Ignis Ardens

'Golgotha Picnic' Blasphemy - the Fight Continues

2011-12-04T18:35:00.009Z

We take this opportunity to draw our readers' attention to yet more news from "abroad" - these Traditional Catholics may speak a different language to us, but they put us to shame in our apathy by showing us how it is done.

As reported on several websites, including LaPorteLatine.org , Civitas-Institut.com, and others, a new blasphemy is about to be unleashed on Paris.

Entitled "Golgotha Picnic," the play by Rodrigo Garcia, may already be familiar to some. Suffice to say that it is a direct attack on the person of Jesus Christ and in particular, the Cruxifiction.

It will surprise no one to learn that this latest blasphemy is funded both by the French Government, via the Ministry for Culture, and also by the Baron Philippe de Rothschild foundation. Nor will it come as much of a surprise to learn that the opening night is planned for this Thursday, which just *coincidentally* happens to be 8th December - feast of the Immaculate Conception.

From the newspaper "le Figaro" comes news that two Traditional Catholic young men from Brittany have already been arrested in connection with the upcoming showing of the play in Paris. The authorities have threatened a huge police presence, complete with dog patrols around the whole perimeter.

The SSPX French District, together with Civitas are have already announced a new demonstration this at the weekend.(See here: http://www.gloria.tv/?media=222892 )

More information is available on the Ignis Ardens Forum, here:
http://z10.invisionfree.com/Ignis_Ardens/index.php?showtopic=8043&view=findpost&p=9682204

Please stay tuned for further updates.

St Andrew's Advent Novena

2011-11-30T13:48:00.000Z

Starting on St. Andrew's Feast day, November 30, the following beautiful prayer is traditionally recited fifteen times a day until Christmas. This is a very meditative prayer that helps us increase our awareness of the real meaning of Christmas and helps us prepare ourselves spiritually for His coming.

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment
In which the Son of God was born
Of the most pure Virgin Mary,
at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold.
In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee,
O my God,
to hear my prayer and grant my desires,
[here mention your request]
through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ,
and of His Blessed Mother.
Amen.

Last Minute Reminder...!

2011-11-11T16:54:00.006Z

We wish to remind all our all our readers in England, particularly those within a reasonable distance of London, that the fourth "Bringing Christ to Our Neighbour" conference begins tonight, continuing throughout the weekend until Sunday evening.

The location is: St. Joseph's Church Hall, Salterton Road (off Seven Sisters Road), London. N7 6BB

Further details can be found here: http://z10.invisionfree.com/Ignis_Ardens/index.php?showtopic=8017&st=0&#last

We hope to publish a full report on the proceedings in due course, and as in previous years recordings will be available for purchase afterwards for those who were unable to attend.

A new contributor

2011-11-06T22:37:00.002Z

Ignis Ardens blog has acquired an new contributor!

Sarto made his first post the other day, and I'm sure it will prove to be the first of many, which should liven things up somewhat!

Welcome, Sarto.

French Catholic Militants need our help.

2011-11-03T15:36:00.006Z

Many of you will have been following the news from last week and the week before, regarding the young people (most of them Trads), who protested against a blasphemous play in Paris. (For those who have not, please see here: http://z10.invisionfree.com/Ignis_Ardens/index.php?showtopic=8043 )

The City Hall authorities talked tough, as if the Catholics were terrorists, and used riot police and tear gas on these young people who were armed only with rosaries, and who were doing nothing more voilent than kneeling in the street praying and singing. Some 250-odd Catholics were arrested, and held, often for 48hrs in police cells.

As reported in various French media sources, the authorities promised publicly that every single person arrested in connection with these demonstrations would be facing charges. This, despite the fact that many people were arrested merely for praying, for kneeling in the street, or for whistling in the theatre.

These French Catholics have put the rest of us to shame. The French media have also reported that this blasphemous play has aired in many of Europe's capitals, including London, without a peep of protest. Their actions are a lesson to us all. And yet they are now facing trial, court costs, and possibly huge fines.

I would therefore like to draw your attention to the following website which have been set up to help these people (the majority of whom are students, and whose courage far outstrips their financial means) - http://www.soutienauxmilitants.com/

Even those of us of modest means ourselves can help out in some small way, and show some solidarity with, and appreciation for fellow Catholics, defending the name of Our Lord, and ultimately the foundations of European civilisation.

SSPX Rochester to Canterbury, 2011

2011-08-01T22:31:00.003+01:00

The SSPX's annual pilgrimage from Rochester to Canterbury took place over the weekend. For photos, see here.

SSPX Chartres Pilgrimage 2011

2011-06-16T11:51:00.003+01:00

The SSPX's annual Chartres pilgrimage took place over Pentecost weekend.

Ignis Ardens member, davidj, has provided some photos of the event here.

And here is a report from AdoramusTe:

Friday - The Day before the Slog

AlanF and I took the same Eurostar from London to Paris - by Divine Providence we coincidentally ended up sat right next to one another. Though, considering my conversation, AlanF might think it a diabolical plot.

We arrived in Paris and were greeted outside St. Nicholas de Chardonnet by a friend of ours from London, whom we'd met at Canterbury the year before - we'll call him 'Daniel', which I'm informed is not his real name. Along with a group of rather despondent looking Italians he informed us that St. Nicholas would not be letting us stay, as they'd not been informed that we'd be there. After several frantic phone-calls were made between myself, Gregorio, 'Daniel' and one of the London priests, I found myself at a loss of what to do. After begging permission to sleep in the car park some young fellows from the legendary MJCF turned up. Huzzah! They said they'd give us a room. Huzzah! They said wait an hour... So we waited. An hour passed and one of the chaps re-appeared with the message that because the HQ had not been informed that we'd be there they couldn't actually give us a room. Oh dear.

'Daniel' had by now lost his Italian friends, who had apparently gone to sleep on a train somewhere - as in Italia trains serve as hotels, I'm told. We all decided therefore to get on the Metro and head straight to Chartres and sleep rough. After waiting two hours and narrowly catching the last train (the ticket machines wouldn't work and AlanF and I got confused by the mysterious metal doors all over Paris Montparnasse) we sat down. 'Daniel' entertained the whole carriage with his singing.
Arriving at about 01h00 in Chartres we settled down to sleep on some handed stone benches and some clean looking pavement. By 'we' here it should be understood that two of us tried to get to sleep, the third keeping us awake by snoring. At around 02h30 we heard, then confirmed by sight, that two men were scaling the scaffolding around the Cathedral. Naturally, we didn't approve of this. Calling the police gave no results as they couldn't understand what was suspicious about two men scaling the walls of a cathedral at night - after a very short time I hung up on them, frustrated. We called the people down from the Cathedral and had a chat with them - they weren't such bad fellows after all, apparently, they wanted to see the architecture. A fifteen minute long discussion of butresses, gables and cloisters convinced me of their truthfulness. Letting them go, we tried to get to sleep again - though slightly worried about the mad-looking/rabid dog we'd seen running around. Only one hour after falling asleep, roughly 04h00, the dog attacked. The dog was found barking wildly inside our sleeping-bag camp (we had no tents), but a good deal of shouting and stick waving scared it away. Sleep ruined for AlanF and I for the rest of the night - 'Daniel' went back to sleep.

Saturday - The March to Ramboulliet

Morning came, the pilgrimage organisers set up stall - I had the honour of being the first person to receive a pilgrimage wrist-band or register a chapter. 'Les Anglophones' were born. After the Cathedral opened, we had a vsiit - particularly worthy of devotion therein was the veil of Our Lady. Sadly, the buthcer's block was worse than usual, beign covered in sparkly gold plastic and surrounded by esoteric looking thrones. However, luckily the veil was on the other side of the Cathedral! At around 07h30 we met up with the rest of the English-speakers and went to Mass.
Mass was a Missa Cantata and was followed by the blessing of the flags - everyone raised their flags into the air; my own flag was the Yorkshire rose, naturally. AlanF couldn't raise his as his flag hadn't yet found the 'twiggle' that was to be its pole.

We set off, lots of walking and praying was done - the prayers being led by Fr. Sherry, who had very kindly agreed to be our chaplain, as well as Br. Columba, a veteran of Chartres. Hyms, especially 'Daily, daily sing to Mary' was sung many times - though, we all had around three books of songs - the Chartres official French one, the English-Irish district song-book and the Alternative Songbook, containing folk songs, organised very kindly by another walker with the Anglophones. An old pilgrimage favourite 'Green Grow the Rushes, Oh!' was sung with great enjoyment. 'Kilroy was here' was sung impressively by our own poster, Kilroy, and some other good chaps.

AlanF and I fell to sleep while walking at several points - myself having the most peculiar dreams about walking through lines of bolalrds. We'd wake up whenever we stumbled into one another - remarkably, we'd kept walking with flags aloft even while asleep. Neither of us noticed that the other was doing the same thing, so we kept apologising to one another until we realised what was going on. I blame the fact that neither of us had more than an hour's sleep the night before.
Being tired we were very relieved to reach the camp at the end of the day, setting up quaters in the communal tents, which receive far worse criticism than they deserve. In it I was given several energy bars and a tin of tuna by a kindly old man who was by all accounts fitter than myself. No doubt he pitied us eating the rather dubious 'just-add-water' soup provided by the kitchen. Finishing all these food-stuffs, we then went to bed for a very good night's sleep.

Sunday - The Penitential Pentecost

I woke up at about 05h00 that morning, not my favourite hour. Still, pilgrimages are not about comfort - unless you're going with Gregorio's Tradition in Action kit-list. My feet were not happy to be awake, showing this by their inability to move in more than baby-steps for most of the morning. Luckily they got into shape before the morning was over.

That morning I had an extra-large helping of my favourite pilgrimage food, hot-chocolate; it was wonderful. I also had a flapjack and some soreen which I brought from England. Proper good walking food.

We set off, albeit disorderdedly. About ten of the forty-seven Anglophones set off first - myself with them, leaving the rest (who had decided to bring personal tents, forgetting the annoyance of putting them away) behind. Some of those who were left behind were struggling with the massive queues for the luggage-lorries, which lasted for over an hour after the pilgrimage had left. The others caught up at different paces within the next two hours.

The walk was a fair bit harder that day - being almost as long as the fist day, but covered with hills. However, it seemed okay. After walking nine of the eleven hours and having just finished climbing the largest hill, I pulled out for the rest of the day. While I was sitting down some sneaky blisters had formed on my feet, stopping me from keeping up with my group. The nuns, who are lovely, sadly couldn't do anything about these so I resigned myself to sleeping in the mini-van until we arrive at the camp at Villepreux. Once there, I slept some more on the side of a hill, waking up only when the Asperges began at the start of Mass. Being right at the back of the congregation (for that was where the comfortable hill was) I didn't see much of the Mass, or hear much either - the speakers being located at the front! I'm told that Bishop de Gallerreta's sermon was marvellous, but I'm afraid that I can't report on it. I'm sure it was great however! I moved towards the front at the end of Mass and found the other members of the Anglophones - I managed to get there just in time to receive a blessing from Bp. de G. The children processed out - they were wonderful, so full of energy. Following them, about twenty minutes later, were the adults - many of whom had fallen to sleep while waiting!

We arrived back at camp - AlanF, an hardy Irish man and myself bought copious amounts of sausages, chips and wine and set to celebrating in the tent. We had a good laugh - especially at the fellow who had set up his own tent within a communal tent. Hopefully a picture of this will appear soon. The French are truly bizarre. Kilroy brought in some beer, though he seemed much too tired to finish it. We then all went to bed, so far as I'm aware.

It should be noted that the MJCF did a mediaeval performance around a bonfire that night - however, we didn't attend this for fear of getting wet by the rain/being tired.

Monday - The Day of Many Sunburns

I woke up on Monday, went to the medical tent, where the sisters attempted to sort my feet out again. However, they couldn't do anything once more. As such, I sat the morning out.

