proclaims concerning sin and Salvation.

From each and every Pope is expected a reversal of Catholic doctrine. Sorry, guys, it isn't going to happen and if it ever did...well...it won't. No Pope has the authority to make the truth a lie or to make lies into truth.

How sadly predictable it is that the Pope has courted such favourable headlines until His Holiness presents, in a very charitable manner, what the Catechism has to say on homosexuality. If only the 'gay lobby' would change the record, or at least try Side B - see things from a different angle as the Pope is trying to present it.

Being forgiven by Jesus and asking for the grace not to do it again isn't that hard, guys, even if going to Confession can be embarrassing and humiliating, but God raises up those who are lowly and are burdened by sins and crowns the humble and contrite of heart.

Really, its a great relief, take it from me, whenever Jesus takes our sins away from us in Confession whether our sins be great or not so great, but each and every sin can be forgiven in the Sacrament of Penance.

You think I'm uptight? If only the gays would lighten up and embrace Jesus's love that He wants to pour out onto us. We cannot get to Heaven without Jesus and He wants to save everyone!

Pope Francis Not a Freemason

So, not so much of a conspiracy theory after all then...

Let's be frank here...no Pope has ever, as far as I know, publicly let on that there is a 'problem' with the power and influence of Freemasons in the Vatican. More power to your elbow, Your Holiness.

I'll be even more frank. The first thought I had about our beloved new Pope was that he might be a Freemason, only because when His Holiness greeted the crowd he said, "I want to build a big brotherhood."

Nothing sounds more masonic than a 'big brotherhood'. When His Holiness said that, I thought, 'Oh no! What if the Pope's a Freemason?'

In fact, I became so worried His Holiness was a Freemason that I typed into YouTube, 'Pope Francis Freemason' and came up with this insanity...

So thank you, Your Holiness, for putting my mind to rest, since it stands to reason that no masonic Pope would talk about the influence of the Freemasons in the Vatican.

Deo gratias! Phew. I'll sleep better from now on!

Bring Beach Balls of the Rarest

Right! I'm off to the allotment!

Right now, if I had a shed, I'd consider living there until things have died down a little.

Thoughts on Groggy's Fifth Anniversary

Five years ago today, I gave birth to Nothing is Written: A Film Blog. Reading this initial post, it's clear I had no idea what I was doing. Being "fairly eclectic" would come as a shock to readers, who know 90% of my posts are simple movie reviews. I also use my real name, something I've avoided where possible.

I take a lot of pride in this blog. Just maintaining interest in something for this long is a big accomplishment. With past blogs, my engagement was always hit and miss: periods of intense involvement, followed by neglect, repeat until I give up. (Heck, my T.E. Lawrence site isn't exactly thriving.) This follows through to my writing generally; the real reason I haven't gotten anywhere professionally, I suspect, is through this lack of focus and energy. Otherwise I'd have a dozen pieces on Moviepilot by now.

Yet I've never gotten sick of blogging about film, and don't plan on getting sick of it. There are way too many films to discuss, too many angles to explore. If I get sick of reviews, I could write about television or plays, as I've done recently. Profiles of actors or directors aren't off the table, either. Nothing is Written will live until I drop dead or someone hacks the site. Either would be a tragedy.

Why blog? For one, I was a wide-eyed film student then, still dreaming that I could be the next David Lean. I had a lot to say about movies and honed my knowledge through different classes. Freshman year I had Professor Marcia Landy, a decidedly eccentric scholar, for a class on Italian genre movies. Getting thrust into an advanced level course right away really helped my appreciation of film analysis. Sure, I reject the more obnoxious strains of literary theory: not everything is a metaphor for penises and Communism, guys. But encouraging me to dig beneath a film's surface level certainly helped.

Then there were the actual production classes. My strongest memory of the Pittsburgh Film Institute comes from standing in a blizzard juggling a book, a light board, a camera and tripod, then dropping them all in the snow just as a bus drove by. Then finding my film cartridges were defective, and having to re-shoot, develop and edit the project all in one day. Time and stress eventually put paid to that dream, or maybe I realized I wasn't cut out for it. Either way, my love of movies burns strong.

