I've blogged on all of these topics, except the scandal of a pagan actress being invited to the Vatican to speak on pagan practices, but I thought this article pulled them all together in a way that shows the deepening crisis in the Church.
From Torch of Faith News
When it comes to discerning the nature of this moment in history, the apocalyptic thrust of the Catholic headlines would give even the most moderate of thinkers pause for thought.
Just to give an overview:-
The Rome of Francis hosts the occultic Katy Perry to give a talk on transcendental meditation; promotes a presentation on ''Fake News'' by the disgraced Msgr. Vigano of ''Letter-gate'' infamy; and gives out spooky ''meditating eye'' erm, charms, to participants...
Over in Germany, Cardinal Marx utters gushing praises of the evil Karl Marx and the Communist Manifesto; claims that, if it were not for these, then there would be no Catholic social doctrine; and in a sort of anti-spirit to Blessed Maria Restituta Kafka, rails against the provision of Crucifixes in the regional public buildings of Bavaria.
Worse than all that, and in a move that looks as much like a slick exercise in Hegelian dialectic, as it does an all-out assault on the Four Marks of the Church, the German bishops are in the midst of ''discussions'' on whether or not to permit Protestants to receive Holy Communion ''in exceptional cases''. And the ever-so-subtle Francis, acting once again as though the Council of Trent never even happened, but operating with his ever-present motif of plausible deniability, calls for a ''unanimous result if possible''...
When guys like Woelki of Cologne start looking like the ''Conservative'' good-guys, then you've really got to wonder if you are being played...
Oh to be in England, now that Spring is here!
Closer to home in England, we now learn that the good Fr. Gabriele Brusco, the marvellous priest who came to the aid of little Alfie Evans and his family - before the state-idolizing Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop Malcolm McMahon, Bishop John Sherrington and Bishop Tom Williams so ungraciously secured his removal... - will not only now have to leave the UK, but will not even be permitted to attend little Alfie's funeral.
I'm sure there are words for this type of episcopal behaviour, but then this is a family-friendly Catholic website...
Like Sheep Amongst Wolves...
I was thinking of the dire treatment of Alfie's family again last night, and the scandalous state-idolizing and euthanasia-as-palliative-care-friendly attitudes of Cardinal Nichols and Archbishop McMahon, when I happened upon a somewhat disturbing ''homily'' which had been given yesterday in Rome by Pope Francis.
Vatican News reported that he had commented on the Novus-Ordo reading for the day, from the Acts of the Apostles, on the theme of a good bishop who protects his flock from the depradations of the wolves.
I know, don't get me started...
Anyhow, Francis is quoted as saying, ''Those in charge of the church in Antioch,believing themselves to be true orthodox theologians of the faith, were in fact disorienting the faithful. On the other hand, the apostles, i.e. today's bishops confirm them in the faith.''
Oh really? How do you suppose that novel little interpretation is working out for the ordinary Catholic faithful over in Rome, Germany or even right here in England right now?
How about in the Communist-friendly official church in Red China, or in the gay-friendly dioceses of Cardinals Cupich, de Kesel or Tobin?
To Teach Clearly
Just to go with our own most recent local example, the scandalous way in which Alfie Evans and his family were abandoned by the local bishops to the secularist juggernaut, (setting a grim precedent for anyone else who finds themselves in a similar situation from now onwards), I noticed last Sunday evening that Archbishop McMahon had put up a kind of ''final word'' on the matter at the official website of the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
It has taken me until now to feel up to the task of responding to that particularly local broadside.
Not content with having abandoned Alfie, hurt his family, undercut their heroic efforts at least twice, put off untold numbers of potential converts, scandalised scores of local Catholics and wound-up many of the wider Liverpudlian populace with his indifference to boot, His Grace managed to add further insult to injury by having his ''Statement following the Death of Alfie Evans'' posted up alongside a smugly grinning photograph of himself dressed in full episcopal liturgical attire.
I believe that so many people kicked off about this latest insensitivity on social media that the original image was later changed for that of a solitary flickering tea-light...
Having myself issued three increasingly desperate calls to the seemingly deaf ears of the Archbishop, pleading with him to intervene when Alfie Evans was struggling due to lack of oxygen, nutrition and water, I cannot constructively express here my thoughts and feelings relating to the Archbishop's first paragraph and its praise of Alfie's ''heroic struggle''.
However, as a Catholic keen for the true life-giving and soul-saving teachings of the Church to be given space to get out and spread, I feel that I must respond to something in the second paragraph of the Archbishop's statement.
His Grace writes: ''Although the past few weeks have been difficult with much activity on social media, we must recognise that all who have played a part in Alfie's life have wanted to act for his good, as they see it.''
