Thank you so much for capturing my exact thoughts with your excellent commentary. I remain very bitter to this day. I will never forget what they did to us.
When we returned from the pandemic , our very reverent priest wept softly at that first consecration. He was later replaced by Father PSA who kept a finger dish of rubbing alcohol for whenever a miscreant like myself insisted on receiving on the tongue. All his homilies were about masks, vaccines, and sanitary practices that we owed our neighbors in order to truly love them. I hope but doubt that the church learned its lesson. Next time, I'll drive to an SSPX chapel if need be.
Actions speak louder than words. Until every N.O. Mass at the local parish is conducted in a way that indicates that Jesus Christ himself is truly present faith will continue to plummet.
During the lockdown when all the masses were closed, I kept thinking what a missed opportunity it was! Could you imagine if instead of capitulating to the government, the church stood up? What if the bishop said that mass is so important that we’re going to allow priest to say up to 20 masses on the weekend. Beginning with sundown on Saturday. One every 45 minutes from 5 PM until 10 o’clock on Saturday. Begin again at 5 AM till 10 PM on Sunday. Allowing for small groups of people to come in, etc. What a beautiful witness it would have been if the Bishops said”Sunday mass is so important and so necessary that we must do everything possible to get as many people to mass.” Same thing with confession?! What if figured out ways that people could continue to receive confession during the lockdown. Drop all the stupid zoom meetings for parish council and the rest of it. And focus on the mass, confession and last rites.
I had to fight like hell for my father to get last rites. I’m outside Chicago. Too long to go through but ultimately a young holy priest, dressed as a doctor and was snuck in by a kindhearted nurse to get my father last rites. I had absolutely no help from the local Bishop.
And then they wonder why no one believes. Really? They’ve got some serious soul searching to do.
“ It’s just a reality of the human heart, that we will remain wary in this state, unable to trust. ” Nailed it. Every time I read something the bishop says, my thought is often, “But how did he handle the nonsense and has he repented?” Sorry but it’s hard to take anything they say seriously… which is sad because sometimes there is really good things. I just don’t believe that *they* believe it.
Yes, obviously we are whole-heartedly in favor of loving the Holy Eucharist. It's hard, though, to go along with their initiatives on the matter. They start with "it's grass roots" and that is already not true, because the "grass roots" would tell them to start in the parishes and in their own dioceses, NOT with big showy professional events!
Our diocese recently had a meeting among all the catechists about using a "restored order" of sacraments (Confirmation around second grade, then First Confession and First Communion around fourth) with the idea that the earliest Christians received their sacraments first, *then* were catechised, I guess the idea was get em in the door with the sacraments, and coax them to stay for... not entirely sure, because the proposal for curriculum was "follow the lectionary and see what comes up," or a book of cartoons and busywork. Throughout the "listening meeting" the thought kept coming up that, every problem they were describing, especially student dropoff after sacraments, no community involvement, came down to: something within the last century happened that -destroyed- our Catholic culture, but we're trying to slap a bandaid of cheap sacraments and crossword puzzles over the arterial bleed? :(
Sorry; got all worked up and forgot the point. This was also presented as a "grassroots" method of avoiding addressing the actual problem. The higher-ups seem to be deliberately avoiding the elephant in the room--namely, that their caste pooped the bed and wants us to clean the sheets.
I will say that our diocese (Denver) went ahead w the restored order of the Sacraments, and the results have been profoundly positive. Look up Archbishop Aquilas pastoral letter on it “Saints Among Us”
I’m talking little girls spontaneously veiling in 3rd grade bc suddenly it occurs to them, while still in their innocence, “oh, my God!” literally, kids of all ages lining up for regular confession, an explosion of willing male altar servers from ages 8-18 who don’t think it’s lame or girly to serve on the altar, etc.
The grace the Sacraments impart is real, however imperfect the ministers.
Also we had draconian lockdowns here courtesy of a truly psychotic health department and governor, but thanks be to God we have parishes under the charge of religious communities whom were willing to defy the insanity and continued to offer the Sacraments. Some diocesan parish churches, too, which our bishop steadfastly refused to “discipline” into compliance.