Reading film criticism certainly helped. Glenn Erickson of DVD Savant is my biggest influence. I love reading his reviews, which are both learned and conversational - a difficult task. When not actually ripping off his style (readers may judge for themselves), I certainly hew to Erickson's approach to movies: analyze the film while entertaining the reader. I like to think my pieces appeal to the casual reader and serious film scholar alike. If they do, I've succeeded.

I settled into the review groove with my Lean Quest in fall of 2008. It was easier to write about individual films than some of the ambitious ideas. My writing on those early pieces is verbose and obnoxious. I've even gone back and rewrote a few, because I'd rather have an articulate piece about my favorite film than some lumpen mass of unformed 19 year old thought stinking things up. Then I instituted the ratings system on reviews, something I eventually discarded (except for the index).

My current style developed junior year (2009-2010). A big part was my flirtation with journalism: I'm nothing if not a dilettante. I briefly wrote for The Pitt News, and having my reviews dissected and pared down by editors certainly influenced my style. No longer obnoxiously verbose, I decided a succinct, (relatively) economic style that I still use today. No long sentences dammit! Convey as much information in as little space as possible.

Any works that I'm especially proud of? I'm very happy with my Lawrence of Arabia pieces from last fall, the Seven Scenes from Seven Pillars of Wisdom article especially. That epic Charge of the Light Brigade piece from May took two months to research and write; I think it turned out well. Hard to pick a favorite among individual reviews, but my pieces on In Cold Blood and Dr. Strangelove hew closest to my ideal style. I enjoy writing the occasional bad movie article; one even got linked by AV Club. Finally, there's the review index, which I created one long May night during 2010's summer term.

I've no delusions that Nothing is Written is a timeless work of film criticism. But I take pride if only for putting so much time and effort into the blog. It's an expression of my love for cinema, passion for writing, and evidence that if I ever get off my ass, I can actually do something. If people read my reviews and enjoy them, gain a deeper appreciation for old favorites, heck if they put something new in their Netflix queue, I've succeeded. Thank you all for reading.

And the best post on the banning of the Latin Mass crisis?

Undoubtedly goes to Kate Edwards.

I have read the posts of the appeasers and those of the outraged but Australia Incognita wins the silver teapot....by a big margin!

 

Update on the Francisan Friars of the Immaculate

Courtesy of Mary Victrix

'It was reported in the Catholic online press today that our religious community, the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate, has been assigned an Apostolic Commissioner by the Sacred Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated life.  Pope Francis has ordered the decree which goes into effect on August 12.
Pope Francis has also severely restricted our use of the Extraordinary Form of the Mass, and this has been reported by a major italian journalist as a “contradiction” of Pope Benedict’s permission granted in the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum.

This is an unfortunate instance of an overeager journalist sensationalizing something he can only speculate about. The restrictions on our community are specific to us and have been put in place for reasons specific to us.  Pope Francis has not contradicted Pope Benedict.  The visitation of our community began under Pope Benedict and the Commission was recommended by Cardinal João Braz de Aviz who was appointed to the Congregation by Pope Benedict.

What is being reported in the press and what has actually transpired within our community over the course of a number of years are two different things. Many of us - I would hope most of us - Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate, welcome the Holy Father’s intervention into our life and trust fully that Holy Mother Church knows exactly what she is doing, even when the journalists do not.  We entrust ourselves to her care, just as we do to the Immaculate.'

Please pray for our Institute.

This is very consoling, apart from the fact that the decision came down against those in the community who are devoted to the Traditional Latin Mass. Why is an internal dispute settled by a decisive move against the Mass of Ages by the Pope? I still fail to see how this is not in contradiction to Summorum Pontificum, since a number in the community desire Mass in the Extraordinary Form.

Now let us consider the not so consoling. The implications are that the Supreme Legislator of the Catholic Church can and possibly will move against other communities should circumstances warrant it. What does this mean? A letter or two from parishioners of a Church? A letter from the Diocesan Bishop?

Let's be realistic here. How many Bishops who feared moving against Priests celebrating the Traditional Latin Mass before will see news of this tragedy and be emboldened?

I will be honest in saying that when I spent time with the Franciscans of the Immaculate on the Pilgrimage to Walsingham two years ago the two inspiring Friars present made it clear how devoted to the Latin Mass they are and the important element it played in their spiritual life. This Franciscan Order's new vocations thrive on the Latin Mass - its part of the reason young men join the Order. They are attracted by the beauty of the traditional rite. To the majority (and I think it is a majority) in the Friars of the Immaculate, this may feel like a crucifixion. The traditional rite may well have been the reason they entered the Order.

