Recent Journey Through the Midwest

"Wake Up America! Wake Up . . . and Repent!"
- Fr. John Corapi

During a recent journey through the American midwest, we drove near Greensburg, Kansas. As you may recall, this town of 1,400 souls was almost entirely wiped clean off the map in 2007 by a 1.7 mile wide EF-5 tornado in the dark of night. 95% of the homes, the hospital, and fire department were devastated. The same thing happened in 2008 to Parkersburg, IA.



As Fr. Corapi put it immediately after the 2001 terrorist attacks, "if America doesn't shape up, it's only gonna get worse". It appears he was right.



With the threat of national socialism, abortion remaining legal and on demand, same sex marriages continuing to be legalized state after state, rising teen pregnancy rates, etc. . . those humans humbly struggling through life using God's blueprint, the Church, may be caught in the crossfire during this tribulation - where God brings good out of evil. Fr. Corapi also put it bluntly at a Conference before proceeding with his talk further, "to those Catholics here who dismiss the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, we leave you behind". For the rest, all we can do is pray, do good, avoid evil, and fathers . . . prepare.

Latin Mass Training Video

New video coming soon by the FSSP - free for priests. See the trailer for more information.

Extraordinary Form training workshops are also available for priests interested in saying the Latin Mass.

Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos - Latin Mass No Permission Needed

To steal a line from a modern hymn, "Hope is flowing like a river . . . Spreading out into the de-sert. Setting all the captives free."


The President of Ecclesia Dei, a commission established by Pope John Paul II in 1988 to provide support for the Latin mass, told the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano that priests do not require permission from their bishops to celebrate the extraordinary form of the Latin liturgy. In an article published in The Catholic World Report, the Cardinal said,

"Some ask permission, as if this were some sort of concession or exception. But there is no need for that."

Expelled - The Movie

The movie the Establishment doesn't want you to see.

Expelled: No Intel...

Expelled is causing such a stir that it is in the Top Ten Box Office movies this week outperforming George Clooney's Leatherheads:

See Bill O'Reilly's interview and extended trailer (here).

Postures for Mass and Inside Church - "Not Meant to Diminish Faith"

"In former times people used to kneel whenever they met a priest carrying the sacred Host to the sick . . . Before receiving holy communion, we ought to make an act of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament . . . All attitudes and gestures too, which are merely formal have no value . . ."(The Catechism Explained).

When do we genuflect . . when do we bow . . and when do we kneel? Even with recent changes in the General Instructions to the Roman Missal some of us are unsure what postures and gestures are acceptable during Mass and inside Church. What does the Vatican truly envision for the Universal Church?

In the First Commandment interior and exterior worship is required of us. We adore God by acknowledging both in our hearts and by our actions that He is Our Lord and we are His creatures and His servants:

1. our adoration of God manifests itself first by interior reverence then by external signs.
   
2. we pay God exterior worship because we owe him all of our being and because it serves to increase our interior devotion in that the true and full meaning is perceived.

If you are interested in teaching your children the various external signs of adoration, Fr. Cassian Folsom, a Benedictine monk in Rome, describes gestures in full here. The article goes into great detail covering how to properly walk to Communion, the 3 kinds of bows, how to properly fold the hands (some of us remember this from the older nuns in grade school), the beating of the breast at the Confiteor, and even how to properly sit during mass. Keep in mind when reading this article that we should call upon God first with the voice of the soul before the voice of the body. That is, the sentiments of interior devotion precede external signs. Or in other words, "Piety that is simply external does not last, because it is not the outcome of interior devotion" (The Catechism Explained).

For the Ordinary Rite of Mass, the General Instructions of the Roman Missal explain the meanings and uses of these gestures:

GENUFLECTIONS AND BOWS
274 A genuflection, which is made by bending the right knee to the ground, signifies adoration, and for this reason is reserved to the Most Blessed Sacrament and to the Holy Cross, from the solemn adoration in the liturgy of Good Friday until the beginning of the Easter Vigil.

275 A bow is a sign of the reverence and honor given to persons or what represents those persons.

a) An inclination of the head should be made when the three Divine Persons are named, at the name of Jesus, of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the Saint in whose honor Mass is celebrated.

b) A bow of the body, or profound bow, is made: toward the altar if there is no tabernacle with the Blessed Sacrament; during the prayers "Almighty God, cleanse" and "with humble and contrite hearts"; with the Profession of Faith at the words "was incarnate of the Holy Spirit ... made man"; in Eucharistic Prayer I (Roman Canon) at the words "Almighty God, command that your angel". The same kind of bow is made by the deacon when he asks the blessing before proclaiming the Gospel reading. In addition, the priest bends over slightly as he says the words of the Lord at the Consecration.

The Adoremus Bulletin also provides answers to common questions concerning the new Instructions here. In regards to what gesture to use for receiving Holy Communion IGMR 160:

The faithful may communicate either standing or kneeling, as established by the Conference of Bishops. However, when they communicate standing, it is recommended that they make an appropriate gesture of reverence, to be laid down in the same norms, before receiving the Sacrament.

