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.