It is true that this dispute was begun under the reign of Benedict XVI, but do we really believe that Benedict XVI would have come down like a tonne of bricks against the Mass in the Extraordinary Form, requesting permission from Rome for the celebration of the Mass that he himself had enshrined as needing no formal request for its lawful celebration?

Let us leave it there. It is, as Fr Angelo has said, an internal matter and his statement is a model of obedience. We would expect nothing less from an Order that under the care of their Seraphic Father Francis. 

The Latin Mass banned by Rome?

Disturbing news originating from Vatican journalist Sandro Magister (not necessarily right in his information).

Australia Incognita has the story HERE......read and pray.

It could be the end of this...

Which way to the SSPX?

Pope Francis on Pope Emeritus Benedict

 “I love Benedict XVI, he’s a humble man of God and a man of prayer. When he resigned, it was a great example … some say to me, how is it possible to have two popes in the Vatican? I heard a beautiful phrase that it’s like having your Grandpa at home, someone who’s wise, venerated, loved, and listened to. If I have a problem, something I don’t understand, I can ask. On the Vatican leaks scandal, for example, he explained everything with simplicity and a spirit of service." 

~ Pope Francis

The Catholic Herald today highlights a quite breathtaking series of quotes from Pope Francis in an 'off the cuff' interview he gave to journalists on the 12-hour flight from Rio to Rome. The contents of the interview have been covered by the 'National Categorically Not Very Catholic Reporter'.

Issues covered in the interview include:

The role of women in the Church

Travel plans

The charismatic movement

The Vatican Bank

Homosexuality

Curial Reform

Divorced and remarried Catholics

The Jesuits

The Canonisation causes of Blessed Popes John Paul II and John XXIII

The Ricca Affair and 'the lobby'

Quite sweeping, I think you'll agree. I apologise to anybody offended by the headline image but I'm sure Pope Emeritus Benedict will be none too thrilled when he hears the fate of the Franciscans of the Immaculate. Perhaps he already has.

One thing is certain amidst what is beginning to feel like a mini-tribulation. We are in for a radical and very different papacy to what Catholics have perhaps hitherto experienced. Hold on tight. This is going to be a rollercoaster. Hold fast to the Magisterium, pray for His Holiness and...

I'm taking a break. I can't take any more of this. I'm off to the allotment!

Franciscans of the Immaculate Restricted on Celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass

Chiesa and the LMS Chairman today report the stunning, and frankly chilling news that the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate have a new Superior, not a member of the Order but a Capuchin, Fidenzio Volpi, and that the priests of the Order have been forbidden to say the Traditional Mass in public or private, without special permission. This is effective from Sunday 11th August.

According to Sandro Magister, this appointment has been approved by His Holiness Pope Francis who has, by his apostolic authority, utterly contradicted both Summorum Pontificum and Universae Ecclesiae, embedded into the Law of the Church by the Pope's predecessor, Benedict XVI. Many will be unsurprised by this flagrant contradiction of Church law if only because in this the reigning Pope has form.

As Sandro Magister says...

'And this in itself is cause for astonishment. Because the Franciscans of the Immaculate are one of the most flourishing religious communities born in the Catholic Church in recent decades, with male and female branches, with many young vocations, spread over several continents and with a mission in Argentina as well. They want to be faithful to tradition, in full respect for the magisterium of the Church. So much so that in their communities they celebrate Masses both in the ancient rite and in the modern rite, as moreover do hundreds of religious communities around the world - the Benedictines of Norcia, to give just one example - applying the spirit and the letter of the motu proprio “Summorum Pontificum" of Benedict XVI.'

According to the same journalist, 'the decree bears the date of July 11, 2013, the protocol number 52741/2012, and the signatures of the prefect of the congregation, Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, a focolarino, and of the secretary of the same congregation, Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo, a Franciscan.'

Cardinal Burke celebrates the TLM at the Friars of the Immaculate's seminary

In an 'extraordinary' manner, Pope Francis has, according to Magister, therefore allowed the astonishing over-riding of the existing laws instituted by his predecessor which give to all priests and religious communities the full and legal permission to celebrate the Mass in the Extraordinary Form.