We were told, by our wonderful interpreter, to get into a series of buses. These were marked 'Transportation Enfants'. Getting on them, we were taken to the children's stop - upon arrival we learned we were not meant to be there. We were all piled back in and then taken to the lunch stop. Despite having unfortunately been unable to walk the morning, the stop gave me time to smoke my pipe, which I hadn't done since the Friday. Attempting to do this I found that my Zippo had run out of gas. I entirely blame the customs people for that, as I couldn't bring replacement fuel. Luckily, some French chap procuded a truly giant lighter, about the size of a glasses-case, to light my pipe. Bliss.

The others arrived and we cheered them in. I didn't originally plan on walking in with them, as I'd not done that stretch of the journey, but a friendly Irish fellow handed me my flag and invited me to walk with them, so I did. Everyone always applauds the chapters coming in, thouh since the English... I mean Anglophones, are always placed at the end of the pilgrimage, most peoples' hands were already tired.
We then rested another hour - I smoked another pipe. Rehydrated. "Dehydration is your biggest enemy" the megaphone kept saying. I'm sure I believe it.

We then set off, following the children, for the slow 7km march into Paris. We were following the most Blessed Sacrament into the city - the first Chartres pilgrimage ever to have a Eucharistic procession. A good innovation, in my opinion. Our Lord was mounted on a movable altar of sorts, with a canopy fixed over the monstrance. It was very beautiful.

The organisers, at this point, concocted a hair-brained scheme - to fuse all the foreign chapters into one. Previously, we'd all marched in separate chapters, with our own flags leading our own chapters. Suddenly we were told to put all our flags together thereby separating most of the chapters. The Swiss decided that every flag needed three or four attendants, so we were pretty much walking in the Swiss chapter. As you'll see from the photos, the Swiss have ridiculously large flags, so we decided to humble them somewhat by taking the lead. Yorkshire, England, Ireland, Australia and the Union Flag led the 'foreign chapter' into Paris. The Swiss were unable to overtake again, despite many attempts to charge through us. Some chap also tried to steal the flag of St. George, but he was warded off. We'd had plans to steal/irreperably harm the EU flag which some rather liberal German trad had brought with them - I beleive the common opinion was that the flag had no place on any pilgrimage, even if they had stuck a miraculous medal in the middle of it. Sadly, this plan was never put into action, remaining but a dream in the hearts of the many.
We arrived in Paris, sun beating hard upon us and were placed right at the front of the congregation - this, we were told, was so the French could express their gratitude that we'd all come for the pilgrimage. That was very kind of them indeed. The French might not be so bad after all!

Mass was wonderful, the sermon very clear, being primarily about Christ's Kingship. Many priests sat in choir, as did the nuns and some monks. The capuchins looked particularly impressive as always. This you can see from the photos.
After Mass, AlanF and I collected our luggage, said our goodbyes to the group and headed off. We tried to find St. Nicholas de Chardonnet, but got lost. So lost infact, that we had very little time left to catch our Eurostar.

We asked some people, in French, where the nearest Metro was - they replied, in American, "can't help you there buddy". I asked again in English and they apologised, saying they thought I'd been asking for money. I'm sure I didn't smell or look that bad! We got to the metro and reached Gare du Nord, sadly getting behind a group of dispatriated Africans who wanted to block all the escalators. They very nearly made us miss our train. We then sprinted (if you can image it) to the Eurostar check-in and got there just as the door was closing. Thankfully by then we were on the right side.

The French gendarmes declared my flag-pole a weapon. After a brief debate and an attempt to find the flag, which AlanF had hidden somewhere, they let us through - stick and all. We found our seats were 15 carriages apart - however, this did not deter me from walking the whole of them to drag Alan back to the spare seat nextdoor to me. I'm sure he greatly appreciated this. On the way I ran into several pilgrims - many of the Anglophones being on the same train - not to mention some of the FSSP lot.

We arrived in London, said our goodbyes and parted at the tube. When I got home I went straight to sleep and was very glad of it.

Humble Before God - iConfess contest video

2011-04-30T22:12:00.002+01:00

From this forum post:

The students of Our Lady of Good Success Academy , Farmingville, NY (www.olgsa.com) created a video, "Humble before God," for the i-Confess Contest sponsored by the Archdiocese of New York and the dioceses of Brooklyn and Rockville
...
Please view the video as often as you can. The video with the most views and favorable comments on YouTube by May 7, 2011 will win $25,000 for their school! Please help Our Lady of Good Success Academy win much-needed funds by viewing our video as often as you can and encouraging your friends to do the same! To "like" a video on youtube, please take a minute to set up a free youtube account. It's the easiest way to support Catholic Education!

Also view it on Youtube and "like" it!

O Sacred Head Surrounded

2011-04-01T22:51:00.000+01:00

Red Nose Day again

2011-03-18T14:18:00.003Z

It's that time of year, where people make themselves feel good by giving money to charity on the condition that other people behave stupidly and make them laugh.

I blogged about this two years ago, if anyone's interested.

As I said at the time:

What are people thinking of? If people were motivated by real charity, all that should be needed to raise money for a good cause, is telling them that money is needed and why! People shouldn't need to behave stupidly or immorally to get donations out of people!

Take Comic Relief. For the sake of argument, ignore the fact that it isn't 100% sound from a Catholic perspective. Just imagine that there are no moral or ethical issues against it at all. All it should take to raise the millions of pounds it tends to raise is a 15 minute broadcast about the plight of poor people here and abroad. As is, the 6+ hours of stupidity is just self-indulgence on the part of the celebs (who could probably raise the equivalent sum or more between themselves), and you have to wonder why, if it is such a good cause, people need all the entertainment in order to donate? Would they not donate otherwise?

Advent prayer

2010-11-30T10:29:00.002Z

It's time to dust this prayer off again!

Starting on St. Andrew's Feast day, November 30, the following beautiful prayer is traditionally recited fifteen times a day until Christmas. This is a very meditative prayer that helps us increase our awareness of the real meaning of Christmas and helps us prepare ourselves spiritually for His coming.

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment
In which the Son of God was born
Of the most pure Virgin Mary,
at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold.
In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee,
O my God,
to hear my prayer and grant my desires,
[here mention your request]
through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ,
and of His Blessed Mother.
Amen.

Rosary Crusade against the "Reproductive Health" Bill, in the Philippines

2010-11-13T11:42:00.004Z

The Rosary Crusade began on 31st October, but it's not too late to join in!

Fr Thomas Onoda, SSPX:

My dear friends,

We are launching a Rosary Crusade for the Defense of God's Law on Life and Family especially for the Philippines.

The Philippines is now threatened by a proposed Reproductive Health Bill also known as the RH Bill.

This bill is a full frontal attack on the Catholic Church, its Hierarchy, its morals, its missionaries, its clergy, and its laity.
This House Bill 96 attacks the Catholic Church trying to put to jail every bishop as the "responsible officer of the juridical entity" that refuses to participate in the Reproductive Health Services guaranteed by this law.

This proposed law threatens Catholic foreign missionaries and Non-Government Organization workers with jail sentence / fine and immediate deportation without further process upon the refusal to cooperate in mandatory reproductive health care service

This bill even punishes all who shall speak against the evils of contraceptives. This RH Bill wants to make the Public Health Sector anti-Catholic and hostile to morals and faith.

This bill has provisions that will send to jail or fine all doctors and health care providers who shall refuse to cooperate in "modern Methods of Family Planning" such as IUD, ligation, vasectomy, and promotion and distribution of condoms and pills and so on.

This RH Bill considers having many children a cause of poverty. On the contrary, our beloved nation the Philippines needs more good citizens, holy men and women to work hard resisting corruption, the best doctors and professionals for the country. The true solution is not to reduce the children but to educate our children well.

This bill considers pregnancy a disease and acknowledges that the contraceptives are essential medicines. Life is a gift of God.

This bill, if passed, will be the beginning of the total destruction of the morals and families in the Philippines.

We deplore this threat on our Church in the Philippines. This is why at this moment of danger, we call on all Catholics to pray the holy Rosary for the Philippines. This is why we call, we appeal to all of you to join our Rosary Crusade. Our Lady never fails us when we invoke her aid.

For this crusade, record the number of rosaries you pray daily and submit to us monthly by email, by fax, by phone, or by mail.

This crusade starts on October 31st. By January 16, 2011, feast of Sto. Niño, we want to collect one million rosaries for Our Lady.

Please help us! Please join our Rosary Crusade.

This is Father Thomas Onoda in the hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Cardinal Vidal:

Archbishop Aniceto:

You can e-mail your rosary tallies to OLVC123@gmail.com

People power!

2010-10-12T11:53:00.004+01:00

When people want to they really can change things!

BBC News

Gap scraps new logo after online outcry

The controversial new logo

US clothes retailer Gap has scrapped a new logo just one week after its introduction following an "outpouring of comments" online.

The original logo, which has used been used for more than 20 years, has a blue box with "GAP" written in white inside.

The new logo on the website had "Gap" written in black against a light background with a small blue square laid over the top of the letter "p".

But critics attacked the rebranding on social networks and online forums.

More than 2,000 comments were posted on the company's Facebook page on the issue, with many demanding the return of the traditional logo.

In a statement released on the Gap website, Mark Hansen, president of Gap Brand North America, said the company's customers always came first.

"We've been listening to and watching all of the comments this past week. We heard them say over and over again they are passionate about our blue box logo, and they want it back.

"So we've made the decision to do just that - we will bring it back across all channels."

He added that it was clear the retailer "did not go about this in the right way" and "missed the opportunity to engage with the online community".

"There may be a time to evolve our logo, but if and when that time comes, we'll handle it in a different way," he said.

Well done people!

Now, how about making a difference about something that matters?

Operation Hyde Park

2010-09-19T22:17:00.002+01:00

The Integrity & Action posse were out in force again yesterday afternoon, at Hyde Park, on the occasion of the Holy Father's visit.

An exhausting afternoon's work of handing out box-fulls of literature, of discussing and sometimes having to argue the defense of Christ's holy priesthood in regard to vile and lying media spin about widespread clerical sex abuse, and even the occasional dodging of the odd over-zealous policeman attempting to stop I&A leafleting and wanting to take names and addresses, culminated in the distribution of approximately eight thousand clerical abuse leaflets, two thousand "SSPX and Tradition" leaflets, and two hundred and fifty "Time Bombs of the Second Vatican Council".

Walsingham 2010

2010-09-08T20:17:00.002+01:00

The SSPX's annual Walsingham pilgrimage took place last week, and Ignis Ardens member AlanF took some photos.

More photos here.

Act of Consecration  To the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary

O Lord Jesus, Who on Calvary and in the Holy Eucharist has shown Thyself to us as a God of Love and Mercy, kneeling humbly at Thy feet we adore Thee and beg once more for Thy forgiveness and Thy divine pity.

And remembering that, by Thine own act on Calvary, the human race, represented by Thy beloved disciple John, gained a Mother in the Virgin of Sorrows, we desire to honour the sufferings and woes of our Mother’s Heart by devoting ourselves to it in solemn consecration.

It is but just, o Mary, that our souls should strive henceforth to venerate thee with special homage under the title of thy Sorrowful Heart – a title won by sharing in the whole Passion of thy Divine Son and thus co-operating in the work of our redemption – a title due to thee in justice, and dear, we believe, to Jesus and to thine own Heart, wounded by the wound in His.

We consecrate, therefore, o Mary, to thy Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart ourselves, our families, our country and those who are fighting for its honour. Have pity on us, see our tribulations and the anguish of our hearts in the midst of the mourning and calamities that lay waste the world.

