Newton's Third Law: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
It is perhaps fortuitous that storm which surrounded Pope Francis' Interview should have preceded his meeting with the Council of Eight Cardinals, Benedict rather notoriously didn't care for his 'image', his successor does, or at least he cares for how it affects the Church. Following the impression that he is 'lite' on marriage, life, doctrine, and that he has disconcerted a large number of active committed lay people and younger clergy as well as those who count those seeds Ratzinger planted as something precious and important, we can expect some kind of reaction.
It is interesting that the announcement of the Canonisation of JPII and John XXIII is being spun as an 'act of reconciliation', the trumpet, fan loving, Tridentine Mass saying John is being presented as the Liberal whilst the Koran kissing John-Paul is being portrayed as Conservative.
I am intrigued by the letter of Pope Benedict to the mathematician Odifreddi, why now has he chosen to remind the Church he can still write, and although it was a very small part of the letter, defend his reputation.
It is presumably an indication that despite his obedience to Francis, he still has his personal autonomy.
5 comments:
I just wonder why all the haste to canonise JP II when Pius XII is being forgotten...or, is he?
I do know that there are some, especially in the SSPX, who regard the canonisation of JP II as a scandal.
They are canonising each other in some vain attempt to kid each other that they have not destroyed the Church - the Faith of Jesus Christ. They have taken on authority that no other Pope in the previous 2,000 years would dare. Those popes trembled before touching anything received through sacred Tradition while these cowboys publicly mock it - being so full of their own self righteousness and the objective good of their new cause, rather than true religion. True religion is too passe for the modern world and its mentality.
I can’t help feeling very uncomfortable about these rushed canonisations. I’m sure the Vat II and subsequent Popes were holy men. Well so were a lot of people. That alone is not a reason for canonisation.
There must be a significant contribution to the wellbeing of Christ’s Mystical Body on Earth and to the salvation of souls. None of these Popes from John XXIII to the present qualify on that basis. On the contrary the calling of, and subsequent management of Vatican II has shown naivety, lack of judgement, and of discernment, and has been one of the biggest disasters to strike the Church ever. It has resulted in the Faithful fading away in their hundreds of thousands leaving a shattered and confused Church.
If the idea is to put some sort of “spin” on the Council, well just how naive do they think the remaining Faithful are – or the Secular world for that matter?
Perhaps the Pope Emeritus is that pricking conscience of a 'fatherless' church - when the cats away...A point made by Michael Matt on the latest 'Mic'd Up' CMTV -St Pius V rallying the True Church after the Protestant deformaton; Lex orandi, lex credendi - how we pray is how we believe - Pius V tried to safe guard the Latin Rite for all time; Pope Benedict XVI attempted to honour that mission. Pope Benedict XVI said, 'the Mass has been trivialised'; and as a result the pulpit has been poisoned with indifferentism and worldliness.
St Peter in the Chains of the enemy.
Acts 6 The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison; 7and behold, an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell off his hands. 8And the angel said to him, "Dress yourself and put on your sandals." And he did so. And he said to him, "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me." 9And he went out and followed him; he did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on through one street; and immediately the angel left him. 11And Peter came to himself, and said, "Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting." 12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. 13And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a maid named Rhoda came to answer. 14Recognizing Peter's voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and told that Peter was standing at the gate. 15They said to her, "You are mad." But she insisted that it was so. They said, "It is his angel!" 16But Peter continued knocking; and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. 17But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, "Tell this to James and to the brethren." Then he departed and went to another place.
Let's pray that the Angel of the Lord stikes 'Peter' on the side and 'wakes him up'. Commands him to 'dress' himself, 'put on your sandals...wrap you cloak around you and follow me.'
A synonym for command is fiat which means 'sanction', 'authoritative decree', originally, 'let it be done'. Pray, Immaculate Conception, that the successor of St Peter gives his 'fiat' to the visiting 'angel of the lord.'
JP II - I wasn't particularly a fan of his - yet I asked for something I thought impossible and it was granted and I am certain it was a miracle obtained by his intercession that I did not deserve. So I really do believe he is a Saint. Of course there's other miracles to back this up. I do not agree with the canonisation of JXXIII because of the lack of miracles. There is a process that should be followed and is ignored at the risk of undermining others. I would have gone to the canonisation of JPII but not now it's joint. To be honest I feel like curling up somewhere quiet and not keeping up with Catholic news anymore (gave up on the secular news a long time ago). It is all so distressing. BUT at the end it's up to us to have chosen the right path and we have the grace of many good priests, if we look for them, and the writings of doctors and saints to guide us. So although it is depressing, we must stay strong, didn't Jesus say 'But yet the Son of man, when he cometh, shall he find, think you, faith on earth? ' (Douay-Rheims Lk 18)It is up to us to make our own the faith of the Saints. Thank you Fr. Ray for continuing blogging.
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