It continues...

On several occasions in recent years I've mentioned how our society is moving not simply away from God, but actively against God and His Church. I'd like to be able to say that this movement is happening only slowly, but I'm afraid Satan realizes he has a better opportunity to work his evil if he acts quickly.

Cardinal Sean O'Malley

Although it's been going on for centuries, the Scatterer has been particularly busy in Western Europe and the USA. For example, some years ago the legislature of the commonwealth of Massachusetts decided that the Catholic Church would have to stop its foster parenting and adoption services unless it agreed to place children with same-sex couples. Ultimately, the Church, in the person of Cardinal Sean O'Malley, refused to agree and, therefore, ceased providing these services. The courts supported the state, in effect saying that these family services had nothing to do with religion. The prohibition, therefore, was not considered to be a violation of religious freedom. In fact, the state courts maintained that any organization refusing to place children with same-sex couples acted for one reason only: it must hate gay people. Although the state legislature that enacted the legislation was (and remains) overwhelmingly Democrat,  the Republican governor at the time -- Mitt Romney -- and the Republican lieutenant governor both did little or nothing to encourage the legislature to revise the law. Although state laws vary, this same prohibition has been adopted by a number of other states causing Catholic Charities and other Church-related agencies to cease adoptions. You can read more about this here and here and here.

Massachusetts, of course, wasn't satisfied with abolishing freedom of religion for its citizens. No, it still has work to do because people might actually speak openly against its enforced political correctness. The state legislature has now enacted legislation designed to protect transgenders from a variety of evils, including the evils of religious belief and religious speech. This new law will be enforced by the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, an agency dedicated to eliminating discrimination against everyone but believers. And so the commission has decided that all churches must comply with the new law. This includes prohibiting the use of improper pronouns by Church leaders and volunteers since doing so would constitute harassment. Bre Payton, of The Federalist, writes:

"The potential infringements upon religious freedom are vast, as this new law basically provides the state and trans activists with a legal tool to force pastors into using terms that violate their beliefs (and basic biological facts).

"It also raises some serious constitutional questions. The Bible states that humans were created as man and woman in part so they would procreate, a blessed event. So if a pastor faces legal consequences for preaching the Bible, these new rules threaten their First Amendment right to the free exercise of religion."

You can read more about this latest governmental assault on the Church in a recent article published in Boston's Catholic weekly, The Pilot.

Archbishop Charles Chaput

One of our great bishops who never shies away from the front lines of this battle is Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia. In his weekly column, dated October 19, the archbishop shows us exactly where these battle-lines are drawn and who the enemy really is. Read it before you cast your ballot in the upcoming election. Here's a link: About Those Unthinking, Backwards Catholics.

Our nation's founding fathers not only included religious freedom in the Bill or Rights, but placed it in the very first amendment to our constitution. And even there they gave it primacy of place, listing it before freedom of speech, or the press, or assembly. They considered religious freedom to be the most important of all our freedoms. 

Today, however, our society has not only rejected religion, it has largely rejected God Himself. Despite all their religious allusions in stump speeches and public addresses, most of those who enact and enforce our laws are tacit atheists. By this I mean that they have essentially chosen themselves over God. They are convinced that their laws supersede God's laws, and by doing so they have chosen darkness over light. 

So far it's been a bland sort of atheism, but lately it's becoming far more virulent. It exchanges a belief in God for a belief in technology and science as the future saviors of humanity. It thrives on a kind of materialism that seems to have no moral or ethical boundaries. It argues for prosperity and peace but brings only hardship and strife. It's also a clueless form of atheism because it doesn't understand or refuses to accept that it is largely responsible for most of the growing ills confronting our societies today.

Pope Paul VI

I'm reminded of something Pope Paul VI said during a General Audience almost fifty years ago:

"In the world of thought everything is doubted today, and consequently, religion too: It seems as if the mind of modern man finds no peace except in total negation, in abandoning any kind of certainty and any kind of faith. He is like a person with infected eyes who finds no rest except in obscurity, in darkness. Is the realm of darkness to be the final end of human thinking, of man's unquenchable thirst for truth and of his encounter with the living and true God?" [General Audience, 14 June 1967 - Italian Only]

I don't fear the future, because at my age I don't have that much of a future to fear. Anyway, Our Lord told us only a few dozen times: "Be not afraid!" And so I'm determined to do just that until the day He calls me home. But what do we do in the meantime? I suppose we just continue doing what we've been called to do: we make disciples of all nations, starting right here at home. We preach the Word; we teach God's people all that He commanded us; and we touch those who need to feel God's healing hand on body and soul.