Deign, o Mother of God, to obtain mercy for us that, being converted and purified by sorrow, and made strong in faith, we may henceforth be devoted servants of Jesus Christ and of His Church, for whose triumph we pray. O Mary Immaculate, we promise to be faithful clients of thy Sorrowful Heart. Intercede for us, we beseech thee, with thy Son that, at the cry of thy Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart, His divine Power may speedily bring to pass the triumph of right and justice.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, have pity on us.
Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary pray for us and save us.

(Nihil obstat: Edward A. Cerny, D.D., Censor librorum 
Imprimi potest: William F Maloney, S.J; Provincial, Maryland Province
 Imprimatur: Most Rev. Francis P. Keough, D.D., Archbishop of Baltimore -April 4, 1953)

O Immaculate Heart of Mary, in this tragic hour of humanity’s history we have recourse to thee and still more in this unprecedented tempest shaking the Church from top to bottom. Thou, who once stood at the foot of the Cross and shared so intimately in the sufferings of thy divine Son, how couldst thou not have compassion today on the Church, His Mystical Body.

O Immaculate Heart of Mary, Refuge of Sinners, Mediatrix of all graces, our divine Lord has given thee to us as our ultimate recourse in obtaining our salvation in the midst of the infernal anguish that is relentlessly pressing down upon the world, the Church, and all the priests and the faithful. He wishes to spread throughout the world devotion to thy Immaculate Heart, so that this blessed heart attracts the souls of poor sinners along the path to heaven, that it may be the true home from which the ardent fire of divine Love is cast upon the earth, the never-ending source of the living waters of His mercy.

Sweet Heart of Mary, thou art the refuge and salvation of all those who faithfully consecrate themselves to thee: we are certain, therefore, of finding in thy loving heart the consolation of our sufferings and strength in the stones that assail us on all sides.

Conscious of our weakness in resisting the attacks of hell, of our inability in relying upon ourselves to remain faithful to our gentle Saviour, we come to thee, prostrate before thy throne, imploring thy most gentle protection.
In this year, during our national pilgrimage to thy holy shrine of Walsingham, we consecrate to thee, o Immaculate Mary, the District of Great Britain of the Society of St Pius X, all its priests and religious, all its priories and chapels, our school and all the faithful who worship in the district. We entrust and give this entire work to thy Immaculate Heart, so that it may truly be thy Dowry.

Before all the angels and saints of heaven, o Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, all the priests and faithful of the District of Great Britain choose thee to be their queen, and offer themselves body and soul to thy Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart and consecrate themselves to it with all their belongings.

The District of Great Britain is thine, o Virgin most powerful, so that in thy hands, rich in mercy, it becomes through thee a constant source of grace and blessing.

O Mother of the Eternal High Priest, grant that the priests remain faithful to their priesthood, to the holy sacrifice of the Mass, in its ancient Roman Rite, a venerable source of every grace. O faithful Virgin, keep them strong in the Faith in combating the many heresies of today; may they be devoted servants of the Church so tragically shaken to its very foundations. May they be joyful in hope and filled with a burning charity. Direct all their thoughts and actions only to the well-being of souls in the fulfilment of thy gentle will.

In thy maternal love protect all the religious of the District: may they imitate thee in thy hidden life and so discover the grace of contemplation by standing at the foot of the Cross and receiving the necessary graces to console the Heart of thy divine Son so wounded by the sins of men;

May thy gentle reign extend over all the families who entrust themselves to the Society of St Pius X; may they belong to thee without reserve each day striving to be more faithful. Grant them the light and the strength to fight the good fight of Faith to resist and to defend themselves against the insidious and perverse attacks of the present age.

May all the work undertaken in the District be to God’s greater glory and the salvation of souls. O Immaculate Mary, because it is thine, may it withstand the assaults of the devil; may the District of Great Britain be the refuge in which thou wilt dry up the tears of all; where thou wilt always succour the poor and the weak, and where thou wilt banish hatred and make our conduct gentle.

Immaculate Mary, may every soul in the District wounded by sin find charity once more through reconciliation with its Redeemer. May the Christian soul, troubled by error and bruised by the attractions of the world find comfort and strength to begin the fight once more.

Grant that all may become docile instruments of thy immaculate love in bringing back to thy throne through the sacrifice of the Cross a great number of souls in danger of eternal perdition. Then thy Immaculate Heart will reign forever.

O Mary, thou art powerful as an army in battle array and we so weak and the enemy so strong in its arrogance. But the enemy knows the strength of thy love and the majesty of thy countenance. Save us. Beneath thy standard, consecrated to thee, we feel certain of victory.

O Sorrowful Heart of Mary deign to accept our humble prayers and the total gift of ourselves. Obtain for us through this consecration the grace to be able to say before thy throne one day in the presence of all the angels and saints “Thou art all fair, o Mary; thou art the joy, the honour of our people!” Amen.

SSPX GB website

Diddums

2010-08-31T10:09:00.002+01:00

Fr Philip Endean SJ writes this heart-rending piece in The Tablet this week, about the pastorally insensitive and high-handed manner with which the new English translation of the "Ordinary Form" is being foisted on an unsuspecting faithful.

Here are some tear-jerking excerpts:

Worship and power

There are also serious questions about how authority is being exercised... But in both cases authority has dealt high-handedly and secretively with the sacred, the intimate, the vulnerable. High officialdom has been evasive; lesser authority has tacitly colluded...
... But "abusive" would not be too strong a word to describe the exercise of authority here.
...How are responsible Catholics to cope? The standard answer to that question is: "trust the authority of the Church's office-holders; give them the benefit of the doubt; make the best of the situation."...
...Pope Benedict himself acknowledged the difficulties ahead, and pointed to the need for both sensitivity and catechesis in implementing the change, given that "many will find it hard to adjust to unfamiliar texts after nearly 40 years".
...
We need Pope Benedict's sensitivity as well as "catechesis". Many will feel bereaved, losing an approach to liturgy that has become loved and familiar, and a difficult process needs to be faced openly and honestly. When Church authority instructs us priests to prepare for the new translations, it may think it is saying "this change is a necessary correction to liturgical excesses of previous decades", or "fall in and obey for the good of the Church", or even "don't desert the people of God at a moment of need - help them make the best of a bad job".
...
How might sensitivity mark the impending transition?...
...
This new translation, both in its content and in the manner of its imposition, represents a retreat from the salutary, evangelical reform of church style and mood that Vatican II represented. Those of us who experienced pre-conciliar Catholicism as abusive received Vatican II as a powerful reassurance that the Church was mending its ways. That gave us hope and liberation. It will be a scandal, in both the common and the theological senses of the word, if - at a level that really hurts - the new translation takes that reassurance back.

Very poignant.

How, exactly, was the New Rite introduced?

"...a retreat from the salutary, evangelical reform of church style and mood that Vatican II represented" indeed!

Integrity & Action blog

2010-08-28T20:44:00.001+01:00

Integrity & Action, which I mentioned early last week, now has its own blog.

Integrity & Action

2010-08-16T11:48:00.003+01:00

Come and join our crusade. Help us show that there is still a healthy and moral minority willing to fight tooth and nail against all the immoral outrages prevalent in this decadent society.

A new initiative, Integrity & Action seeks to recruit, educate and organise foot soldiers for this pressing battle. They, in their turn, will organise local protests, and attempt to support national protests, against the rampant godlessness being actively propagated - especially in the moral spheres of abortion, euthanasia, sex education, usury, etc.
...

More here.

Integrity & Action's first protest took place on Saturday, 14th August, outside the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) office, Bedford Square, London.

Of course homosexuals can marry...

2010-08-05T09:48:00.002+01:00

From Telegraph.co.uk:

US District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco defied the state's supreme court and a narrow majority of its voters by ruling that homosexuals and lesbians have a right in the federal constitution to marry on an equal basis with heterosexuals.

Yes. Quite. On an equal basis with heterosexuals. That means that, like heterosexuals, they can marry a member of the opposite sex. No one ever said they couldn't. So, what's all the fuss about?

Rochester to Canterbury, 2010

2010-07-26T22:36:00.006+01:00

This year's SSPX pilgrimage from Rochester to Canterbury, for vocations to the priestly life and the conversion of Britain, took place last weekend.

More photos here.

If vaccines are so effective...

2010-07-07T09:31:00.002+01:00

... why are people who have had them (or whose children have had them) so worried that they (or their children) might catch those illnesses from people who haven't had the vaccines?

Surely only the unvaccinated need to worry...

Abortion is wrong regardless

2010-06-25T14:47:00.004+01:00

An article in The Daily Telegraph informs us that:

Foetus 'cannot feel pain before 24 weeks'

The human foetus cannot feel pain before 24 weeks, according to an official review of scientific evidence, contradicting one argument that anti-abortion campaigners have used for reducing the termination limit.

Even if that is the case, here are some questions:

Is it acceptable to hurl verbal abuse at a deaf man? He can't hear you.
Is it acceptable to make obscene gestures to a blind man? He can't see you.
Is it acceptable to torture someone who cannot feel pain?

The foetus: an unjust aggressor??

2010-06-21T10:45:00.004+01:00

I'd almost forgotten about Monsignor Loftus, until I happened upon this e-mail to The Tablet:

The three articles on the tragic case of Sister Margaret McBride's involvement in the recent abortion controversy (The Tablet, 5,June) must encourage all who have been left puzzled. And encouragement must often suffice where enlightenment cannot be had, since in the Church we see only as through a glass, darkly.

I wonder, however, if one further consideration could be explored. Has sufficient thought been given to the possible role of the foetus as an unjust aggressor? The existence of a negative reply from a Roman dicastery is not proof that it has.

Is a victim allowed to take the life of an aggressor in order to save his or her own life, even if the agressor had not formed, or had been unable to form, an aggressive intent? If so, would not a foetus whose objective aggression was threatening the mother's life, be in the same moral/legal position as an unwitting aggressor , or an aggressive child or mentally defective adult?

Basil Loftus. (By email)

Now, what does an unborn child's aggression consist in? Existing, developing and growing. That is it.

If that is aggression, deserving of death, then, where does that leave the hair-pulling, biting, child?

What is surgery for?

2010-06-02T12:33:00.003+01:00

Further to my previous post:

Normally, one would have an operation to repair something that has gone wrong, or to remove an organ that is diseased.

One does not generally request surgery to render a healthy faculty useless.

I remember hearing some years ago of people who considered themselves one-legged individuals trapped in two-legged bodies, and they would take drastic measures so that they could actually be one-legged. It is surely not bigoted of me to consider those people mentally ill.

And yet, some people of sound mind are unhappy with their fertility, and, with the help of our Health "Service", get themselves maimed to "heal" their "diseased" organs.

Sterilisation is contrary to what surgery is about, which is healing, and doing no harm.

What is medicine for?

2010-06-02T09:46:00.002+01:00

It is normal to take pills when one is ill; when something is not working properly and needs correcting.

So, why do doctors happily prescribe a pill to prevent a part of a woman functioning properly? That's not part of their job, is it?

It is not normal to want blurry vision. It is not normal to want to be hard of hearing. It is not normal to want to walk with a limp. And if you went to your doctor asking for a pill to achieve any of those things, he would think you were mentally unstable.

And yet, women want their fertility stifled, and doctors help them.

And, moreover, while ill people have to pay for drugs to alleviate their actual illnesses, women who want to inhibit their fertility can get the Pill for free!

Insanity!

Sign this petition!

2010-03-01T14:41:00.001Z

To: Bishops of England and Wales
We, the undersigned, call upon the Bishops of England and Wales and the Catholic Education Service to fulfil their duty as guardians of our Catholic Faith and unequivocally reject recent Government measures forcing Catholic schools to teach what is explicitly condemned by the Church, viz: presenting active homosexuality as an acceptable alternative lifestyle, and providing information on the nature - and provision - of contraception and abortion services. Compliance on the part of the Bishops and the CES in such measures would effectively render our schools no longer Catholic in any meaningful sense, and would place the faith and moral life of our children in jeopardy. As Catholic parents, teachers and pastors, we earnestly beg of you, our Shepherds in Christ, that you do not allow this to happen.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

Sign the petition here.