In the United States, IGMR 160 now reads:

The norm for reception of Holy Communion in the dioceses of the United States is standing. Communicants should not be denied Holy Communion because they kneel. Rather, such instances should be addressed pastorally, by providing the faithful with proper catechesis on the reasons for this norm.

When receiving Holy Communion standing, the communicant bows his or her head before the sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the Lord from the minister. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand at the discretion of each communicant. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is also made before receiving the Precious Blood.

This however does not mean that one cannot genuflect or kneel to receive Holy Communion. Again, the purpose of gestures is to show an act of reverence to give God honor and for the person to perceive the true and full meaning of such an act - not to diminish the meaning. The Adoremus Bulletin explains:

The chairman of the Bishops Committee on the Liturgy (Archbishop Oscar Lipscomb) said that "norm" is a descriptive term meaning the usual or standard practice, not a legal term. With this clarification, the bishops voted to accept the BCL's wording of the adaptation.

Since then, however, some bishops and liturgists are interpreting "norm" as implying that standing is legally obligatory. This is not the case.

The post Vatican II business of showing a gesture for receiving Holy Communion while standing began in the 1967 Instruction on Eucharistic Worship (Eucharisticum Mysterium #34). It reads, in part:

b) When the faithful communicate kneeling, no other sign of reverence toward the Blessed Sacrament is required, since kneeling is itself a sign of adoration.

When they receive Communion standing, it is strongly recommended that, coming up in procession, they should make a sign of reverence before receiving the Blessed Sacrament.

However, since 1967 people began receiving Holy Communion standing in line rather than kneeling, the gesture of reverence was dropped altogether. Since most people received standing and made no sign of reverence at all, the GIRM specified that the bishops' conference decide on a minimal gesture. The bow was chosen as a simple enough gesture for everyone to make in order to make it clear that a real sign of reverence is required of all Catholics before receiving the Sacred Host without impeding Communion.

Apparently, most bishops saw specifying a minimal gesture as "restoring people's personal expression of reverence for the Sacrament they are about to receive, not to diminish it further" (Adoremus Bulletin Question and Answer March 2003). Therefore, the intent was to establish a bow of the head as a minimal requirement. Meanwhile, "other traditional expressions of reverence (genuflection and sign of the cross) were not prohibited, and could be discreetly added" (AB, March 2003). The Question and Answer session included, in part, the following exchange:

"Q. We have been told that a "simple bow of the head", amounting to a nod, is now the only gesture of reverence permitted before one receives Holy Communion. I am an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, and I can attest that no one has ever bowed their head before receiving, although some may genuflect briefly or make the sign of the cross. I have two questions.

1) Does the IGMR directive really mean that the only permissible gesture before receiving Communion is a simple bow?

2) Since most Catholics don't have the habit of making any gesture of reverence at all before receiving, how do we persuade them to do so?

A. First a clarification: This requirement for a gesture of reverence before receiving Communion is not new. This dates from the 1967 Instruction on the Eucharist (Eucharisticum Mysterium §34), and was repeated in Inaestimabile donum (1980). However, this rule has been honored in the breach when people stand to receive, thus it was repeated in the new IGMR.

If one receives kneeling, this is already a sign of adoration (Eucharisticum Mysterium §34), so no other sign is needed. But since most people receive standing and make no sign of reverence at all, the IGMR specified that the bishops' conference decide on a gesture of reverence. So they decided on the bow, which would be simple enough that everyone could make it -- in order to make it clear that a real sign of reverence is required of all Catholics just before they receive the Blessed Sacrament.

Apparently, most bishops saw specifying the bow as restoring people's personal expression of reverence for the Sacrament they are about to receive, not to diminish it further.

A bow of the head is required; however, other traditional expressions of reverence (genuflection and sign of the cross) were not prohibited, and could be discreetly added. Indeed, the IGMR itself describes the meaning of various gestures (see sidebar page 5), and it prescribes that the priest is to genuflect before he receives Communion.

Genuflection -- brief kneeling on one knee -- is the traditional gesture of reverence to the Blessed Sacrament and also at the Incarnatus during the Creed, along with the sign of the cross. (Now we are to make a profound bow at the Incarnatus except on Christmas and the Annunciation, when we kneel.) . . .

Most bishops believe it is important that all Catholics express bodily their recognition of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The minimal gesture (simple bow) is one that everyone can make and that would not impede the distribution of Communion."

Furthermore, this exchange of questions and answers (responsum ad dubium) by Cardinal Medina Estevez (who announced the election of Pope Benedict with the words "Habemus Papam"), reaffirms the appropriateness of genuflecting before Communion:

Cardinal Medina Estevez's Responsum ad dubium
(November 7, 2000: Prot. n. 2372/00/L)

Dubium 1. Is it the case that the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, by No. 43 of the Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani, intends to prohibit the faithful from kneeling during any part of the Mass except during the Consecration, that is, to prohibit the faithful from kneeling after the Agnus Dei and following the reception of Holy Communion?