And for those of you -- and there are many -- who are worried sick about the upcoming elections, don't be. Each of us can only do our duty as citizens and Christians by voting. Just keep in mind that God's will must always surpass the ways of the world, and we should vote accordingly. And regardless of the outcome, the Lord of History will ensure His New Covenant with His people will be kept.

Conclave Info

Daily report. One of my favorite websites -- The Catholic Thing -- is offering a Daily Conclave Report, written by Robert Royal, which will provide what I expect to be good, solid commentary on the happenings in Rome leading up to, during, and immediately after the election of our next Holy Father. Royal, the co-founder of The Catholic Thing, is a well-known Catholic author and president of the Washington DC-based Faith and Reason Institute. His commentaries are always worth reading and I expect he'll provide us with some interesting insights on the conclave and on all those, both faithful and unfaithful, who have descended on Rome. I'm sure, too, this daily report from Rome will act as an effective antidote to the secular media's bias and the drivel to which we will be no doubt be subjected in the coming weeks.

Conclave Graphic. The US Bishops' website has posted a nicely prepared graphic that provides some interesting details on the upcoming conclave. I've included the image below. Just click on the image and you can view a larger, more readable version. You can also click here to view the image on the Bishops' website.

Click on the above image to view a larger version

Conclave History Videos. The Rector of St. John's Seminary in Boston, Monsignor James Patrick Moroney, has placed three videos (each about 10-minutes long) on his blog. The videos, with Italian audio but English subtitles, describe in detail how the Church goes about electing a new Pope. The videos were made during the most recent conclave in 2005 and, therefore, reflect the process following the death of a Pope and not his resignation. But, except for the absence of a funeral Mass and time of mourning, there's really very little difference. Here's a link to the videos: Rector's Blog.

Cardinal O'Malley and his Capuchin Habit. My favorite Cardinal (after all, he ordained me to the diaconate back in 1997) is Boston's Sean Cardinal O'Malley, O.F.M. Cap. Some have counted him among the papabili, those Cardinals who are considered more likely Papal candidates, although I can't imagine an American Pope, at least not yet. Then again, 35 years ago I never would have expected to see either a Polish or a German Pope during my lifetime. So, other than the Holy Spirit, who knows? After all, "the Spirit blows where it wills."

Anyway, during a recent press conference Cardinal O'Malley was asked if he would continue to wear his brown Capuchin habit even if he were elected Pope. Really a very silly question, but typical of what we can expect from the media today. I'm sure we'll hear many sillier things in the weeks to come. The Cardinal just laughed and said that he'd worn the habit for over 40 years and expected to wear it until he died, since he did not expect to be elected Pope. Good answer. Here's a link to the video: Cardinal O'Malley.

Cardinal O'Malley Washes Feet of Abuse Victims

Last year Pope Benedict XVI appointed Cardinal Sean O'Malley, O.F.M. Cap. of the Archdiocese of Boston to investigate the response to sexual abuse within of the Archdiocese of Dublin. I thought it was a particularly good choice because Cardinal O'Malley has been so effective in bringing genuine healing and reform to several U. S. dioceses plagued by abuse, including the Archdiocese of Boston.

Yesterday in Dublin the cardinal celebrated a "Liturgy of Lament and Repentance" during which he washed the feet of five women and three men who were victims of abuse in the archdiocese. He and Dublin's Archbishop Diarmuid Martin began the liturgy with an act of humility by laying prostrate at the foot of the altar. During the course of the liturgy there were extensive readings from the official reports of abuse of children in institutions run by the Church and of sexual abuse by archdiocesan clergy. As Archbishop Martin stated, "The Archdiocese of Dublin will never be the same again. It will always bear this wound within it." One hopes that this public liturgy of penance for sins committed will bring the victims and the Church one step closer to healing.

The complete text of Cardinal O'Malley's comments follow:

My brothers and sisters, I am very grateful for this opportunity to be with you today and to take part in such a moving service of reparation and hope. I am especially thankful to our Holy Father, Pope Benedict, for his care for the Church in Ireland and for inviting me to be part of this Visitation.

On behalf of the Holy Father, I ask forgiveness for the sexual abuse of children perpetrated by priests and the past failures of the Church's hierarchy, here and in Rome, the failure to respond appropriately to the problem of sexual abuse. Publicly atoning for the Church's failures is an important element of asking the forgiveness of those who have been harmed by priests and bishops, whose actions - and inactions - gravely harmed the lives of children entrusted to their care.

