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2 EDITORIAL
Catholic Voice
30th July 2021
TRADITION Regrettably, the pastoral objective of my Predecessors, who had intended “to do everything possible to ensure that all those who truly possessed the desire for unity would find it possible to remain in this unity or to rediscover it anew”, has often been seriously disregarded.
Anthony Murphy The latest motu proprio of Pope Francis, ‘Traditionis Custodes’, reversing the legislation of his predecessors, St. John Paul II (1984 and 1988) and Benedict XVI (2007), on the use of the Missal of Pope St. Pius V, can only be seen as a contradiction of the two themes of his papacy - Mercy and “who am I to judge”. It is difficult to read Pope Francis’ letter to bishops without concluding that it is highly judgemental and omits even the smallest gesture of mercy to faithful Catholics who chose to worship using the traditional liturgical books. According to the pope his main concern and motivation for restricting the “old” Mass is a concern that it has fostered disunity. In the covering letter to bishops he writes:
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An opportunity offered by St. John Paul II and, with even greater magnanimity, by Benedict XVI, intended to recover the unity of an ecclesial body with diverse liturgical sensibilities, was exploited to widen the gaps, reinforce the divergences, and encourage disagreements that injure the Church, block her path, and expose her to the peril of division. But what exactly are the “disagreements that injure the Church” and which diocese has been exposed to the “peril of division” as a result of making the Latin Mass more widely available. Over the years I have spoken to many bishops who have introduced the Latin Mass and traditional priestly congregations into their diocese and not one has even hinted at concerns over disunity. This begs the question where is the pope getting his information from and, while we are told there was a survey conducted, we are not told how many bishops responded nor what the concerns of the bishops who did respond were. This contradicts another hallmark of this papacy, that of transparency. And surely if the alleged disunity was occurring in local parishes then it would be the responsibility of the local bishop to intervene and correct the situation but we have not seen any examples of this
because it simply does not happen - the accusation of disunity is false and unjust. It seems that faithful traditional Catholics are to be condemned without trial yet when real disunity and rupture occurs - the call for women’s ordination, flying of LGBT flags, liturgical abuses too numerous to mention etc etc - the “peril of division” is not only ignored but those promoting the division are congratulated and promoted. It is ironic that a document which purportedly is published in the name of unity is actually so divisive! The Pope also writes that where the Tridentine rite is followed, such Masses cannot be held in parish churches. Where then are they to be held, in school halls, hotel rooms, car parks - if it were not so sad it would be amusing that the pope of the peripheries is himself pushing faithful Catholics beyond the periphery and into the wilderness. Those priests already offering the Tridentine Mass must now seek the permission of their bishop to continuing doing so. The document also makes it difficult if not impossible for diocesan priests to learn the traditional form of the Mass and introduces a highly restrictive and unique requirement that such a priest must not only first get permission from his bishop to
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EDITORIAL 3
30th July 2021 Catholic Voice do so but then the bishop must “consult” with Rome before any approval is given.
from one day to the next,” he observes. Cardinal Sarah was ordained a priest in the Novus Ordo.
So what is now likely to happen in response to this document.
He avoided talking about Francis’ plans to restrict the Roman Liturgy and said the “clerical attitudes” of opposition against the Roman Mass were the “clericalism that Francis has denounced on several occasions.”
Speaking before but aware that the document was about to be published Cardinal Sarah spoke out saying that Summorum Pontificam is irreversible. History will remember Benedict XVI as a great theologian and as the Pope of Summorum Pontificum, Cardinal Robert Sarah told IlTimone.it (July 2).
In the coming days I am sure other prominent voices will speak out against the injustice of the new restrictions.
Cardinal Sarah acknowledged a new generation of young people and families which emerged in the Church “despite intransigent clerical attitudes of opposition” to the Roman Mass.
Meanwhile the first sign from Ireland and the UK is that much will continue as normal, all of the parishes where the Tridentine rite is offered already have the permission and support of the local bishop and several bishops have attended such celebrations. The outcome may be that this messy document is ignored and things continue as before but of course it will be more difficult to establish new Mass centres - though this was ever the case even with Summorum Pontificam.
“This liturgy has a future because it has a past, a history of holiness and beauty that cannot be erased or abolished
In the meantime we should continue to pray for the Pope and our bishops in these difficult times.
He believes that with the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum began “a path of liturgical and spiritual reform” which in spite of difficulties, and resistances is “irreversible.”
Catholic Voice Update Dear Reader, We still continue to be adversely affected by the inconsistent covid restrictions. Events that would usually be advertised in Catholic Voice are not taking place and some parishes have not yet resumed the sale of Catholic newspapers. Therefore your continued prayerful and financial support is very important to us. We are also grateful for your ongoing prayers and the many cards and well wishes that Kim has received since her accident nine months ago. Kim’s lengthy rehabilitation continues and despite a few setbacks she is making good progress and is able to walk short distances. Currently she is experiencing some difficulties with her right leg due to the weakness of her left leg so some additional prayers to help her overcome this further challenge would be very welcome.
Yours in Christ Anthony Murphy
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4 HEART OF LOVE
Catholic Voice
30th July 2021
The Heart In Holy Scripture Canon de Martin I.C.K.S.P.