The Franciscans of the Immaculate will not be the only ones who will be stunned and crestfallen by this appointment and decree, but none other than Cardinal Raymond Burke and, one would imagine, all priests in the Catholic Church who have been 'emancipated' by the pontificate of Benedict XVI to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass will doubtless feel confused and betrayed.

A seagull awaits the election of the new Sovereign Pontiff of the Church

According to Magister, this chain of events began when a small group within the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate petitioned Rome in anger at the frequency with which the Mass in the Extraordinary Form was celebrated by the community.

There will be not a few priests who, knowing that the Mass of Ages is not universally popular within even their own congregations, will be concerned that if this can happen to an entire Franciscan Order, affecting each and every of their communities spread around the World, that it can happen to them, despite it being perfectly licit to celebrate Mass in the Extraordinary Form since it was decreed by Pope Benedict XVI to have been 'never abrogated.'

Magister continues...

'But precisely this was contested by a core group of internal dissidents, who appealed to the Vatican authorities complaining of the excessive propensity of their congregation to celebrate the Mass in the ancient rite, with the effect of creating exclusion and opposition within the communities, of undermining internal unity and, worse, of weakening the more general "sentire cum Ecclesia." The Vatican authorities responded by sending an apostolic visitor one year ago. And now comes the appointment of the commissioner.

'But what is most astonishing are the last five lines of the decree of July 11: "In addition to the above, the Holy Father Francis has directed that every religious of the congregation of the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate is required to celebrate the liturgy according to the ordinary rite and that, if the occasion should arise, the use of the extraordinary form (Vetus Ordo) must be explicitly authorized by the competent authorities, for every religious and/or community that makes the request.” The astonishment stems from the fact that what is decreed contradicts the dispositions given by Benedict XVI, which for the celebration of the Mass in the ancient rite “sine populo" demand no previous request for authorization whatsoever.'

Shortly before he died, St. Francis of Assisi called together his followers and warned them of the coming troubles, saying:

'Act bravely, my Brethren; take courage, and trust in the Lord. The time is fast approaching in which there will be great trials and afflictions; perplexities and dissensions, both spiritual and temporal, will abound; the charity of many will grow cold, and the malice of the wicked will increase.

The devils will have unusual power, the immaculate purity of our Order, and of others, will be so much obscured that there will be very few Christians who will obey the true Sovereign Pontiff and the Roman Church with loyal hearts and perfect charity. At the time of this tribulation a man, not canonically elected, will be raised to the Pontificate, who, by his cunning, will endeavour to draw many into error and death.

Then scandals will be multiplied, our Order will be divided, and many others will be entirely destroyed, because they will consent to error instead of opposing it.

There will be such diversity of opinions and schisms among the people, the religious and the clergy, that, except those days were shortened, according to the words of the Gospel, even the elect would be led into error, were they not specially guided, amid such great confusion, by the immense mercy of God.

Then our Rule and manner of life will be violently opposed by some, and terrible trials will come upon us. Those who are found faithful will receive the crown of life; but woe to those who, trusting solely in their Order, shall fall into tepidity, for they will not be able to support the temptations permitted for the proving of the elect.

St Francis gave a prophecy concerning his Order shortly before his death

Those who preserve their fervour and adhere to virtue with love and zeal for the truth, will suffer injuries and, persecutions as rebels and schismatics; for their persecutors, urged on by the evil spirits, will say they are rendering a great service to God by destroying such pestilent men from the face of the earth. but the Lord will be the refuge of the afflicted, and will save all who trust in Him. And in order to be like their Head, [Christ] these, the elect, will act with confidence, and by their death will purchase for themselves eternal life; choosing to obey God rather than man, they will fear nothing, and they will prefer to perish rather than consent to falsehood and perfidy

Some preachers will keep silence about the truth, and others will trample it under foot and deny it. Sanctity of life will be held in derision even by those who outwardly profess it, for in those days Jesus Christ will send them not a true Pastor, but a destroyer.'