The O'Malleys hail from County Mayo, a part of Ireland that was hallowed by St. Patrick's ministry there. They tell the story of a dramatic conversion of an Irish chieftain by the name of Ossian. A huge crowd assembled in a field to witness his baptism. St. Patrick arrived in his Bishop's vestments with his miter and staff. St. Patrick stuck his staff in the ground and began to preach a long sermon on the Catholic faith. The people noted that Ossian, who was standing directly in front of St. Patrick, began to sweat profusely, he grew pale and fainted dead away. Some people rushed over to help and they discovered to everyone's horror that St. Patrick had driven his staff through the man's foot.

When they were able to revive Ossian they said to him, "Why did you not say something?" And the fierce warrior replied , "I thought that it was part of the ceremony."

The warrior did not understand too much about liturgy and rituals, but he did understand that discipleship is often difficult. It means carrying the Cross. It is a costly grace and often we fall down on the job.

Jesus teaches us about His love in the Parable of the Good Samaritan where in a certain sense the Samaritan represents Christ, who is so moved to compassion by the sight of the man left half dead on the road to Jericho. The innocent victim of the crime is abandoned by all. The priests and levites turn their back on him, the police fail to protect him, the innkeeper profits from the tragedy. It is Christ who identifies with the man who is suffering and showers compassion on him.

Jesus is always on the side of the victim, bringing compassion and mercy. Jesus is not just the healer in the Gospel. He identifies with the sick, suffering, homeless, all innocent victims of violence and abuse and all survivors of sexual abuse. The Parable ends with injunction; "Go and do likewise!"; just as Jesus turns His love and compassion to those who have been violently attacked or sexually abused.

We want to be part of a Church that puts survivors, the victims of abuse first, ahead of self-interest, reputation and institutional needs.

We have no doubt of Jesus' compassion and love for the survivors even when they feel unloved, rejected, or disgraced. Our desire is that our Church reflect that love and concern for the survivors of sexual abuse and their families and be tireless in assuring the protection of children in our Church and in society.

From my own experience in several dioceses with the tragic evil of sexual abuse of minors I see that your wounds are a source of profound distress. Many survivors have struggled with addictions. Others have experienced greatly damaged relationships with parents, spouses and children. The suffering of families has been a terrible and very serious effect of the abuse. Some of you have even suffered the tragedy of a loved one having taken their own life because of the abuse perpetrated on them. The deaths of these beloved children of God weigh heavily on our hearts.

The wounds carried in Ireland as a result of this evil are deep and remind us of the wounds of the body of Christ. We think of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane as he experienced his own crisis. He, too, was overwhelmed with sorrow, betrayed and abandoned. Not only survivors of abuse and their family members, but many of the faithful and clergy throughout Ireland can echo our Lord's plaintive cry, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" But today, through the saving power of the Cross, we come together to share in each other's sorrows as well as our collective hope for the future. We come together to bind up the wounds we carry as a result of this crisis and to join in prayer for healing, reconciliation and renewed unity.

Based on the experience I have had with this Visitation, I believe there is a window of opportunity for the Church here to respond to the crisis in a way that will build a holier Church, that strives to be more humble even as it grows stronger. While we have understandably heard much anger and learned of much suffering, we have also witnessed a sincere desire to strengthen and rebuild the Church here. We have seen that there is a vast resource, a reservoir of faith and a genuine desire to work for reconciliation and renewal.

During the course of many meetings, I have been blessed to hear from many survivors and their families, lay women and men and religious and clergy who seek reconciliation and healing. Today's service, which survivors so generously assisted in planning and are participating in, gives testimony to the longing of so many to rebuild and renew this Archdiocese and the Church throughout Ireland.

Just as the Irish people persevered and preserved the faith when it was endangered, and carried it to many other countries, the commitment to sustain the faith provides the opportunity for the hard lessons of the crisis to benefit the Church in our quest to do penance for the sins of the past and to do everything possible to protect children in the present and in the future.

I would like to conclude my remarks by sharing another parable with you that further illustrates the demands of the Great Commandment which contains the whole Law and the prophets. The Japanese tell the story of a man who lived in a beautiful home on the top of a mountain. Each day he took a walk in his garden and looked out at the sea below. One day he spotted a tsunami on the horizon coming toward the shore and then he noticed a group of his neighbors having a picnic on the beach. The man was anxious to warn his neighbors, he shouted and waved his arms. But they were too far off, they could not hear nor see him. So the man set fire to his house. When the neighbors on the beach saw the smoke and flames some said let us climb the mountain to help our friend save his home. Others said: "That mountain is so high and we're having such fun, you go." Well, the ones who climbed the mountain to save their neighbor's home were themselves saved. Those who remained on the beach having fun perished when the tidal wave hit the shore.