Please!

Bishop Williamson's 70th is on the horizon!

2010-02-27T20:37:00.003Z

Anyone wishing to extend greetings to Bishop Williamson on the occasion of his entering his 71st year, may do so here on Ignis Ardens, or here on AngelQueen. Or you can e-mail dinoscopus@gmail.com, with "birthday" in the subject line.

You have until the 8th March.

Incidentally, the following day will be Ignis Ardens's own 4th birthday!

Which one is easier to carry?

2009-12-05T13:30:00.002Z

This is charming:

I can think of some alternative slogans:

Which one is easier to carry:
A baby or a gun?
A baby or a machete?
A baby or a small bag of cocaine?

As if the ease in carrying a thing has anything to do with it!

Let's see what other wisdom is available on the Connexions360 site:

Most forms of contraception stop you from getting pregnant. Only condoms will protect against both pregnancy and STIs.

But what's this a bit farther down the page?

If you’ve had unprotected sex, forgot to take your pill or the condom split, you can take emergency contraception - if you act quickly.

But hang on, you just said:

Only condoms will protect against both pregnancy and STIs.

So, they don't protect against either if they split. And the greater the reliance on them, the more opportunities for a split to occur.

Hellbent is the word.

Advent Prayer

2009-11-30T21:44:00.005Z

To be said 15 times a day from the feast of St Andrew until Christmas:

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment
In which the Son of God was born
Of the most pure Virgin Mary,
at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold.
In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee,
O my God,
to hear my prayer and grant my desires,
[here mention your request]
through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ,
and of His Blessed Mother.
Amen.

Rochester to Canterbury, 2009

2009-07-27T22:56:00.004+01:00

The SSPX's annual pilgrimage from Rochester to Canterbury took place the weekend just gone, and, as per usual, there are photos aplenty on the forum, courtesy of Gregorio again:

So much for pluralism

2009-07-25T16:54:00.002+01:00

From The Manchester Advertiser, regarding the abortive purchase of a church in Manchester by the SSPX:

"Our community is multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi-faith. We do not believe there is any place in Manchester, and indeed wider society, for views such as those expressed by SSPX."

The irony!

More from Chartres

2009-06-03T22:28:00.003+01:00

A lot more photos have been added since yesterday's post, so do take a butcher's.

Chartres 2009

2009-06-02T22:23:00.004+01:00

As ever, the SSPX's Chartres pilgrimage took place over Pentecost weekend, sans the Montmartre part, on account of a lot of secularists throwing a spanner in the works.

Anyhow, thanks to Gregorio Sarto once again, for taking photos and videos of the event, which can be seen on the forum.

Pentecost

2009-05-31T16:22:00.002+01:00

Veni Creátor Spíritus,
Méntes tuórum vísita:
Imple supérna grátia,
Quæ tu creásti péctora.

Qui díceris Paráclitus,
Altíssimi dónum Déi,
Fons vivus, ignis, cáritas,
Et spiritális únctio.

Tu septifórmis múnere,
Dígitus Patérnæ déxteræ,
Tu rite promíssum Pátris,
Sermóne ditans gúttura.

Accénde lúmen sénsibus,
Infúnde amórem córdibus,
Infírma nóstri córporis
Virtúte fírmans pérpeti.

Hóstem repéllas lóngius,
Pacémque dónes prótinus:
Ductóre sic te prævio,
Vitémus ómne nóxium.

Per te sciámus da Pátrem,
Noscámus atque Fílium,
Téque utriúsque Spíritum
Credámus ómni témpore.

Déo Pátri sit glória,
Et Fílio, qui a mórtuis
Surréxit, ac Paráclito,
In sæculórum sæcula.

Amen.

Nominated!

2009-05-31T16:15:00.002+01:00

I haven't blogged for a couple of months, but seeing as this very blog has been nominated for umpteen Catholic New Media Awards, I thought I'd better put in an appearance!

Let's see: Ignis Ardens blog is nominated in the following categories:

People's Choice Blog
Best Blog by a Woman
Best Written Blog
Most Spiritual Blog
Most Informative Blog
Most Entertaining Blog
Best New Blog

Furthermore Ignis Ardens forum has been nominated for three awards:

Best Catholic News Website
Best Social Networking Site
Best Overall Catholic Website

So, yay!

Charity

2009-03-20T13:31:00.004Z

I Corinthians 13: 4-7

Charity is patient, is kind: charity envieth not, dealeth not perversely; is not puffed up; Is not ambitious, seeketh not her own, is not provoked to anger, thinketh no evil;
Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth with the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never falleth away: whether prophecies shall be made void, or tongues shall cease, or knowledge shall be destroyed....

St Paul could have added:

Charity is not giving money on condition that someone sits in a bath of custard, gets waxed, shaves all his hair off, etc...

In a local paper, is this story:

A LADIES' night at Eastbourne Fishermen's Club is to raise money for a young boy with cerebral palsy.
Jamie Colgan, the father of four-year-old Jayden, set up the Jayden Fund in February 2007 and has raised £16,000 so far to pay for the expensive treatment he needs.
He now needs to raise money for a TheraSuit, a special suit used to stabilise the body and improve balance and develop motor skills.
The latest fundraising event will be a ladies' night, with two male strippers and a comedian and will be held at the Fishermen's Club in Royal Parade on Friday, April 3, at 7.30pm. This comes before a gentlemen's night, with female strippers and a comedian, at the same venue on May 2.

Stripping? To raising money to help a 4 year old boy? Does he know now, or will he one day learn, how this money was raised?

Are people so ungenerous that they will only help him out on condition that they get to enjoy a strip-fest?

What are people thinking of? If people were motivated by real charity, all that should be needed to raise money for a good cause, is telling them that money is needed and why! People shouldn't need to behave stupidly or immorally to get donations out of people!

Take Comic Relief. For the sake of argument, ignore the fact that it isn't 100% sound from a Catholic perspective. Just imagine that there are no moral or ethical issues against it at all. All it should take to raise the millions of pounds it tends to raise is a 15 minute broadcast about the plight of poor people here and abroad. As is, the 6+ hours of stupidity is just self-indulgence on the part of the celebs (who could probably raise the equivalent sum or more between themselves), and you have to wonder why, if it is such a good cause, people need all the entertainment in order to donate? Would they not donate otherwise?

Bernard Williamson is not a valid bishop!

2009-02-21T22:12:00.002Z

Here's a letter that was published in The Universe this weekend:

I remember clearly many years ago now, while a student at St John's Seminary, Wonersh, reading an article in the Heythrop Journal in which the author argued very convincingly that anyone who went through a form of ordination which was expressly against a decree of the Pope was not validly ordained.

Surely this applies to Bernard Williamson and his companions? Is he and are they really priests or bishops in any sense of those words?

Fr Joseph Farrell.

For a start, while there are two Bernards among the SSPX bishops, Bishop Williamson is not one of them! Incidentally, the same letter is published in The Catholic Times giving Bishop Williamson's correct Christian name. So perhaps it was just a typo in The Universe, or did The Catholic Times amend it on the writer's behalf? Anyhow, it made me chuckle!

And, are there really still Catholics who are unwilling to accept the fact that these bishops are valid bishops, and that the Church Herself has never said otherwise?

How can a priest, who has been through seminary, and presumably studied theology, not know that priests and bishops can be ordained validly, even though not necessarily licitly? Hasn't he heard of the Eastern Orthodox?

And the form that the consecrations took was not expressly against a decree of the Pope.

I mean!

My other blog

2009-02-18T16:57:00.002Z

For more light-weight items, I've started another blog: The Insensible Blonde.

I daresay some stuff I've posted here probably belongs there!

Distancing myself

2009-01-29T13:12:00.002Z

I should like to take this opportunity to distance myself from any view held by anyone, anywhere which is at variance with current orthodoxies.

It is not necessarily because I actually disagree with those views. Rather it is because views which are at variance with current orthodoxies are, by their very nature, either: a) vile and loathsome, or b) crackpot, or c) both.

There is no place in modern, enlightened society, and much less, the Church, for people who question preconceived ideas.

It is right that such crackpots be persecuted by all and sundry, and better still, jailed.

I hereby associate myself with the not so silent majority, who fear anything which smacks of independent thought, and I deeply regret any instances of it which I may have been guilty of at any time.

And, in union with them, I make their cry my own:

"Crucify Him!"

Altar girls and Communion in the hand are theologically divisive extras, admits Msgr Loftus!

2009-01-11T10:24:00.003Z

Msgr Basil Loftus writes, in the latest issue of The Catholic Times:

There are attempts to invoke 'Tridentinisation' in order to bar female altar-servers, to exclude the reception of Communion in the hand or when standing, or to put an exaggerated emphasis on choirs, to the exclusion of that congregational singing and dialogue which was a feature of the Tridentine-rite long before the present Ordinary-rite of the Mass was promulgated.

The Tridentine-rite Mass should be what Popes Paul VI and Benedict XVI wanted it to be - a spiritual provision for those in need - not a political peg on which to hang theologically divisive extras.

The choir issue is not theologically divisive anyway, and is a straw man given that most Tridentine Masses offered tend to be Low Masses.

Altar girls and Communion in the hand, it seems, are only theologically divisive when you object to them, not when you approve of them.

Emergency Aid for Palestine

2009-01-10T22:06:00.002Z

See the forum and HolyLandFree.org.

Catholics are asked through their charity to contribute to the material relief of our desperately suffering Palestinian brethren.

Traditional Catholics in Europe have for some years built good relationships with Catholic Palestinians in the Holy Land attempting to provide aid in the forms of medical assistance, the organization of pilgrimages and by the support of small craft enterprises whereby Palestinian families are enabled, in a small way, to work to provide for themselves.

Please consider donating to this important work of charity, especially at this time, when, in Gaza more than 30% of the victims of the ongoing conflict are young children and babies.

The next aid mission of Catholic traditionalists to the Holy Land leaves towards the end of February, 2009. Gaza is completely closed to outside aid at the moment but donated monies indicated for Gaza will be given to a Catholic medical mission to ensure that doctors, nurses and medical supplies reach Gaza at the first opportunity.

Thank you for your time and support on behalf of our suffering brethren in the Holy Land.

aid@jerusalem-holy-land.org

Rosary Apostolate of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour

2009-01-10T21:58:00.002Z

Details about this apostolate can be found on the forum, and now a website has been set up with further information as well:

"We are the Rosary Apostolate devoted to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour. Our aims are:

1) To pray for all the young traditional Catholics in the UK- that they receive special graces to help them remain strong in the face of daily trials and temptations against the Faith- and to pray for conversions amongst the youth in the UK.

2) More specifically; to pray for the graces to establish events for the younger traditional Catholics in the UK; enabling us to organize weekends or single-day conferences, fostering devotion in an enjoyable social setting.

Because of the anti-Catholic culture around us, many of us are facing daily challenges to our Faith and trying to be a good Catholic in today's world can seem a very isolating experience. For those who are going to university for the first time or entering the world of work these challenges can be almost overwhelming. Sometimes simply doing one's duty of state can be a cross in this environment.The Apostolate exists to provide spiritual support for people in these circumstances."

If you would like to learn more about the format of the Apostolate, please see the links at the top of each page. Here you will find information not only about the Apostolate itself but also about the Rosary and Our Blessed Mother. Anyone is welcome to join the Apostolate or ask any further questions by emailing me at adesto@gmail.com

Please do take a look at the website, and consider joining this valuable apostolate.

Obama's clueless supporters

2008-12-05T21:13:00.003Z

Yer gorra laff!