Resp.: Negative.

Dubium 2. Does the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments intend by Nos. 160-162, 244, or elsewhere in the Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani, that the people may no longer genuflect or bow as a sign of reverence to the Blessed Sacrament immediately before they receive Holy Communion?

Resp.: Negative.

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Barack Obama - The 'Christian' on Babies

Is this guy for real? Now Barack, the Christian, justifies abortion "to avoid being punished with a baby": CNN video and article

Barack Obama's Positions

The smooth talking self-professed Christian, Barack Hussein Obama (that is his real name) actually believes that immorality and social moral decadence are Christian tenets of belief . . . ?! [read here].

In his website he states "I support the complete repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)." He adds that "As your President, I will use the bully pulpit to urge states to treat same-sex couples with full equality in their family and adoption laws . . . I also believe that the federal government should not stand in the way of states that want to decide on their own how best to pursue equality for gay and lesbian couples — whether that means a domestic partnership, a civil union, or a civil marriage." Emphasis added.

In a July 17th, 2007 speech before the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Barack said "there will always be people, many of goodwill, who do not share my view on the issue of choice. On this fundamental issue, I will not yield and Planned Parenthood will not yield."

What is at the heart of this self-professed Christian? How can he claim Christian compassion on the downtrodden while troddening down on the most vulnerable and innocent? His Christian theology is skewed and it is because he will not accept the founding Christian tenets of belief.

Obama is a Protestant. This is simply one of the many errors espoused by Protestantism. The movement is a Protest against the Catholic Church beginning not with Christ or the Apostles, but rather, with Martin Luther and John Calvin more than 1500 years after Christ entrusted His teachings and His Church to the Apostles. Christ founded one Church (Matthew 16:18) and promised to be with Her "until the end of time" (2 Cor 1:20; 3:16-4:6). Christ also guaranteed the original Church's authenticity (the Catholic Church) by promising the Paraclete (Holy Spirit) to teach the Church "in all things"(Jn 14:17, 26; 16:13; 2 Tim. 1:13-14).

Our Lord giving the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven to the Apostle St. Peter. Depiction of Matthew Chapter 16: "And I say to thee, thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever thou shalt loose on earth will be loosed also in Heaven."

Barack's participation in the Protest Movement joins the idea claiming Christ is a liar and a promise breaker. The claim is that after Christ promised to be with the Church "until the end of time", somewhere between then and the invention of Protestantism, Christ changed His mind and broke His promise by leaving the very Church that He Himself established and promised to never abandon. This absurd claim is just as hurtful to God as the Israelites murmuring against God in the desert before Moses struck the rock for water. It can further be compared to the same people, after crossing the Red Sea and seeing God's promise to them made good time and time again, creating a new religion in the golden calf. The'Protest', over the centuries, has diluted Christ's teachings so much that there is nearly no shred of its original Calvin/Luther teachings including Martin Luther's belief in the Perpetual Virginity of Mary. The movement, in essence, is a protest marching in time against and diluting everything Christ taught and still continues to teach through the Church, including all of Christianity's original moral teachings against euthanasia, abortion, divorce, homosexual marriage, and about salvation. This protest appears in various forms - now over 33,000 different forms including Barack's cult.

Based on Barack's claims that he can support homosexuality and abortion, he obviously believes that he is already 'saved', and can subsequently justify claiming abortion is fine as long as you've declared Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. This error does not square with Christ's treatment of the adulteress. Jesus did not tell Mary Magdalene "you are not a bad person, go and try to ignore people who tell you adultery is wrong." On the contrary, Christ told the adulteress: "go and SIN NO MORE." The notion that we're saved by faith alone does not square either with the teachings of the Early Church Fathers.

We shouldn't be shocked by what Obama suggests as Christian belief. He comes from a long line of 'revisionist' Protestants who deny the authority of the Pope as Christ's Vicar. Obama, Protestant Revisionists, and Modernist Catholics will continue to fulfill 19th c. author Hilaire Belloc's predictions:

"the decay of a religion involves the decay of the culture corresponding to it--we see that most clearly in the breakdown of Christendom today. The bad work begun at the Reformation is bearing its final fruit in the dissolution of our ancestral doctrines--the very structure of our society is dissolving."

On Modernism Belloc observes and further predicts:

". . . a Church of the future within which there will be intensity of devotion, indeed, but that devotion practiced by one small body, isolated and forgotten in the midst of its fellowmen" [and left on one side in the general current of the new Paganism].

"Those nations which had retained the Catholic culture are now in the third generation of anti-Catholic social education. Their institutions may tolerate the Church, but are never in active alliance with it and often in acute hostility."