A seagull attacks the dove released by Pope Benedict XVI on 26.01.13

There will be some in the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate who may consider that this prophecy of St Francis is perhaps relevant to our times. Let us pray earnestly for the Pope and for the now persecuted sons and daughters of St Francis in the Order of the Franciscans of the Immaculate, who must be so dear to their Seraphic Father Saint Francis and pray to God in Heaven that His Holiness Pope Francis will reconsider the promulgation of this nefarious decree, since its implications extend way beyond the Franciscans of the Immaculate, but potentially to any religious community or indeed any parish priest who celebrates Mass in the Extraordinary Form in the wake of Summorum Pontificum and Universae Ecclesiae.

Quite what the Cardinal Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, Cardinal Raymond Burke - who has celebrated Pontifical High Mass with the Franciscans of the Immaculate and whose depth of knowledge of Church and canon law is perhaps unparalleled in the whole Church - makes of this decree is anybody's guess, but I'm in a state of disbelief that following all that the then Pope Benedict XVI laid down in the Church's law by Motu Proprio, the flickering flame of the Mass of Ages can so easily be extinguished!

Lords of the Dance

By now, most will have seen that awful film clip showing the hierarchy of South America being led into ridiculous caperings and posturings that will, if anything, alienate any Catholic youth with any ounce of intelligence.

I have run dry on possible adjectives to use to describe this shambles but, my greatest concern is that it reflects what poor leaders we have.

Even allowing for cultural differences between Latin America and the rest of the world it was an appalling pantomime, matched only by the equally banal and blasphemous Stations of the Cross (Via Dolorosa comes to Copacabana).

I fully comprehend the fact that we have to address Catholic youth in a more enlightened manner than just shoving a catechism under their nose but to indulge them in farce is not the way; it is patronising and insulting.

Many years ago a group of Catholics used to produce what became known as 'The Pimlico Passion Play' not quite up to Oberammergau standards but very professional, nonetheless.

It ran each year and it told the story on stage and in mime (most effective) of the Passion of Christ according to St Matthew.

It did not require dancers, or special effects, or panto 'Christs' or inappropriate music; the story of the Way of the Cross, if viewed critically in dramatic terms, is the most poignant piece of theatre possible.

But, returning to our Bishops.

If they possess such a lack of judgement, if they are so easily led (by the cheerleader) and if they believe that capering is a sensible means of relating to Catholic youth, then they are in the wrong job.

And, if the Holy Father, having observed all that took place on Copacabana Beach, takes no action, then he is in the wrong job also.

And back to the 'Stations', here is a clip showing Jim Caviezel speaking of how he portrayed Jesus Christ in the film, The Passion of the Christ.

This is how we should reveal the truth to the young...

Prophecy of Our Lady of Good Success to Mother Mariana

Restorationist: Our Lady of Good Success

Okay, I was going to post this last night in the wake of that truly awful outbreak of absurd dancing by the Bishops Conference of Brazil. I thought better of it, because Bishops will be Bishops in the modern age.

However, if Rorate Caeli's reports are true today, then it behooves us who believe that the liturgical renewal began by the then Pope Benedict XVI was from God, to take some consolation that while the restoration of the liturgy and of perfectly reasonable and lawful Catholic piety ('What was held as sacred for previous generations remains sacred...') may not be supported, or continued, or may even be opposed by the reigning Pontiff, that it will be finally accomplished through the Immaculate Heart of the Mother of God.

Here are words from Pope Francis that may have some priests a little concerned...

'The Pelagian solution. This basically appears as a form of restorationism. In dealing with the Church’s problems, a purely disciplinary solution is sought, through the restoration of outdated manners and forms which, even on the cultural level, are no longer meaningful. In Latin America it is usually to be found in small groups, in some new religious congregations, in (exaggerated) tendencies to doctrinal or disciplinary “safety”. Basically it is static, although it is capable of inversion, in a process of regression. It seeks to “recover” the lost past.'

There is much in that passage that may well be wise and true and much that may be highly contentious. This does not mean any Catholic, myself included, should be anything other than loyal to Pope Francis, it just means that as Catholics loyal to the Successor of St Peter, we must pray as the Blessed Virgin has asked us to do so, for His Holiness Pope Francis and for the continued restoration of the liturgy, the form and manner in which it is undertaken, as Cardinal Raymond Burke said, teaches and promotes Catholic morality, belief and prayer.