What symbol can represent love? The heart, of course. The heart is what compresses and rejoices in front of the loved one. Moreover, the heart of Jesus represents for us his mercy, his love. In Scripture, the heart is more than that. The heart is life. In war or executions, as soon as the heart is pierced, there is no life. As long as the heart beats, the person is among us. The heart is for them the centre of every man, the inner principle, both physical and spiritual, which makes the unity of man. The Greek words spirit, reason, conscience, can be contained in the Hebrew word for heart. Heart and soul are often used as synonyms. And, as it represents the whole man, the word « heart » for a human being in Hebrew is not the same as that used for the heart of animals. The heart is the principle of bodily life. “A quiet heart is the life of the body” says the book of Proverbs. (14:30) By taking food man satisfies and strengthens his heart. But the heart is also the seat of thought, reflection, and also of meditation. In order to reflect on something, one keeps the thought in the heart, like the Blessed Virgin after Jesus’ recovery in the Temple. It is the heart that receives the light of truth and sees it; but to see it, the heart must not be veiled or blinded. In Scripture, a large heart is not a person who loves everyone, but denotes a great intellect, a wise man. A small heart is worthy of a foolish person. It is interesting that the wise man, when he speaks, does so with his heart. The fool speaks and thinks with his mouth, which is purely external. A flood of words is thus a lack of heart, because they come out of the mouth without passing through the centre, through the man’s intelligence. The heart is also action. The will. To act effectively one must give one’s whole heart. But in a controlled way. The man who owns his heart is master of himself. He who holds his heart in his right hand is wise, energetic. But the will is free, and can resist outside influences, especially
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God’s commands. This is a hardened heart, like that of Pharaoh, and can go to the point of stone. But if the heart is softened, the will is more docile. God repeatedly says to the prophet Ezekiel: “I will take away the heart of stone from your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh”, that is, obedient. But there is more. What did Jesus say to the Pharisees? “But the things which proceed out of the mouth, come forth from the heart, and those things defile a man. For from the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies.”(Mt, 15, 18-19) Indeed, in the heart we have our good or bad dispositions of soul, passions, feelings. And it is the heart that must be treated for this. If fear dissolves the heart, courage makes its heart like that of a lion (the only animal with which the heart is compared). Pain can trouble, crush and even consume and kill the heart. But what revives it? Joy. Scripture makes much of the fact that the heart naturally has an evil inclination, original sin. The “uncircumcised” heart naturally gives itself over to evil, and one must “circumcise” one’s heart, as St. Paul says (Rom 2:29) to keep it from evil. Because the heart knows what is good or evil. In Scripture, it is also the seat of conscience. The heart knows the evil that is in it, which is why it is not good to show our heart to everyone. We must renew it with the help of divine grace, make it pure so that it pleases God. And if we leave it to Him, He can direct it and strengthen it. Saint Paul tells us that the heart is called to become the dwelling place of Jesus Christ. (Eph. 3:17) Finally, we know that Scripture speaks by analogy of the hand of God, the mouth of God, etc. It also speaks of the heart of God. It also speaks of the heart of God. It is a wise heart, which inclines towards man. The man who is “after God’s heart” is the man who pleases God by the use he makes of his gifts. Our Lord presents himself as “humble of heart”. But it is not only the heart that is humble, it is the being. The humility of Christ is in relation to his thoughts, his wills, his affections. That is, his soul, his whole being.
30th July 2021
WHO WILL SAVE THE CHURCH? 5
Catholic Voice
The Laity Will Save The Church Lorrie McNickle
I have been pondering a lot recently about a particular quote from Bishop Fulton Sheen: “Who’s going to save our Church? It’s not our bishops, it’s not our priests and it is not the religious. It is up to you, the people. You have the minds, the eyes and the ears to save the Church. Your mission is to see that the priests act like priests, your bishops act like bishops, and the religious act like religious.” This is an important quote. Many of us seem to think we need to wait around for priests and religious leaders to lead us as Catholics. And while we do need priests to initiate and perform our sacramental tasks, we the laity can - and should - be initiating our own gatherings and events. After all, we are the Church, all of us. We are all called to evangelise and to spread the Gospel. It is a job for us all, and we don’t need clerical permission or support. There are many things we can do. We can form study and prayer groups. We can gather to watch movies about the Faith. We can partake in group pilgrimages to a special shrines and places of fellowship. We can meditate and prayerfully reflect on our relationships with each other - and most importantly with Christ. We can gather to pray the Rosary together, or the Way of the Cross.
much more enticing and desirable. We are going to be rejected, but so was Christ. In time, the truly Faithful will come to understand and order priorities rightly, and the more opportunities available for that to happen, the more it will. The laity will save the Church, by bringing holiness and the pursuit of holiness into the everyday events and occasions of our lives. It really isn’t all that difficult and only takes some slight shifts in direction, yet the rewards, Graces and benefits will be out of this world!
These are all things we can do on our own, without support from priests, bishops or religious leaders. In fact, there is great power in rising to the occasions of performing such tasks, and Graces to be found and to benefit from. It can be more difficult, and the struggle more daunting and frustrating than organising a secular event, but the effort is definitely worth it. Most of us have no problem organising events such as birthday parties, graduation celebrations, dinners, to name just a few. How awesome would it be to focus more on opportunities to unite in Faith, and celebrate and prayerfully reflect on Christ.
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How about a girls night to watch a movie about Saint Maria Goretti, or Our Lady of Fatima instead of the trash most of us revel in that don’t bring us any closer A bequest from you in your Last Will and to the Lord, and actually harms us spiritually? How Testament would help us to continue growing about a party to pray the Rosary together, as we share in the publication of Catholic Voice and the Christian fellowship and food. The two greatest saints in Heaven were not clergy- St. Joseph and our Blessed Mother were laity. They had no clerical office, yet now hold the highest saintly ranks in Heaven. The laity will save the Church, but we need to refocus our hearts and minds to the next world instead of this world to do that. It’s going to take some sacrifice, and we are going to run up against the competition this world offers up instead, and might seem
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