You are right in saying that the three stages in an individual's spiritual life are still purgative, illuminative, and unitive. The Eucharistic Revival is not a matter of bishops wanting us to skip to illuminative, since that stage denotes a (possibly disruptive) change that God makes in a person that (eventually) permanently alters that person. That stage is not even slightly on the bishops' radar because (if we have heard of it at all) we all are inclined to think of it as something that happened to a few special people in the past and will certainly not happen to anyone we know or ourselves because we are ordinary laypeople to whom God will not do that. But the universal call to holiness says we *should* aspire to it: we should clear all obstacles out of our way, doing what we *can* to prepare for God. These obstacles are attachments to anything that is not God, and (this is implied but I will state it explicitly) an unwillingness to suffer in small ways. The unitive state is union of *wills*: to want what God wants. I think that to read Abandonment to Divine Providence (and letters, if that edition is available) is a good description of doing what we can.
They want to go to the illuminative stage because they believe that they can tell us truths about the Presence (truths they seem, frankly, not to believe) and that we will *understand* and achieve a new level of spiritual growth.
But of course, we can't and they can't get there without purging ourselves by a sincere and thorough examination of conscience, firm purpose of amendment, and reparations to those we've harmed. There is no way to tread the path without first going along that Way.
You are right about suffering, of course. They have totally capitulated to the idea that we don't have to suffer -- because they don't want to suffer.
Of course everything is about discovering and conforming to God's Will. The Way to it is His way... the way of loving suffering.
Re: 2020 I remember distinctly that first, people panic-shopped, rather excitedly, for groceries in anticipation of 2 weeks of house arrest. Then the churches closed. (Holy water was already gone.) Then the state ordered 2 weeks lockdown, which became 2 +++++++ weeks. The state watched and followed the Church's lead, I am sorry to say.
I had forgotten the acrylic face-shields on our priests as they celebrated Mass. Maybe, for the first time, they felt relevant.
The real elephant in the room is "middle class Catholicism": the belief that one can gain it all while risking nothing with an emphasis on safety and comfort.
Drop by the DST to see what was delivered this week.
Let me clarify, it is the authority that is promoting the "middle class Catholicism" and that this and many other revivals in Catholic circles appeal to one demographic and giving them the hat they want and not what they need.
Can't tell you the last time I heard the run of the mill priest preach something challenging or uncomfortable and then follow through their message with actions.
In short, middle class Catholicism is a variety of boomer Catholicism.
The people take their lead from the leaders many of whom want comfortable lifestyles.
Thank you for this. The Eucharistic "Revival" brought out my inner cynic. *I* never stopped believing in the Eucharist! *You* bishops acted like it was a "non-essential" the state told you it was! My God (and I'm not using His name in vain, I'm literally crying to heaven), my God, if everyone was going to die from this terrible novel disease, the *only* things we needed were the Sacraments!
I know some churches that operated "underground" during the lockdowns. People were at virtual masses but never shown on camera. They came to mass and he let them in. Very good brave priests to allow this to happen! I wonder how many more did this? It still feels like we cannot talk about the underground churches without fear of outing good people who may receive consequences... Something is still very wrong.
Yes totally and that's why I said "with exceptions" -- the limitations of space make it so I can't really go into the priests who did their best, nor would, as you say, it necessarily be a good thing to do.
BUT -- the point is, why was it underground?? Walmart was open! Home Depot was open! Was the Church not an essential service?
Who were the priests "underground" from? The bishops!!
"...But bishops never require obedience in matters that actually pertain to their sphere, such as reverent worship."
Spot on, Mrs. Lawler! The hierarchy can *never* make anyone obey when it comes to Catholicism (nor do they try), but let anything come up with the state and they will not hesitate to use forceful words to make the faithful they supposedly "shepherd" fall into line. It would seem as if they cared more for the approval of the state than they do for that of God. But then... most of them probably do.
(By the way -- I'm not the sort of person who usually listens to article voice-overs [I'm more of a reading person], but I remembered your mentioning you had just started doing it, so I decided to take a listen. I think you did very well. I don't know if this might come out the wrong way, but I like it when women speak femininely (i.e. with a feminine tone of voice, not hard, loud or mannish), and you are one of those women, which made me enjoy listening to you. Your voice is quite suited for the purpose!)