"During these unfortunate times, evil will assault childhood innocence. In this way, vocations to the priesthood will be lost, which will be a true calamity."

"Against them [holy ministers of the altar] the impious will rage a cruel war, letting fall on them vituperations, calumnies and vexations in order to impede the fulfillment of their ministry. But they, like firm columns, will remain unswerving and will confront everything with the spirit of humility and sacrifice with which they will be vested, by virtue of the infinite merits of my Most Holy Son, Who will love them in the innermost fibres of His Most Holy and Tender Heart."

"The secular clergy will be far removed from its ideal, because the priests will become careless in their sacred duties. Lacking the divine compass, they will stray from the road traced by God for the priestly ministry and they will become attached to wealth and riches which they will unduly strive to obtain."

"How the Church will suffer on that occasion of the dark night of the lack of a Prelate and Father to watch over them with paternal love, gentleness, strength, discernment and prudence. Many priests will lose their spirit, placing their souls in great danger."

"Therefore pray insistently without tiring and weep with bitter tears in the secrecy of your heart. Implore our Celestial Father that, for love of the Eucharistic Heart of my Most Holy Son and His Precious Blood shed with such generosity...He might take pity on His ministers and bring to an end those ominous times, and send to the Church the Prelate who will restore the spirit of its priests."

"My Most Holy Son and I will love this favoured son with a love of predilection, and we will gift him with a rare capacity, humility of heart, docility to divine inspiration, the strength to defend the rights of the Church and a tender and compassionate heart, so that, like another Christ, he will assist the great and small, without despising the more unfortunate souls who ask him for light and counsel in their doubts and hardships....Into his hand the scales of the Sanctuary will be placed so that everything is weighed with due measure and God will be glorified."

"The lukewarmness of all the souls consecrated to God in the priestly and religious state will be the cause of the Devil taking possession of this land [Ecuador], where he will achieve his victories by means of foreign and faithless people so numerous that, like a black cloud, it will obscure the pure heavens of the then-Republic consecrated to the Sacred Heart of my Divine Son."

"With these people, all the vices will enter, which will attract in their turn every type of chastisement, such as plagues, famines, internal fighting and external disputes with other nations, and apostasy, the cause of the perdition of so many souls so dear to Jesus Christ and to me."

"In order to dissipate this black cloud which prevents the Church from enjoying the clear day of liberty, there will be a formidable and frightful war, which will see the bloodshed of countrymen and foreigners, of secular and religious priests, and of religious. That night will be most horrible, for, humanly speaking, evil will seem to triumph."

"This, then, will mark the arrival of my hour, when I, in a marvelous way, will dethrone the proud and cursed Satan, trampling him under my feet and fettering him in the infernal abyss. The the Church and Country will be free of his cruel tyranny."

For all we know, and we know very little indeed, the promised Prelate could be Pope Francis himself, since God's ways are mysterious and impenetrable to our feeble human reasoning. All Our Lady asked us to do is to pour out our prayers to God and to her, as she asked at Fatima, as she asked at Akita, as she asked at La Salette, as she asked at Quito. I have a feeling that the SSPX see themselves as the ones identified by Our Lady of Good Success. I have to say, however, that there are many Catholic priests in full communion with and loyal to the Successor of St Peter, who feel passionately about the Sacred Liturgy because the Mass is the single most important and holy daily event on Earth.

The Mass is not Vegas, though some in Rio could be forgiven for thinking that perhaps it is. What happens at the Mass, unlike Vegas, does not stay in the Church but reverberates and echoes around the entire globe, be it covered by mass media or not. If what Rorate today reports is true, some of these priests dedicated to restoring the Sacred in the Church's Liturgy may well be crestfallen over the stark or insensitive nature of His Holiness's comments.

Do not give in to despair. Our Lady will complete what you, brave, courageous and noble Priests of Jesus Christ, have begun in loyalty to His Holiness's predecessor. You will be victorious come what may, for the One for whom you work - the One who is in you - is the all-powerful God, to whom belongs all power and glory forever.

Remain firm, even in the face of persecution or calumny. Do not give up, for what you have begun, Our Lady will crown and complete. The Catholic Church is either a Church of continuity, embracing Her holy tradition, or She is no Church at all, since She was founded not just by any man, but by Our Lord Jesus Christ, by God Himself on Earth.