The Gospel of Christ is about love, sacrifice, forgiveness, hope and salvation. The burning house on the top of the hill is the Cross, and it is the suffering of all those children who experienced abuse.

Climbing the mountain, we are not doing God a favor, we are saving our souls.

Our "New" Catholic Colleges and Universities

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Sean Cardinal O'Malley, the Archbishop of Boston and a man for whom I have much love and respect, visited Florida last week and received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Ave Maria University during their commencement ceremony. Ave Maria is a relatively new Catholic university located in Ave Maria, Florida, near Naples. If you would like to read Cardinal Sean's comments on his visit, you can do so by visiting his blog: Cardinal Sean's Blog. (In the spirit of full disclosure, let me add that Cardinal Sean -- then the Bishop of Fall River -- ordained me and my class of brother deacons back in 1997.)

Ave Maria University has grown rapidly since it first opened its doors in 2003, thanks to the vision and generosity of Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino's Pizza. Like so many of the new Catholic colleges and universities that have sprung up around the country, Ave Maria is faithful to the magisterial teaching of the Church and committed to providing its students a solid liberal arts education guided by Catholic principles. The school now has nearly 800 students on its Florida campus, plus another 500 in Nicaragua. It also has a law school located in nearby Naples. One of our parishioners, a bright young man who is graduating from Trinity Catholic High School in Ocala, Florida, will attend Ave Maria University in the fall. I know he and his family are thrilled that he has been accepted and will become a part of this thriving Catholic educational community.

As I mentioned above, Ave Maria University is just one of a number of relatively new Catholic colleges that were formed to fill the void created when so many of our ostensibly "Catholic" colleges and universities decided to sever their Catholic roots and become instead secular institutions with Catholic-sounding names. This decision to separate themselves from the Church and repudiate their duty of obedience to her was a conscious decision made in 1967 when the major Catholic universities declared their autonomy from the Catholic Church in the Land O’Lakes Declaration.  The declaration was the brainchild of Notre Dame's Fr. Theodore Hesburgh who believed that Catholic colleges and universities, to be "effective," should no longer submit to the Church's teaching authority. This was clearly stated by the declaration:

To perform its teaching and research functions effectively the Catholic university must have a true autonomy and academic freedom in the face of authority of whatever kind, lay or clerical, external to the academic community itself.

As a result, these schools, acting like rebellious teenagers, quickly began to dismantle their core curricula and separate themselves from the teachings of Mother Church. Within a few short years they became indistinguishable from most secular institutions. This left the believing Catholic with few choices when it came to higher education...until Ave Maria University and other similar schools arrived on the scene.

In addition to Ave Maria, this new crop of colleges and universities includes: Franciscan University of Steubenville -- (1946) Steubenville, OH; Thomas Aquinas College -- (1971) Santa Paula, CA (from which our elder daughter graduated in 1993); Christendom College -- (1977) Front Royal, VA; Magdalen College -- (1974) Warner, NH; Thomas More College -- (1978) Merrimack, NH; Wyoming Catholic College -- (2007) Lander, WY...and many others whose names escape me right now. If you're unfamiliar with these schools, just visit their websites and you'll quickly recognize how different and how Catholic they truly are.

Over the past 30 years or more I've watched these schools, and others like them, grow and flourish, supported by those who realize there is a great, unmet need for rigorous Catholic higher education that still maintains a strong Catholic identity. This, of course, is exactly what Pope John Paul II demanded in his apostolic constitution, Ex Corde Ecclesiae ("Out of the Heart of the Church"), which he issued twenty years ago in August 1990. It's a wonderful document that places the Catholic institution of higher learning in its proper context where the search for the truth and its transmission are the institution's primary responsibility. This is a responsibility that makes little sense to many of those who lead and teach in our secular institutions where relativistic thinking has made the search for truth meaningless.

I encourage all faithful Catholics not only to support these institutions and others like them, but also to encourage our young Catholic students to consider them as they make their plans for higher education.

Blessings...

Good News: Bishop Thomas Wenski Named as Miami's Archbishop

Our bishop here in central Florida, Bishop Thomas Wenski of the Diocese of Orlando, has just announced that he has been named the new Archbishop of Miami by Pope Benedict XVI. (Click here to view his video announcement.) Bishop Wenski has been a good shepherd of our diocese and we will miss him; but at the same time we wish him well as he takes on the challenges of this large and diverse archdiocese. Keep him in your prayers and pray too for the man who will follow in his footsteps here in the Diocese of Orlando.