Aside from the obvious relativism and the ''OK everyone, let's move on, there's nothing more to see here'' tone of that statement, it has to be said that it fails quite singularly to convey the true depth of Catholic teaching in this, or in any other, area.
In the space limitations of this article, let us restrict ourselves only to the teaching in the Catechism of the Catholic Church on the theme of Good Acts and Evil Acts.
In CCC 1756 we read: It is therefore an error to judge the morality of human acts by considering only the intention that inspires them or the circumstances (environment, social pressure, duress or emergency etc.) which supply their context. There are acts which, in and of themselves, independently of circumstances and intentions, are always gravely illicit by reason of their object; such as blasphemy and perjury, murder and adultery. One may not do evil that good may result from it.
Cometh the Man, Cometh the Hour
In every great struggle, there are always both heroes and villains whose actions and resulting impacts remain long after the events themselves have passed.
In spite of the cruel removal, sidelining and effective silencing of this good priest, Fr. Gabriele Brusco will always be remembered by the people of Liverpool for the self-sacrificial kindness that he showed to little Alfie Evans and his family and friends.
I've just been reading Hilary White's twitter feed and, as I did so, I read this splendid piece of information.
It reads: Don Gabriele Brusco, the Italian priest who was next to the Evans' in these days, gave little Alfie the sacrament of Confirmation, anointing the sick and recited the accompanying prayers. The priest was able to speak with the medical staff, explaining to them the necessity of conscientious objection and that a human life can not be interrupted. The priest told them that even if these are the human laws, ''they can be broken to follow those of God: I have told them of the banality of evil.'' The reaction of the nurses appeared angry and annoyed: ''This is your opinion.'' ''I had to reiterate the truth,'' the priest replied, ''maybe someone will have a crisis of conscience, maybe this night he will not sleep, but it was the last thing I could do.''
One of our friends who was praying intensely at Alder Hey during that trying week was able to meet Fr. Gabriele and has conveyed to us just how impressed they were with this priest's holiness, commitment to truth and honest integrity.
Not Frightened, but Frightening...
During the last few days we were reflecting on whether some of our bishops acted out of fear. We noticed, too, that Clare Short, the good Catholic Mum not the MP!, had written a courageous, revealing and excellently constructed open letter asking Cardinal Vincent Nichols not to abandon us to the Culture of Death.
In our reflections here, we allowed that some of the bishops in the Conference of England and Wales may well have acted - it would be more honest to say that they failed to act - out of fear.
However, for those like our Cardinal and our local Archbishop, men who doggedly stuck to their course during Alfie's last days, and still do so now in the aftermath, we do not find ourselves able to say that they were frightened.
No, but their actions are frightening!
By their actions and words, they are not so much abandoning us to the Culture of Death, as actively bringing it on down!
Pope Francis has suggested that the bishops of today are protecting their people from those who believe themselves to be orthodox, but instead bring disorientation.
There is certainly disorientation about. It is just that Francis' sermon posits it in the wrong people and places. What else is this, if not the diabolical disorientation which Fatima's Sr. Lucia so famously warned about?
Asking around the ordinary Catholics on Merseyside, and I don't mean among those establishment Modernists with vested financial, corporate and social interests, there is a real feeling that the behaviour of Archbishop McMahon has been so offensive to God, so dismissive of Alfie and his family, so damaging to the faithful, and so off-putting to potential converts, that it is hard to see how things can just go forward from now on in a kind of ''more tea vicar?'' type of way, as though nothing untoward has happened.
I know that the Italian Marco Tosatti has called for an investigation of the whole matter by the Vatican.
Alas, if the stories in our introduction today are anything to go by, that would seem to be rather akin to inviting the Mob in to look after one's family accounts...
Still, if anyone out there in Rome is listening, the ordinary grassroots Catholics and Scousers would dearly love to have a new bishop like Don Gabriele Brusco: a wise, humble and holy man; someone who suffers to bring the sacraments to the people; saving souls; defending the innocent; helping those in distress; teaching Christ's truth with clarity and courage; and all the while building the Culture of Life with charity.
Instead of sending Don Brusco away, and not even letting him near the funeral, they should be giving that lad a mitre, crozier, episcopal ring and pallium.
If this were the early church, the people would have carried a priest like that on their shoulders to the cathedral and demanded that he be consecrated.
Ah well, Don Gabriele Brusco - Please know this: the people of Liverpool love you, Father. They have taken you to their hearts and there will always be a welcome here on Merseyside for you, because you chase away the wolves like a true shepherd and you bring us who we need: Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. May God richly bless you for it!
St. Gabriel - Pray for us!
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