If the practices and devotions of those who came before us were truly or entirely "lost", then we should not venerate their relics, nor would men desire to imitate them and follow the path to God that they traced out for us. An essential, integral, vital, necessary, irreplaceable part of that path was their enduring devotion to the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, be they Popes, Bishops, Cardinals, Friars, Monks, Nuns or lay men and women.

Your Holiness! You are right to say that we should not cast off the elderly because they have wisdom! Let us not therefore cast off the wisdom of those who came before us; the Fathers, the Doctors, the great Popes, the 'Elders' of the Church! Let us embrace what they embraced for everything they learned came from God, not from themselves! That is why we revere them and they themselves revered those who came before them, acknowledging the Church's debt to their holy endeavours!

We love you, Your Holiness, as the youth in Rio love you! Do not turn upon those who love you but who also love all those who came before you and who love that which was given to the Church by their heroic sanctity and work for God, from God! Their prayer, their respect of holy tradition, their piety, their devotion, their zeal and great love for God and His Bride, the Church, gave us the Treasure of all treasures - the Mass of Ages! Do not abandon their efforts, their accomplishments, nor the growing flock to whom you are Chief Shepherd who have tasted the sweetness of the Mass of Ages, since in doing so, Your Holiness would be disregarding not only the aged, but the youth as well!

Traditional Catholic: St Francis of Assisi

If all those who seek the renewal of the liturgy and who have discovered the riches of Catholic worship in the Traditional Latin Mass are pelagians, then St Francis of Assisi was a pelagian, since this was the Mass that nourished his love of Jesus Christ, the One who said to the Poverello: "Francis, rebuild My Church, which you can see has fallen into ruin!"

Do you really believe, Your Holiness, that Saint Francis of Assisi, who by holy tradition took the seat vacated by Lucifer in Heaven, because of his great humility, would admonish those who cherish what he himself cherished? Your Holiness, do you believe that St Francis of Assisi himself belongs to an age that is "lost"? We know you are humble, your Holiness, since the whole world knows it so well, but is Your Holiness humble enough to take as his heavenly guide the one after whom he himself is named - the layman and playboy who became the Saint and stigmatic mystic who we, just like you, love and revere - Francis?

Rio

There are some simply astonishing pictures of the 3 million attended WYD in Rio on The Telegraph.

There are other astonishing things that have happened at Rio, but let's not dwell on that.

Ragazzagallese is not a type of pasta!

Spaghetti alla Razzagallese? No.

After Mass this morning an impromptu blognic was held in the Cathedral porch (no tea facilities for Latin Mass lovers see?).

I met for the first time, a female Welsh Catholic blogger, almost as rare as the male version.

Miss Ragazzagallese had travelled all the way from Cardiff Archdiocese to touch base with us lot in Menevia, much appreciated by all who met her.
Furthermore, she has lived in Rome and shared an apartment with another Catholic blogger, Hilary White.

For me, in particular, it was rewarding to meet a young Catholic who adheres to orthodox teaching and attends the Mass of all Time and....at the same time.....

......is completely normal. I mean this in the best possible sense but many of us older brethren of the Latin Rite do appear somewhat...umm, eccentric?....nutty?

Not surprising really considering some of the high jumps we have had to perform over the past twenty five years in order to preserve our beloved Mass and liturgies.

My children, all of whom are adult, were brought up in the time of great persecution of those who were traditional in their beliefs and, as a result, our Masses were often held at the drop of a hat, without the Bishop's permission, in the sitting room or wherever there was space for us.

Those who attended were strong enough in spirit, not to knuckle down to the new religion, and you do have to be a bit of a nut to do that.

So now my children believe that all traditional Catholics are a bit 'off the wall', if you follow me.

If Miss Ragazzagallese is representative of our new young Catholics (and I'm sure she is), we have nothing to worry about - the future of the Faith is in safe hands.


Please visit her blog HERE and add her to your bloglist, we need more of her calibre.