The above photo shows my current bishop, Bishop Thomas Wenski, with the bishop who ordained me when he was Bishop of Fall River, Cardinal Sean O'Malley, now Archbishop of Boston.

You might also like to see the announcement by the Archdiocese of Miami: click here.

Kennedys, Rhode Island, Massachusetts...Ugh

Every so often I experience one of those increasingly frequent senior moments and forget why I left the great Commonwealth of Massachusetts for sunnier and decidedly warmer Florida. And then one of the Kennedys opens his or her mouth...

Now before I continue, I have to say that Sean Cardinal O'Malley is my favorite bishop; after all, he ordained me. And I also realize that Cardinal Sean believes that Ted Kennedy, and presumably the Kennedy clan in general, espoused many policies and programs to the benefit of millions. The cardinal believes that these programs were motivated by, or at least reflect, Catholic social teaching. And this fact was apparently enough to offset the late senator's dismal 100% pro-abortion voting record and lead the cardinal to take part in Senator Kennedy's funeral. Although I'm not a moral theologian, I would think abortion might fall somewhere under the banner of "Catholic social teaching" and that the millions who were helped by all those programs pale in comparison to the millions who lost their lives though abortion. But, as I say, I'm no moral theologian and I trust that Cardinal Sean weighed all this in making his decision, a pastoral decision I fully respect even though I don't fully understand it. And I certainly don't object to the cardinal taking part in the funeral. My objection centers more on the nature of the funeral itself. It seemed more like a campaign event than a Catholic funeral. But hey, what do I know? Cardinal Sean's an archbishop...and I'm just a deacon, and not a particularly smart one either.

All that, of course, is in the past. The late senator has received his reward and for the first time in decades no member of the Kennedy clan holds elected office in Massachusetts. But a Kennedy still serves the people, and although he does so in neighboring Rhode Island, Representative Patrick Kennedy is the political clone of his father, and also votes solidly pro-abortion.

Apparently this voting record hasn't hurt Rep. Kennedy politically even though the state's population includes the highest percentage of Catholics in the nation. Indeed, I can't recall hearing that his bishop ever openly criticized him for his support of abortion...until now. (If I'm wrong here, my apologies to Bishop Tobin.)

It would also seem that the real catalyst for the current dispute between Patrick Kennedy and his bishop was not the representative's voting record but his public comments criticizing the US bishops for not supporting the Democrats' health care legislation. Kennedy charged that in their opposition to any health-care reform that included abortion funding the American bishops were only fanning the "flames of dissent and discord." He went on to say, "I can't understand for the life of me how the Catholic Church could be against the biggest social justice issue of our time..." I've included the video (below) of Rep. Kennedy's full interview with Catholic News Service in which he made these comments.



The fact that Representative Kennedy doesn't understand the Catholic Church's teaching on abortion is no surprise given his voting record and his family's virtually solid pro-abortion views. It's also an interesting commentary on the quality of the Catholic education he received at Providence College. I worked at PC for a few years and know that the core undergraduate curriculum includes at least six hours of theology...so it makes me wonder what was taught in those courses, or whether the future US representative slept through them and simply rode the curve to a comfortable C.

And so, as a result of Kennedy's uninformed comments, Providence Bishop Thomas Tobin took him to task: “Congressman Patrick Kennedy’s statement about the Catholic Church’s position on health care reform is irresponsible and ignorant of the facts. As I wrote to Congressman Kennedy and other members of the Rhode Island Congressional Delegation recently, the Bishops of the United States are indeed in favor of comprehensive health care reform and have been for many years. But we are adamantly opposed to health care legislation that threatens the life of unborn children, requires taxpayers to pay for abortion, rations health care, or compromises the conscience of individuals."  Bishop Tobin then let loose with all his guns and added, "Congressman Kennedy continues to be a disappointment to the Catholic Church and to the citizens of the State of Rhode Island. I believe the Congressman owes us an apology for his irresponsible comments. It is my fervent hope and prayer that he will find a way to provide more effective and morally responsible leadership for our state.”

One-and-a-half cheers for Bishop Tobin. Since then he has sent a letter to  the congressman asking for a meeting so he can explain the church's "clear and consistent" support for health care reform. I would rather he asked for a meeting to discuss Representative Kennedy's abysmal record on abortion and other issues.  But maybe the subject will come up during their conversation.

...meanwhile they keep killing the innocents.

Pray for life and peace.