There is so much I could add here; the preference for useless hand sanitiser instead of holy water, the regimentation of going for communion, the fact that in England it was less onerous to go into a workplace than to go into a church, the stasi-like woman silently arguing with the priest trying to give me communion because he wasn't standing on the carpet sticker. It was madness. But what was worse was that bishops imposed this lunacy on the population, ordering priests to close their churches, not to give last rites and so abandoning their people. They told people church and the sacraments weren't essential and wonder why people don't go to church now. Great post.
Unfortunately the church as a whole (not just the Catholic Church) has been infiltrated by Socialism and by New Age. The only thing we can do is challenge ourselves to have a more Biblical Worldview, which means read and re-read the Bible. I know how difficult that is for us Catholics, but it is necessary. With love ❤️
Thank you so much for capturing my exact thoughts with your excellent commentary. I remain very bitter to this day. I will never forget what they did to us.
I get this totally. And how about the withholding of extreme unction? Shameful. We will never forget.
When we returned from the pandemic , our very reverent priest wept softly at that first consecration. He was later replaced by Father PSA who kept a finger dish of rubbing alcohol for whenever a miscreant like myself insisted on receiving on the tongue. All his homilies were about masks, vaccines, and sanitary practices that we owed our neighbors in order to truly love them. I hope but doubt that the church learned its lesson. Next time, I'll drive to an SSPX chapel if need be.
Actions speak louder than words. Until every N.O. Mass at the local parish is conducted in a way that indicates that Jesus Christ himself is truly present faith will continue to plummet.
During the lockdown when all the masses were closed, I kept thinking what a missed opportunity it was! Could you imagine if instead of capitulating to the government, the church stood up? What if the bishop said that mass is so important that we’re going to allow priest to say up to 20 masses on the weekend. Beginning with sundown on Saturday. One every 45 minutes from 5 PM until 10 o’clock on Saturday. Begin again at 5 AM till 10 PM on Sunday. Allowing for small groups of people to come in, etc. What a beautiful witness it would have been if the Bishops said”Sunday mass is so important and so necessary that we must do everything possible to get as many people to mass.” Same thing with confession?! What if figured out ways that people could continue to receive confession during the lockdown. Drop all the stupid zoom meetings for parish council and the rest of it. And focus on the mass, confession and last rites.
I had to fight like hell for my father to get last rites. I’m outside Chicago. Too long to go through but ultimately a young holy priest, dressed as a doctor and was snuck in by a kindhearted nurse to get my father last rites. I had absolutely no help from the local Bishop.
And then they wonder why no one believes. Really? They’ve got some serious soul searching to do.
The NO is evil!
https://catholiccandle.neocities.org/faith/the-false-conciliar-church-is-even-more-anti-catholic-than-all-the-protestant-sects
The (false) conciliar church is, in a sense, even more anti-Catholic because it is able to hide behind a trusted name: Catholic.
“ It’s just a reality of the human heart, that we will remain wary in this state, unable to trust. ” Nailed it. Every time I read something the bishop says, my thought is often, “But how did he handle the nonsense and has he repented?” Sorry but it’s hard to take anything they say seriously… which is sad because sometimes there is really good things. I just don’t believe that *they* believe it.
Yes, obviously we are whole-heartedly in favor of loving the Holy Eucharist. It's hard, though, to go along with their initiatives on the matter. They start with "it's grass roots" and that is already not true, because the "grass roots" would tell them to start in the parishes and in their own dioceses, NOT with big showy professional events!
Our diocese recently had a meeting among all the catechists about using a "restored order" of sacraments (Confirmation around second grade, then First Confession and First Communion around fourth) with the idea that the earliest Christians received their sacraments first, *then* were catechised, I guess the idea was get em in the door with the sacraments, and coax them to stay for... not entirely sure, because the proposal for curriculum was "follow the lectionary and see what comes up," or a book of cartoons and busywork. Throughout the "listening meeting" the thought kept coming up that, every problem they were describing, especially student dropoff after sacraments, no community involvement, came down to: something within the last century happened that -destroyed- our Catholic culture, but we're trying to slap a bandaid of cheap sacraments and crossword puzzles over the arterial bleed? :(
Sorry; got all worked up and forgot the point. This was also presented as a "grassroots" method of avoiding addressing the actual problem. The higher-ups seem to be deliberately avoiding the elephant in the room--namely, that their caste pooped the bed and wants us to clean the sheets.