Tutu Concerns Over Homophobic Heaven

Calm down, Desmond, God fears nobody

"I would refuse to go to a homophobic heaven. No, I would say sorry, I mean I would much rather go to the other place. I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this." ~ Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Okay, Desmond, well thankfully God is not homophobic nor are any of the Saints. God detests and loathes sin - every kind of sin under the sun, but God loves sinners. The sin of Sodom remains a sin crying out to Heaven for vengeance despite the abyss of mercy that flows from the Heart of Jesus for sinners. God loves all sinners and aside from Our Lady Immaculate, only sinners can become Saints! The Lord said, "I did not come for the healthy, but for the sick."

If you cannot deal with the Catholic position on homosexuality (Heaven's position on homosexuality) and worry that you still wouldn't fit in in Heaven because of your views on this subject are so widely divorced that of the Almighty, then remember 'the other place' is no better. There, in Hell, they hate God and everybody, including themselves no matter what their sexual orientation is or rather was. There is no sin on Earth that cannot be forgiven aside from final impenitence, but Desmond, in Heaven there is no stain of sin, disorder, or concupiscence at all.

I think, dear readers, this is what happens to those who do not believe in Purgatory.

The Lone Ranger

In three weeks, The Lone Ranger went from Disney's next blockbuster tent pole to this summer's biggest flop. It's probably the most backhanded of complements to say Ranger isn't anywhere near as bad as the reviews indicate. Sure, it's Pirates of the Caribbean out West, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

John Reid (Armie Hammer) is an idealistic lawyer returning to Colby, Texas. His train's held up by the gang of Butch Cavendish (William Fitchner), a sadistic outlaw rumored to be a wendigo, or evil spirit. Also on the train is Tonto (Johnny Depp), a crack brained Comanche Indian who reluctantly befriends John. After Butch kills John's brother (James Badge Dale), John gets reborn as The Lone Ranger, a vengeance-seeking, mask-wearing vigilante. He and Tonto contend not only with Butch, but Latham Cole (Tom Wilkinson), an amiable Union Pacific official who's not what he seems.

Besides filming in Monument Valley, Gore Verbinski lards Ranger with homages to The Searchers (the farmhouse massacre), The Wild Bunch (a shootout juxtaposed with Shall We Gather at the River?) and Once Upon a Time in the West (too many to count). Verbinski enjoys playing John Ford for awhile, but ultimately returns to the Pirates blueprint: straight-laced hero teamed with sleazy sidekick; the double-dealing corporate bigwig; villains who hate each other more than the heroes; "progress" equated with mass murder; Johnny Depp in strange makeup. Verbinski demonstrates the thin line between hack and auteur.

The Lone Ranger nonetheless works, jettisoning Pirates' more absurd plotting and supernatural elements for streamlined storytelling. The buddy dynamic works pretty well, and Verbinski spends enough time shading in supporting players that the interstitial material carries some weight. The main focus though are the go-for-broke, Rube Goldbergian set pieces Verbinski specializes in. Attempting to one-up Buster Keaton, Verbinski opens with a raucous train robbery/chase scene, topping it later on with a spectacular running gun battle complete with William Tell Overture. CGI-aided or no, it hits all the right action movie notes.

Admittedly, Ranger runs long at 149 minutes. The framing device with an antiquated Tonto is worthless, while a digressive set piece featuring ivory-legged hooker Red (Helena Bonham Carter) goes nowhere. There's much puerile liberal whining about corporate greed and maltreatment of Indians, culminating in a massacre straight from Soldier Blue. And the movie undercuts its dark tone and grisly violence with jokes about horse poop and killer bunnies. Still, Butch eviscerating his victims in this family film is scarcely less disturbing than Only God Forgives.

Johnny Depp plays Tonto as, essentially, Jack Sparrow with pidgin English and a bird on his head. Your mileage may vary whether this amuses or annoys. Armie Hammer (The Social Network) proves perfect casting as the straight arrow John Reed. Why this charismatic actor can't catch a break (this marks his third flop after Mirror, Mirror and J. Edgar) is beyond comprehension. William Fitchner makes a ferocious baddie. With his pork pie hat and scruffy beard, Tom Wilkinson uncannily recalls James Mason in Lord Jim. Ruth Wilson plays the perfunctory love interest, while Helena Bonham Carter's part amounts to an extended cameo.

It's no fun defending a movie everyone else hates, but dammit if I didn't enjoy The Lone Ranger. I was grinning like a kid during the wild gunfight/train chase at the film's climax, and really that's all I demand from my summer blockbusters.