Rocket science

2008-10-25T22:43:00.003+01:00

This week's edition of The Catholic Times reports that, apparently, the creators of some game, called SimCity, have conducted a survey which asked players to nominate buildings they'd like to destroy or save.

Four Catholic cathedrals were among those that participants wanted to save: the Sagrada Familia, Barcelona; St Peter's, Rome; and the Sacre Coeur and Notre Dame, Paris.

However, Liverpool's Metropolitan Cathedral was named as one of the ugliest buildings in the country.

The dean of the cathedral, Canon Anthony O'Brien, was puzzled that his cathedral has been so nominated:

"It's wonderful that four Catholic cathedrals were regarded as beautiful, but they are all quite old and traditional. Our cathedral is modern and stands out for quality and design..."

How strange that old and traditional buildings should be preferred to modern efforts. Fancy that.

What consenting adults get upto in the privacy of a public park is none of my business!

2008-10-18T10:40:00.002+01:00

Is anyone in any doubt about the existence of the slippery slope?

From LifeSiteNews.com:

UK Police Instructed Not to Interfere with the "Human Right" of Anonymous Public Sex

By Kathleen Gilbert

LANCASHIRE, United Kingdom, October 17, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Public homosexual activity in parks and public bathrooms must not be impeded by law enforcement officials except as a last resort, says a new set of draft guidelines for UK police.

Deputy Chief Constable Michael Cunningham of Lancashire Police, who drew up the 21-page report, titled "Guidance on Policing Public Sex Environments", wrote, "In any event it is not for the police to take the role of moral arbiter." Rather than arresting those who have sex in public, the police should instead guard the "human rights of those people who frequent open spaces" to seek anonymous copulation partners, an activity known as "cruising."
...

How much further is there to go down the slope? Will "cruising" become compulsory?

Parallel universe

2008-09-21T20:47:00.004+01:00

Monsignor Basil Loftus clearly inhabits the same parallel universe as Hugh Lindsay, Emeritus Bishop of Hexham & Newcastle.

In this week's Catholic Times, Msgr Loftus informs us that:

The latest pronouncement - Summorum Pontificum - by the present Pope, also has a restriction. The concession is for already (continenter) existing groups of Tridentine-rite Mass devotees.

Like Bishop Hugh Lindsay, it looks as though Msgr Loftus also needs his attention drawn to what Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos was saying three months ago:

Not many parishes – all parishes. The Holy Father is offering this not only for the few groups who demand it, but so that everybody knows this way of celebrating the Eucharist.

In August, Msgr Loftus revealed himself to be one o'them Cappaphobes, when he rent his nylon vestments at this:

Four yards of crimson watered-silk, seen recently trailing behind a 'Prince of the Church' down the aisle of Westmister Cathedral as he prepared to preside at a Eucharistic Assembly, does far more damage to the Church as an image than any ill-effect on the medical profession which might come from a bad-tempered Sir Lancelot Spratt...

The 'Prince of the Church' (Msgr Loftus's inverted commas, not mine) in question was the aforementioned Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos.

Yet, also in today's Catholic Times column, the Msgr remarks:

As the more extreme and vitriolic outbursts of the Lefebvrist-inspired traditionalist movement began to run out of steam, and in a certain sense to become cocooned in an eccentric cultural attachment to birettas and exaggerated clerical dress which isolated it from everyday, common-sense Catholics...

I think he'd find more of that kind of thing at official, approved, Catholic events, frequented by loyal Catholics, than he would under the auspices of them 'Lefebvrists'.

Northern Ireland abortion petition

2008-09-21T20:42:00.002+01:00

Please sign this petition to deny any extension planned for the 1967 Abortion Act to Northern Ireland. The deadline to sign by is 11th March 2009.

Last Monday, there were only 20 signatures. Less than a week later, the tally has risen to 2,286 and counting!

Walsingham 2008

2008-09-08T19:48:00.002+01:00

The SSPX's pilgrimage to Walsingham was last weekend, and there are photos on the forum as usual!

Bishop Fulton Sheen on "What's My Line?"

2008-08-22T23:44:00.000+01:00

Enrich this!

2008-08-08T14:01:00.001+01:00

Rochester to Canterbury Pilgrimage 2008

2008-07-29T19:47:00.001+01:00

Lots of photographs of this year's pilgrimage can be seen on the forum.

Is it payback time?

2008-06-29T13:31:00.002+01:00

When certain senior churchmen (notice: I do not say "the Church") decided to introduce a New Rite of Mass, did they introduce it gently, and let it exist alongside the Traditional Rite?

No.

They suppressed the Traditional Rite and imposed the New Rite.

Why?

I think the answer may be found in Fr Ralph Wiltgen's The Rhine Flows into the Tiber, page 39:

Bishop Duschak emphasized that he was not proposing the abolition of the existing form of the Latin Mass. He was merely proposing that an additional form or structure of the Mass be introduced. Asked whether his proposal originated from the people whom he served, he answered, "No, I think they would oppose it, just as many bishops oppose it. But if it could be put into practice, they would accept it."

If it had been introduced as an option alongside the Traditional Rite, how would the New Rite have fared?

Would people have accepted it?

Might the knowledge, that they would not accept it, have been behind its imposition and the Traditional Rite's suppression?

Now we have had nearly forty years of the New Rite at a distinctly unfair advantage, can modern Catholics' sense of obedience be relied upon for them to accept the New Rite's suppression and the Traditional Rite's reimposition?

It's payback time!

Bishop Hugh Lindsay and his customary wishful thinking!

2008-06-14T21:06:00.006+01:00

Hugh Lindsay, Emeritus Bishop of Hexham & Newcastle had this "timely" letter published in this week's Catholic Herald:

Patricia MacGregor's letter (May 30) shows that my previous letter (May 16) was needed to warn readers against "false hopes in those who would like to see [the Tridentine Mass] more often". Mrs MacGregor has been led by false hopes to think that her Ordinary should already be considering Masses in the extraordinary rite "on Sunday in every parish". That is well beyond what Pope Benedict is asking in his 2007 decree and the accompanying letter to the bishops. As I wrote "nothing has changed since then".

Far from encouraging my brother bishops "to obstruct the Holy Father's will in this matter", as Mrs MacGregor claims, I have always drawn their attention to exactly what successive popes have said about this and I have no intention of changing my practice.

Today, however, Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos spoke at a press conference and said, in answer to a question about whether the Traditional Rite would be offered in many parishes eventually:

Not many parishes – all parishes. The Holy Father is offering this not only for the few groups who demand it, but so that everybody knows this way of celebrating the Eucharist.

Perhaps Bishop Lindsay needs to have a word with the Cardinal to disabuse him of his "false hopes" and to explain to him what the Pope really meant.

No black and white answers?

2008-05-22T12:49:00.003+01:00

John Smeaton, Director of SPUC has drawn folks' attention to this faux pas from Archbishop Vincent Nichols:

“In your introduction I think you quite rightly said that these [the question of saviour siblings] are painful dilemmas and I don’t believe there are black and white answers.”

Is this man an archbishop?

You don't need to be a theologian to know that there are black and white answers to these things!

They can be condensed into two simple sentences:
The end does not justify the means.
It is never permissible to do evil that good may come of it.

Chartres to Montmartre 2008

2008-05-20T11:05:00.002+01:00

Photos aplenty of the SSPX's Chartres Pilgrimage, on Ignis Ardens forum!

Thanks to Gregorio Sarto who was there and took the photos.

Liturgical novelties and the First Commandment

2008-05-20T10:37:00.003+01:00

I've been browsing through Fr Heribert Jone's Moral Theology, and I stumbled upon this:

163.
Chapter II.
SINS AGAINST THE FIRST COMMANDMENT

...
Article I
Superstition

Superstition is false worship of the true God or true worship paid to a false god. The former is called "cultus indebitus"; the latter "cultus falsi numinis."

I. God is worshipped in a false manner if one mingles religious errors and deception with the worship of the true God (cultus falsus), or if God is worshipped by the practice of senseless, very unusual or ridiculous ceremonies (cultus vanus).

One sins by false worship if one worships God by the ceremonial rites of the Old Testament;... or tries to honour God by unbecoming actions...

Well, I think res ipsa loquitur!

The 1876 England team

2008-05-08T20:04:00.003+01:00

From The Daily Mail.

You just don't get players called Edgar, Walter, Charles, Frederick, William, Arthur, Hubert, Rev. Beaumont, and Francis these days. Funny how names go out of fashion.

The poor lad in this video...

2008-05-08T19:52:00.004+01:00

I do hope he lives this down.

It's some Call To Action do.

I now thank God that, in adolescence, I got bored with turning up for folk group practice. Who knows what kind of events I could have been dragooned into, and associations I might have made?

Resurrexit, sicut dixit. Alleluia!

2008-03-23T20:27:00.002Z

1 Cor. 5,7-8.

Purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new paste, as you are unleavened. For Christ our pasch is sacrificed.
Therefore, let us feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness: but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 16,1-7.

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalen and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought sweet spices, that coming, they might anoint Jesus.
And very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they come to the sepulchre, the sun being now risen.
And they said one to another: Who shall roll us back the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
And looking, they saw the stone rolled back. For it was very great.
And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed with a white robe: and they were astonished.
Who saith to them: Be not affrighted. you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen: he is not here. Behold the place where they laid him.
But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee. There you shall see him, as he told you.

Per Ipsum

There is a place in our modern, civilised, enlightened society for this view

2008-02-16T20:59:00.003Z

"... we were not talking here about disabled human beings, but about some grossly abnormal human beings; many of those whom I have seen bear little resemblance to human beings."

- Baroness Jenny Tonge.

(See John Smeaton's blog.)

Interview with Bishop Williamson

2008-01-22T11:28:00.000Z

Ignis Ardens forum is privileged to have been granted an interview with Bishop Williamson, which can be read here.

He speaks about the relationship between grace and nature, 9/11, the Social Order, and more.

... as we forgive...

2008-01-08T21:47:00.000Z

Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.

I'm pinning a lot of hope on that line from the Our Father.

If I see to it that I forgive easily, at the drop of a hat even. Without so much as an apology from whoever has crossed me, even!

And if I keep asking God to forgive me as I forgive others, perhaps He will!

By the way...

2008-01-03T21:07:00.000Z

The Holy Name of Jesus, Gateshead

2008-01-03T20:58:00.001Z

After 34 years at the Station Hotel, Newcastle, the "Extraordinary expression of the lex orandi" is now being offered in a proper church!

On the 23rd December, the new SSPX church of the Holy Name of Jesus, opened, and had its first Mass offered therein by Fr Wingerden. Fr Morgan said Mass on Christmas morning.

There's some discussion about it on this thread on Ignis Ardens forum.

A forum member, known as Concerned, has taken some photographs, and here's one of the stained glass window panel depicting Archbishop Lefebvre:

On Saturday the 19th January, Bishop Fellay will come to bless the church. The Pontifical ceremony will begin at 12.30 pm.

The Holy Innocents

2007-12-28T22:28:00.001Z

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 2,13-18.

And after they were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy him.
Who arose, and took the child and his mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and he was there until the death of Herod:
That it might be fulfilled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: Out of Egypt have I called my son.
Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry: and sending killed all the menchildren that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying:
A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

Per Ipsum
________________________________________________________

The Coventry Carol

Aled Jones with the Royal College Of Music Chamber Choir

Belated Christmas Greetings!

2007-12-28T22:23:00.000Z

Just catching up!

Have a happy and holy Christmas season and beyond!

Die Schönheit der Tradition

2007-12-13T16:53:00.001Z

Here's a fine montage of images:

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception

2007-12-07T23:51:00.000Z

Prov. 8,22-35.

The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his ways, before he made any thing from the beginning.
I was set up from eternity, and of old, before the earth was made.
The depths were not as yet, and I was already conceived, neither had the fountains of waters as yet sprung out.
The mountains, with their huge bulk, had not as yet been established: before the hills, I was brought forth:
He had not yet made the earth, nor the rivers, nor the poles of the world.
When he prepared the heavens, I was present: when with a certain law, and compass, he enclosed the depths:
When he established the sky above, and poised the fountains of waters:
When he compassed the sea with its bounds, and set a law to the waters that they should not pass their limits: when he balanced the foundations of the earth;
I was with him forming all things: and was delighted every day, playing before him at all times;
Playing in the world: and my delights were to be with the children of men.
Now, therefore, ye children, hear me: blessed are they that keep my ways.
Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.
Blessed is the man that heareth me, and that watcheth daily at my gates, and waiteth at the posts of my doors.
He that shall find me, shall find life, and shall have salvation from the Lord.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 1,26-28.

And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth,
To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David: and the virgin's name was Mary.
And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

Per Ipsum

Multi-tasking altar servers

2007-12-05T22:36:00.000Z

In this week's issue of The Catholic Times, Msgr Basil Loftus reminisces about those silly old pre-conciliar days, thus:

I well remember on one occasion celebrating an early Mass at a side altar and reaching out for the wine and water cruets proffered by an altar server who, with his other hand, was ringing a bell for the Sanctus at another Mass across the church, whilst responding "Et cum spiritu tuo" to yet a third Mass. Liturgical multi-tasking with a vengeance...!

And they say only females can multi-task!

But really, is it likely?

Don't beat yourself up

2007-11-27T23:17:00.000Z

From Introduction to the Devout Life by St Francis de Sales, Part III, Chapter IX.

On Gentleness towards Ourselves.

ONE important direction in which to exercise gentleness, is with respect to ourselves, never growing irritated with one’s self or one’s imperfections; for although it is but reasonable that we should be displeased and grieved at our own faults, yet ought we to guard against a bitter, angry, or peevish feeling about them. Many people fall into the error of being angry because they have been angry, vexed because they have given way to vexation, thus keeping up a chronic state of irritation, which adds to the evil of what is past, and prepares the way for a fresh fall on the first occasion. Moreover, all this anger and irritation against one’s self fosters pride, and springs entirely from self-love, which is disturbed and fretted by its own imperfection. What we want is a quiet, steady, firm displeasure at our own faults. A judge gives sentence more effectually speaking deliberately and calmly than if he be impetuous and passionate (for in the latter case he punishes not so much the actual faults before him, but what they appear to him to be); and so we can chasten ourselves far better by a quiet steadfast repentance, than by eager hasty ways of penitence, which, in fact, are proportioned not by the weight of our faults, but according to our feelings and inclinations. Thus one man who specially aims at purity will be intensely vexed with himself at some very trifling fault against it, while he looks upon some gross slander of which he has been guilty as a mere laughing matter. On the other hand, another will torment himself painfully over some slight exaggeration, while he altogether overlooks some serious offence against purity; and so on with other things. All this arises solely because men do not judge themselves by the light of reason, but under the influence of passion.

Believe me, my daughter, as a parent’s tender affectionate remonstrance has far more weight with his child than anger and sternness, so, when we judge our own heart guilty, if we treat it gently, rather in a spirit of pity than anger, encouraging it to amendment, its repentance will be much deeper and more lasting than if stirred up in vehemence and wrath.

For instance:—Let me suppose that I am specially seeking to conquer vanity, and yet that I have fallen conspicuously into that sin;—instead of taking myself to task as abominable and wretched, for breaking so many resolutions, calling myself unfit to lift up my eyes to Heaven, as disloyal, faithless, and the like, I would deal pitifully and quietly with myself. “Poor heart! so soon fallen again into the snare! Well now, rise up again bravely and fall no more. Seek God’s Mercy, hope in Him, ask Him to keep you from falling again, and begin to tread the pathway of humility afresh. We must be more on our guard henceforth.” Such a course will be the surest way to making a steadfast substantial resolution against the special fault, to which should be added any external means suitable, and the advice of one’s director. If any one does not find this gentle dealing sufficient, let him use sterner self-rebuke and admonition, provided only, that whatever indignation he may rouse against himself, he finally works it all up to a tender loving trust in God, treading in the footsteps of that great penitent who cried out to his troubled soul: “Why art thou so vexed, O my soul, and why art thou so disquieted within me? O put thy trust in God, for I will yet thank Him, Which is the help of my countenance, and my God.” Ps. xlii. 11, 15.

So then, when you have fallen, lift up your heart in quietness, humbling yourself deeply before God by reason of your frailty, without marvelling that you fell;—there is no cause to marvel because weakness is weak, or infirmity infirm. Heartily lament that you should have offended God, and begin anew to cultivate the lacking grace, with a very deep trust in His Mercy, and with a bold, brave heart.

Nonsense!

2007-11-18T12:45:00.000Z

This is doing the rounds. Looks like The Muniment Room spotted it first!

In the UK Walter Wolfgang was famously removed from a Labour Party Conference for daring to shout "Nonsense" during Jack Straw's speech. I always thought heckling was part of the political hustings. Not any longer. Three laws - Terrorism Act, Public Order Act and Harassment Act - can be used against hecklers. Delaney got a barbershop quartet to sing "Nonsense" during a Straw speech on democracy to circumnavigate the law.

The Litany of Humility

2007-11-05T17:19:00.000Z

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart,
Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…

Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930),
Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X.

My first YouTube upload!

2007-10-24T21:40:00.000+01:00

Now I've worked out how to do this, there may be more!

This is the Prayer for the Queen, as sung after Mass at English Martyrs, York, on 21st October 2007. Yes, it's a diocesan church, and an approved Mass, and as such I ought to "disassociate" the parish from the likes of dangerous folks like me. I was just there, and I behaved myself! I didn't even hand out any "Time Bombs" booklets!

We're all pick 'n' mix Catholics!

2007-10-21T13:07:00.000+01:00

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

840 And when one considers the future, God's People of the Old Covenant and the new People of God tend towards similar goals: expectation of the coming (or the return) of the Messiah. But one awaits the return of the Messiah who died and rose from the dead and is recognized as Lord and Son of God; the other awaits the coming of a Messiah, whose features remain hidden till the end of time; and the latter waiting is accompanied by the drama of not knowing or of misunderstanding Christ Jesus.

841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."

IMHO, and with the greatest respect!, that is all nonsense! The idea that the Jews' awaiting of the First Coming of the Messiah is a bit like Christians' awaiting of the Second Coming is an insult to Christ. It suggests that the facts that He's been born, crucified, and resurrected already are minor details of no importance whatsoever. He needn't have bothered, in other words, if denial of His incarnation tends towards a similar goal as waiting for His return.

I find it hard to accept that passage of the CCC, in the light of what the Church has always taught. If that makes me a "pick 'n' mix" Catholic, then so be it. All Catholics are, because I can see no way of reconciling the above passage, with the constant teaching of the Church.

If 840-841 is Catholic teaching, then that makes all Catholics who ever lived, before these days, "pick 'n' mix" because, and I'll go out on a limb here, I doubt very much that any Catholic would have accepted this particular teaching.

And I haven't even got onto whether or not the Muslims worship the same God as we do!

It's not even a clever pun!

2007-10-18T08:54:00.000+01:00

Orthfully Catholic blog has this to say about some SSPX supporters who handed out copies of Fr Schmidberger's booklet, "Time Bombs of the Second Vatican Council", during the Rosary Procession last Saturday:

A jar in the day, however, was being confronted by a leaflet wielding member of the SSPX, encouraging me to read a pamphlet titled “The time bomb of Vatican II”. I’ve seen this leaflet being handed out at other Catholic event and it riles me. The procession was not a traditionalist event, it was a traditionally Catholic event, it was not a schismatic event, it was a procession between two faithful Catholic churches in London, it was not a partisan event, it will have united liberals and conservatives in love of Our Lady, so, why were the SSPX present, bringing scandal and disunity to this gathering of the faithful.
I took this man to task, asking if he thought it appropriate, while the Holy Father was working to bring about the healing of the Lefevrist schism, to hand out vile tracts which blaspheme the Holy Spirit and make a mockery of the Church’s on-going tradition. Unfortunately this man was unable to answer.

I see, Liberals are welcome. They're not causing "scandal and disunity" of course. I wonder if the "Orthful" Catholic has read the "tract", which he reckons "blaspheme(s) the Holy Spirit". The Holy Father is certainly doing more to heal the rift than the "Orthful" Catholic who was more scandalised at the presence of orthodox Catholics on the procession than Liberals!

I wonder how representative his view is of the participants in that procession in general. According to one "leaflet wielding member (sic) of the SSPX" the reception was rather more positive than the "orthful" blogger would have us believe.

God, Church & Soul

2007-10-14T12:29:00.000+01:00

This is powerful!

Music credit: Resurrection, arranged by John Debney from the movie, Passion of the Christ. Photographed at St. Pius V Chapel, Mukwonago, Wisconsin.

Produced, photographed and edited by Stephen Cascio

Say "Cheese!"

2007-10-12T10:33:00.000+01:00

Thanks to JARay for drawing my attention to this, which can be found on several other blogs under the heading "The Most Pointless Family Photo":

Nag-along-a-William Tell Overture!

2007-10-04T11:54:00.000+01:00

This seems to be doing the rounds!
Anita Renfroe's interpretation of the William Tell Overture.

The Beauty of Maths

2007-10-04T09:09:00.000+01:00

1 x 8 + 1 = 9
12 x 8 + 2 = 98
123 x 8 + 3 = 987
1234 x 8 + 4 = 9876
12345 x 8 + 5 = 98765
123456 x 8 + 6 = 987654
1234567 x 8 + 7 = 9876543
12345678 x 8 + 8 = 98765432
123456789 x 8 + 9 = 987654321

1 x 9 + 2 = 11
12 x 9 + 3 = 111
123 x 9 + 4 = 1111
1234 x 9 + 5 = 11111
12345 x 9 + 6 = 111111
123456 x 9 + 7 = 1111111
1234567 x 9 + 8 = 11111111
12345678 x 9 + 9 = 111111111
123456789 x 9 +10= 1111111111

9 x 9 + 7 = 88
98 x 9 + 6 = 888
987 x 9 + 5 = 8888
9876 x 9 + 4 = 88888
98765 x 9 + 3 = 888888
987654 x 9 + 2 = 8888888
9876543 x 9 + 1 = 88888888
98765432 x 9 + 0 = 888888888

Brilliant, isn't it?

And look at this symmetry:

1 x 1 = 1
11 x 11 = 121
111 x 111 = 12321
1111 x 1111 = 1234321
11111 x 11111 = 123454321
111111 x 111111 = 12345654321
1111111 x 1111111 = 1234567654321
11111111 x 11111111 = 123456787654321
111111111 x 111111111=12345678987654321

Now, take a look at this...

101%

From a strictly mathematical viewpoint:

What Equals 100%? What does it mean to give MORE than 100%?
Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%?
We have all been in situations where someone wants you to GIVE OVER 100%.
How about ACHIEVING 101%?

What equals 100% in life?

Here's a little mathematical formula that might help answer these questions:

If:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.

If:
H-A-R-D-W-O-R- K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

And:
K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

But:
A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

THEN, look how far the love of God will take you:
L-O-V-E-O-F-G-O-D
12+15+22+5+15+6+7+15+4 = 101%
Therefore, one can conclude with mathematical certainty that:
While Hard Work and Knowledge will get you close, and Attitude will get you there, It's the Love of God that will put you over the top!

Sweep pays tribute to Pavarotti (RIP)

2007-09-21T23:05:00.000+01:00

Apologies for Graham Norton being in this clip, but I love Sweep!

Columbo's limericks!

2007-09-20T23:13:00.000+01:00

There once was an old man from Lyme.
He married three wives at a time.
When asked why a third,
He replied "One's absurd,
and two of them sir, is a crime."

A rare old bird is the pelican.
His bill holds more than his belly can.
He can take in his beak
enough food for a week.
I'm damned if I know how the hell he can!

How to win converts...?

2007-09-20T23:04:00.000+01:00

William Cobbett's history of the "Reformation"

2007-09-12T11:05:00.000+01:00

I've just found that William Cobbett's "A History of the Protestant Reformation in England and Ireland" is online!

Hatred of heresy

2007-09-12T10:59:00.000+01:00

Where there is no hatred of heresy, there is no holiness
by Father Frederick William Faber
Taken from his work: The Precious Blood, published in 1860.

Father Frederick Faber was one of the most eminent and beloved Catholic authors of the late 19th Century.

If we hated sin as we ought to hate it, purely, keenly, manfully, we should do more penance, we should inflict more self-punishment, we should sorrow for our sins more abidingly. Then, again, the crowning disloyalty to God is heresy. It is the sin of sins, the very loathsomest of things which God looks down upon in this malignant world. Yet how little do we understand of its excessive hatefulness! It is the polluting of God’s truth, which is the worst of all impurities.

Yet how light we make of it! We look at it, and are calm. We touch it and do not shudder. We mix with it, and have no fear. We see it touch holy things, and we have no sense of sacrilege. We breathe its odor, and show no signs of detestation or disgust. Some of us affect its friendship; and some even extenuate its guilt. We do not love God enough to be angry for His glory. We do not love men enough to be charitably truthful for their souls.

Having lost the touch, the taste, the sight, and all the senses of heavenly-mindedness, we can dwell amidst this odious plague, in imperturbable tranquillity, reconciled to its foulness, not without some boastful professions of liberal admiration, perhaps even with a solicitous show of tolerant sympathies.

Why are we so far below the old saints, and even the modern apostles of these latter times, in the abundance of our conversations? Because we have not the antique sternness? We want the old Church-spirit, the old ecclesiastical genius. Our charity is untruthful, because it is not severe; and it is unpersuasive, because it is untruthful.

We lack devotion to truth as truth, as God’s truth. Our zeal for souls is puny, because we have no zeal for God’s honor. We act as if God were complimented by conversions, instead of trembling souls rescued by a stretch of mercy.

We tell men half the truth, the half that best suits our own pusillanimity and their conceit; and then we wonder that so few are converted, and that of those few so many apostatize.

We are so weak as to be surprised that our half-truth has not succeeded so well as God’s whole truth.

Where there is no hatred of heresy, there is no holiness.

A man, who might be an apostle, becomes a fester in the Church for the want of this righteous indignation.

The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

2007-09-08T21:43:00.000+01:00

Prov. 8,22-25.

The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his ways, before he made any thing from the beginning.
I was set up from eternity, and of old, before the earth was made.
The depths were not as yet, and I was already conceived, neither had the fountains of waters as yet sprung out.
The mountains, with their huge bulk, had not as yet been established: before the hills, I was brought forth:

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 1,1-16.

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Abraham begot Isaac. And Isaac begot Jacob. And Jacob begot Judas and his brethren.
And Judas begot Phares and Zara of Thamar. And Phares begot Esron. And Esron begot Aram.
And Aram begot Aminadab. And Aminadab begot Naasson. And Naasson begot Salmon.
And Salmon begot Booz of Rahab. And Booz begot Obed of Ruth. And Obed begot Jesse.
And Jesse begot David the king. And David the king begot Solomon, of her that had been the wife of Urias.
And Solomon begot Roboam. And Roboam begot Abia. And Abia begot Asa.
And Asa begot Josaphat. And Josaphat begot Joram. And Joram begot Ozias.
And Ozias begot Joatham. And Joatham begot Achaz. And Achaz begot Ezechias.
And Ezechias begot Manasses. And Manasses begot Amon. And Amon begot Josias.
And Josias begot Jechonias and his brethren in the transmigration of Babylon.
And after the transmigration of Babylon, Jechonias begot Salathiel. And Salathiel begot Zorobabel.
And Zorobabel begot Abiud. And Abiud begot Eliacim. And Eliacim begot Azor.
And Azor begot Sadoc. And Sadoc begot Achim. And Achim begot Eliud.
And Eliud begot Eleazar. And Eleazar begot Mathan. And Mathan begot Jacob.
And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Per Ipsum

Urbi et Orbi: 1939

2007-09-05T14:38:00.000+01:00

Pope Pius XII on the day of his Coronation to the Supreme Roman Papacy - the 12th of March, 1939 - he issued the following plenary indulgence to all Catholics Benedictio Apostolica Urbi et Orbi:

Sancti Apostoli Petrus et Paulus: de quoroum potestate et auctoritate confidimus ipsi intercedant pro nobis ad Dominum.

R) Amen.

Precibus et meritis beatæ Mariae semper Virginis, beati Michaelis Archangeli, beati Ioannis Baptistæ, et sanctorum Apostolorum Petri et Pauli et omnium Sanctorum misereatur vestri omnipotens Deus; et dimissis omnibus peccatis vestris, perducat vos Iesus Christus ad vitam æternam.

R) Amen.

Indulgentiam, absolutionem et remissionem omnium peccatorum vestrorum, spatium verae et fructuosae poenitentiæ, cor semper penitens, et emendationem vitae, gratiam et consolationem Sancti Spiritus; et finalem perseverantiam in bonis operibus tribuat vobis omnipotens et misericors Dominus.

R) Amen.

Et benedictio Dei omnipotentis, Pa + tris et Fi + lii et Spiritus + Sancti descendat super vos et maneat semper.

R) Amen.

Feast of Pope St Pius X

2007-09-03T10:22:00.001+01:00

1 Thess. 2,2-8.

But having suffered many things before and been shamefully treated, (as you know) at Philippi, we had confidence in our God, to speak unto you the gospel of God in much carefulness.
For our exhortation was not of error, nor of uncleanness, nor in deceit.
But as we were approved by God that the gospel should be committed to us: even so we speak, not as pleasing men but God, who proveth our hearts.
For neither have we used at any time the speech of flattery, as you know: nor taken an occasion of covetousness (God is witness):
Nor sought we glory of men, neither of you, nor of others.
Whereas we might have been burdensome to you, as the apostles of Christ: but we became little ones in the midst of you, as if a nurse should cherish her children:
So desirous of you, we would gladly impart unto you not only the gospel of God but also our own souls: because you were become most dear unto us.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 21,15-17.

When therefore they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me more than these? He saith to him: Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs.
He saith to him again: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? He saith to him: yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs.
He said to him the third time: Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he had said to him the third time: Lovest thou me? And he said to him: Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee. He said to him: Feed my sheep.

Per Ipsum

What are your "Lord of the Rings" names?

2007-09-02T20:37:00.000+01:00

If you ever wondered what your name would be, should you perchance be a hobbit, you can find out here!

I'd be Daisy Sandybanks, apparently.

And if you'd like to try for elf-status, you can find out your elvish name here.

I'm Idril Nénharma.

Aborting abortionists

2007-08-30T09:49:00.000+01:00

Wisdom from Robert P.George:

I am personally opposed to killing abortionists. However, inasmuch as my personal opposition to this practice is rooted in sectarian (Catholic) religious belief in the sanctity of human life, I am unwilling to impose it on others who may, as a matter of conscience, take a different view. Of course, I am entirely in favor of policies aimed at removing the root causes of violence against abortionists. Indeed, I would go as far as supporting mandatory one-week waiting periods, and even non-judgmental counseling, for people who are contemplating the choice of killing an abortionist. I believe in policies that reduce the urgent need some people feel to kill abortionists while, at the same time, respecting the rights of conscience of my fellow citizens who believe that the killing of abortionists is sometimes a tragic necessity--not a good, but a lesser evil. In short, I am moderately 'pro-choice.'

Catholic Volunteer Movement

2007-08-29T11:32:00.000+01:00

From Ignis Ardens:
Adapted from Christus Rex, Lent 2007.

Christus Rex is sold through SSPX church repositories in the U.K. It is also available in pdf format. Please contact leaguekc@hotmail.com to request a regular copy of the PDF version.

The Catholic Volunteer Movement originated in response to the Society of Saint Pius X reminding its lay support, through timely and thought-provoking articles such as Fr. James Doran's "In the World, Not of the World", that Faith without Works is dead!

It draws a certain amount of its inspiration from the practical example set by Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day of practising the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy in a modern setting.

Formed in 2006 by a determined number of English layfolk, and operating with encouragement from the FSSPX District Superior and priests, the CVM places itself under the patronage of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. Joseph.

It continues to hold monthly soup kitchens in Canterbury where they are blessed to be able to help, feed and clothe Our Lord's poor and homeless. They extend their gratitude to those go-givers (as opposed to go-getters, to quote Peter Maurin) who generously and constantly supply the CVM with much needed donations of money, food, clothing, blankets and time.

The plight of the homeless makes local newspaper headlines in Canterbury. Many homeless people make their way to Canterbury because the city has a reputation for applied Charity that dates back to mediaeval days when so many pilgrims were received with great generosity. That vague folk memory has somehow survived the uprooting of Christendom and appears to act as a beacon for the poor, the dispossessed and the homeless. Our present day needy may not be pilgrims on their way to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket, but they are still in desparate need of that Christian charity so commonplace before the Protestant Reformation.

The CVM begs the Catholic faithful to storm heaven, especially through the intercession of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. Joseph, in order that they will soon find the necessary funds, and suitable premises in the city, to provide a hospice (in the true sense of the word) where shelter, food and spiritual sustenance for their guests can be provided in an effective manner.

...

Please pray hard for the CVM apostolate and determine to become go-givers, and not go-getters!

In particular, please remember CVM's destitute guests and especially those who have died or are terminally ill.

There but by the grace of God .... !

The LMS do at Oxford

2007-08-28T21:20:00.000+01:00

Here's a sample of what Archbishop Nichols said from Damian Thompson's Holy Smoke blog:

So the first invitation of the Holy Father is for us to avoid speaking or writing or thinking in terms of two rites: the ‘Tridentine Rite’ and the ‘modern’ or ‘post Vatican II Rite’. We should respond attentively and consistently to this invitation.

Sorry. Not gonna! They're two different Rites!

Why does the Pope insist that there is one rite of the Mass?

Because it will take a future pope who had nothing to do with Vatican II to be able to admit that the New Rite is a new, Protestantised, Rite, without losing face.

Because, whichever form is being used, the same mystery is being celebrated, the same rite is followed. There is one mystery and there is one movement, or structure, through which that mystery is enacted …

Or that!

I have no doubt that each of us must strive for improvements in the way the ordinary form of the Mass is celebrated so that its inner mystery and spiritual movement is more clearly set forth.

No point. Why try to improve a Protestantised Rite of Mass when you can offer God a truly, thoroughly, unquestionably, Catholic one?

Please remember that what you study here is not a relic, not a reverting to the past, but part of the living tradition of the Church.

Amen!

The Missal of Pope John XXIII will remain the extraordinary form of the celebration of the Mass, for, as Pope Benedict says, its use ‘presupposes a certain degree of liturgical formation and some knowledge of the Latin language; neither of these is found very often’.

It can be again! In time. And then the Missal of Pope John XXIII will cease to be the extraordinary form, and become the ordinary. In fact, perhaps some future pope will make some organic alterations to it, so that it will no longer be the Missal of John XXIII but the Missal of, for example, Pius XVI.

Bryan and Hammer too!

2007-08-27T23:10:00.000+01:00

Times Online

Pro-life rockers clash with Amnesty
By Maurice Chittenden and Dipesh Gadher

Amnesty International risks alienating some of its high-profile rock star backers in the row over its decision to support women’s access to abortion.

The group has been accused of “duping” the singers Christina Aguilera and Avril Lavigne, who have both made statements against abortion and are among contributors to an Amnesty CD released to raise money for survivors of the atrocities in Darfur.

Two weeks ago, just two months after the album’s release, Amnesty adopted a worldwide policy to back the right of women to abortion in carefully defined circumstances — for example, when their health or life are in danger or when they have been victims of rape in areas of conflict such as Darfur.

The album, which has already sold more than 400,000 copies, features cover versions of hits by John Lennon such as Imagine, and Give Peace a Chance. It was made possible by Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono, who gave the rights to all his solo works to Amnesty in 2003.

The policy on abortion has brought Amnesty into conflict with the Roman Catholic Church, and has shown how new divides have displaced the old left-right geopolitics that gave rise to Amnesty. The group was founded in Britain in 1961 by Peter Benenson, a radical socialist lawyer and a Catholic convert, to campaign for the release of prisoners of conscience.

Now Rock for Life, a collaboration of musicians linked to the antiabortion movement, has accused Amnesty of using the album to promote abortion without making its intentions clear to the singers.

Erik Whittington, director of Rock for Life, said: “The human suffering going on right now in Darfur is horrific. To add insult to injury, however, using this tragic abuse of human rights to raise money for a pro-abortion organisation is hypocritical and beyond belief.

“The manipulation of musicians to fund this hypocrisy is maddening.” He added: “We are writing to all the artists to ask for their views.”

Amnesty, which claims 260,000 members in Britain, more than the Labour party, has been surprised by the ferocity of the reaction to its new policy.

The position has been condemned as support for a “right to kill” never envisaged in the United Nations 1948 declaration of human rights that formed the original bedrock of Amnesty’s focus. The Vatican has called on Catholics to withhold donations and Amnesty’s Irish section has said it will effectively opt out of the policy and not participate in abortion-related campaigns.

Last week Michael Evans, the Catholic bishop of East Anglia, resigned from Amnesty after 31 years as an activist saying it had been “deeply compromised”. Many Christians among Amnesty’s 2m members worldwide are said to be considering following suit, although Amnesty officials in London insisted only “a handful” had done so.

The views of singers who have contributed to the album - who also include George Harrison’s son Dhani - on Amnesty’s change of heart are not yet clear.

But Aguilera, 26, is a devout American Catholic. She is reportedly expecting her first child and has taken part in a television show in which she interviewed a teenager who had kept her baby rather than have an abortion.

Lavigne, 22, is a French-Canadian from a tight-knit Christian family. Her song Keep Holding On is the backing track to a pro-life video on YouTube that declares “abortion is murder”.

Aguilera and Lavigne were unavailable for comment. An aide to Lavigne said: “I don’t think she would want to comment on this. But what has abortion to do with Amnesty? It’s for a lot of different things such as prisoners of conscience and human rights.”

Rock for Life has drawn up a list of 700 acts, including Bryan Ferry and the rapper MC Hammer, who it says are opposed to abortion.

An Amnesty spokesman said: “We don’t know the personal opinion of the artists on abortion but the CD has been launched to raise awareness of the situation in Darfur.”

Widney Brown, Amnesty’s director of policy, said there had been “overwhelming support” for the policy change at the meeting in Mexico City. Since 2005 72 branches of Amnesty around the world have passed similar motions.

Amnesty’s position now is not for abortion to be a universal right but for it to be decriminalised and for access to abortion to be permitted within its defined circumstances.

Who would've thought it of Christina and Avril?!

2007-08-27T21:06:00.000+01:00

Catholic News Agency

Pro-life rockers clash with Amnesty’s new abotion policy

Washington DC, Aug 27, 2007 / 10:38 am (CNA).- The coalition of pro-life musicians, Rock for Life, which claims some 700 musicians as members, says that Amnesty International’s new abortion policy risks alienating some of its pro-life celebrity supporters.

Rock for Life has accused Amnesty of “duping” pro-life singers, such as Christina Aguilera and Avril Lavigne, who are among those featured an Amnesty CD to raise awareness and funding for the survivors of Darfur, reports The Sunday Times. The CD was released two months ago and has sold more than 400,000 copies to date.

Rock for Life accuses Amnesty of using the CD to promote abortion, without making its intentions clear to the singers because it didn’t consult its membership before adopting its new pro-abortion stance.

Two weeks ago, Amnesty adopted a worldwide policy to advocate for the right to abortion in the case of rape or when a woman’s health is endangered by her unborn child.

“The manipulation of musicians to fund this hypocrisy is maddening,” said Rock for Life director Erik Whittington. “We are writing to all the artists to ask for their views.”

Aguilera, 26, comes from a Catholic background and has taken part in a television show in which she interviews a teenager who decided to keep her baby rather than have an abortion.

Lavigne, 22, a French-Canadian was also raised in Christian family. Her song Keep Holding On is the backing track to a YouTube video that declares “abortion is murder”.

According to The Sunday Times, an Amnesty spokesperson has defended the CD project, saying it was launched with the sole intention of raising awareness about the situation in Darfur.

Widney Brown, Amnesty’s director of policy, said there was “overwhelming support” for the policy decision on abortion at the group’s international gathering in Mexico City. But the Sunday Times reports that Amnesty is surprised by the wide reaction against its new policy.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is one of the most recent Catholic organizations to voice its protest against Amnesty’s new policy. In an open letter dated Aug. 23, USCCB president Bishop William Skylstad of Spokane said the new policy “undermines Amnesty’s longstanding moral credibility and unnecessarily diverts its mission.”

“In promoting abortion, Amnesty divides its own members (many of whom are Catholics and others who defend the rights of unborn children) and jeopardizes its support by people in many nations, cultures and religions who share a consistent commitment to all human rights,” he wrote.

The bishop suggested that supporters of human rights would seek to work with organizations other than Amnesty, “who do not oppose the fundamental right to life from conception to natural death.”

He concluded his letter by calling on Amnesty to reverse its policy decision.

Disco Inferno

2007-08-27T20:32:00.000+01:00

Naturally, I wouldn't recommend that anyone watch "The Office" without a strong dose of "mental reservation", but this is a classic clip!

It really puts the whole "dignity of the human person" thing into perspective!

Ignis Ardens has a Homeschooling section!

2007-08-25T12:45:00.000+01:00

This week, I added a Homeschooling section to Ignis Ardens forum.

Hopefully, in time, a good selection of articles and topics will accumulate that will be helpful to anyone who homeschools or is considering it.

Doing nothing

2007-08-25T10:54:00.001+01:00

BBC journalist, Jeremy Vine, resolves not to sit back and do nothing again:

BBC

Unmitigated ferocity, here I come

I was sitting in a Tube carriage next to an attractive young woman who was reading a magazine. There was a guy sitting opposite me, who was kind of Neanderthal. He had obviously taken an interest in this woman.
Vine: 'None of us did anything. It was terrible.'

"Hello darlin', give us a smile! Come on darlin'! It's not that bad is it?"

That was just annoying. But then he leant forwards and he started tapping her knee. And she kind of shrank back into her seat. I kind of 'tutted' and lifted my magazine even higher. That was my initial move.

Anyway, all the passengers on the Tube were aware of this. The Tube stops. He gets out of the doors - the thug. He walks off down the platform, we're all quite happy he's gone. Another passenger flips him a V-sign. The doors have closed, by the way, when he does this. And then the disaster happens - the doors reopen.

The thug runs back in. He's six foot three, his muscles are so big they're flexing against the Tube glass, and he just starts beating seven bells out of this fellow. And actually when you see physical violence or are on the receiving end of it, it's very very nasty.

His fist went into the side of his head, blood came out, another fist, the guy goes down on the carriage floor, and the thug walks off very happy with himself. And I did nothing. The carriage was pretty full. But none of us did anything. It was terrible.

It wasn't fight or flight, it was fight or sit there and watch. And I chose to sit there and watch. And I've replayed it many many times. I'm very unhappy that I did that, and I now have sort of resolved that if I see a similar kind of situation where I see someone being attacked like that, I will intervene with unmitigated ferocity.

In some horrible way, I guess the fact that nobody did anything to stop this guy gives him permission to do that. That's the problem. He knows that he's on a train carriage, he's giving us a display of strength, and the only way we can get involved is if we better him.

I was sitting there and I had a biography of Oscar Wilde and it's about 700 pages. I reckoned that this biography would have made a serious dent in his skull and also that it would have been a classy way to bring this guy down to the Tube floor, but of course as I have all these thoughts it's already too late. In fact the moment you think about it, it's too late.

'Everyone's looking for that moment of permission'
I hope times might be a-changing, and that if everyone had acted here it might have made a difference. I had an instance on the bus the other day when a passenger got on, and he was not of loutish aspect, I must admit, he was about 30, but he was causing the driver trouble.

He was standing near the driver's window and the driver told him to move back and he refused. And the driver had to come out of his booth to point to the sign that says don't stand too near the driver's window. In the end the troublemaker moved to the back of the bus and I was the first person he saw.

And he said to me: "Look I'm sorry as far as I was concerned I could stand there." And I said: "The bus driver is a public servant and this is his bus. Behave yourself." And as soon as I said that everybody else on the bus flew at the guy, including this old woman who started shouting: "Get off the bus now, you get off!"

I thought: "Wow, everyone was ready to say something, but it was only because he caught my eye and I said something that everyone joined in. So you're looking in a way for that moment that gives everyone permission."

Alas, I fear I know what will happen when public spirited folk take action. They will be the ones who cop it!

Louis Armstrong, shadow puppetry!

2007-08-25T10:20:00.000+01:00

This is clever:

Laurel & Hardy dance!

2007-08-25T09:46:00.000+01:00

Bishop Evans vs Amnesty International, Newsnight

2007-08-24T23:39:00.001+01:00

Black victims of the abortion genocide

2007-08-24T23:03:00.000+01:00

LifeSite

One Quarter of Black Population Missing from Abortion Genocide Says Dr. Alveda King

By Hilary White

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama, August 24, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Dr. Alveda King, the niece of legendary human rights campaigner, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., told a meeting of Priests for Life, that the killing of a quarter of the black population of the US has not been from the lynch mobs of her childhood days, but from abortionists, “who plant their killing centres in minority neighbourhoods and prey upon women who think they have no hope.

“The great irony,” she said, “is that abortion has done what the Klan only dreamed of.”

King was speaking Sunday at the unveiling of memorials at the Birmingham, Alabama church served by her late father, the Rev. A. D. Williams King. Her father served the church from 1961 to 1965, the height of the civil rights movement. King is a Pastoral Associate of Priests for Life and lived with her family at the church’s parsonage when it was bombed in retaliation for her family’s involvement with the historic movement.

Christian Newswire quotes Dr. King at the ceremony: “Daddy was unswerving in his dedication to God and to the cause of justice. While the ceremonies Sunday marked a historic period from our past, it reminded me of another kind of struggle for survival African Americans face today.”

Dr. King pointed out that the killing of the unborn in the US, which has taken the lives of well over 42 million American children, is overwhelmingly concentrated in the African-American community. “In the last forty-plus years,” Dr. King said, “15 million black people have been denied their most basic civil right, the right to life. Roughly one quarter of the black population is now missing.”

The abortion movement’s history is inseparable from that of the eugenics movement that held the genocide of the “dysgenic races” races as a central goal and for which the poor were the “enemies of the people.” In the US, the abortion facilities and offices of Planned Parenthood are concentrated in poor areas where the black population is especially targeted.

Margaret Sanger, the foundress of the organisation that eventually became Planned Parenthood, had as her goal the control and subjugation of the poor ethnic peoples including blacks.

Dr. King said, “It's time that we remember the sacrifices of men like my father and my uncle who worked and died so that our children could live.”

“It's time to stop killing the future and keep their dream alive.”

Read the paper, “The Inherent Racism of Population Control” by Paul Jalsevac http://www.lifesite.net/waronfamily/Population_Control/Inher...