I will say that our diocese (Denver) went ahead w the restored order of the Sacraments, and the results have been profoundly positive. Look up Archbishop Aquilas pastoral letter on it “Saints Among Us”
I’m talking little girls spontaneously veiling in 3rd grade bc suddenly it occurs to them, while still in their innocence, “oh, my God!” literally, kids of all ages lining up for regular confession, an explosion of willing male altar servers from ages 8-18 who don’t think it’s lame or girly to serve on the altar, etc.
The grace the Sacraments impart is real, however imperfect the ministers.
Also we had draconian lockdowns here courtesy of a truly psychotic health department and governor, but thanks be to God we have parishes under the charge of religious communities whom were willing to defy the insanity and continued to offer the Sacraments. Some diocesan parish churches, too, which our bishop steadfastly refused to “discipline” into compliance.
You are right in saying that the three stages in an individual's spiritual life are still purgative, illuminative, and unitive. The Eucharistic Revival is not a matter of bishops wanting us to skip to illuminative, since that stage denotes a (possibly disruptive) change that God makes in a person that (eventually) permanently alters that person. That stage is not even slightly on the bishops' radar because (if we have heard of it at all) we all are inclined to think of it as something that happened to a few special people in the past and will certainly not happen to anyone we know or ourselves because we are ordinary laypeople to whom God will not do that. But the universal call to holiness says we *should* aspire to it: we should clear all obstacles out of our way, doing what we *can* to prepare for God. These obstacles are attachments to anything that is not God, and (this is implied but I will state it explicitly) an unwillingness to suffer in small ways. The unitive state is union of *wills*: to want what God wants. I think that to read Abandonment to Divine Providence (and letters, if that edition is available) is a good description of doing what we can.
They want to go to the illuminative stage because they believe that they can tell us truths about the Presence (truths they seem, frankly, not to believe) and that we will *understand* and achieve a new level of spiritual growth.
But of course, we can't and they can't get there without purging ourselves by a sincere and thorough examination of conscience, firm purpose of amendment, and reparations to those we've harmed. There is no way to tread the path without first going along that Way.
You are right about suffering, of course. They have totally capitulated to the idea that we don't have to suffer -- because they don't want to suffer.
Of course everything is about discovering and conforming to God's Will. The Way to it is His way... the way of loving suffering.
Re: 2020 I remember distinctly that first, people panic-shopped, rather excitedly, for groceries in anticipation of 2 weeks of house arrest. Then the churches closed. (Holy water was already gone.) Then the state ordered 2 weeks lockdown, which became 2 +++++++ weeks. The state watched and followed the Church's lead, I am sorry to say.
I had forgotten the acrylic face-shields on our priests as they celebrated Mass. Maybe, for the first time, they felt relevant.
Another highly placed entity that has teflon coat but major responsibility for the quack theater is president warp speed himself.
I agree but he's not out there offering a Eucharistic revival so...
The real elephant in the room is "middle class Catholicism": the belief that one can gain it all while risking nothing with an emphasis on safety and comfort.
Drop by the DST to see what was delivered this week.
That falls under "blame the people", sorry.
That's not how authority works.
Let me clarify, it is the authority that is promoting the "middle class Catholicism" and that this and many other revivals in Catholic circles appeal to one demographic and giving them the hat they want and not what they need.
Can't tell you the last time I heard the run of the mill priest preach something challenging or uncomfortable and then follow through their message with actions.
In short, middle class Catholicism is a variety of boomer Catholicism.
The people take their lead from the leaders many of whom want comfortable lifestyles.
That is certainly true.
Thank you for this. The Eucharistic "Revival" brought out my inner cynic. *I* never stopped believing in the Eucharist! *You* bishops acted like it was a "non-essential" the state told you it was! My God (and I'm not using His name in vain, I'm literally crying to heaven), my God, if everyone was going to die from this terrible novel disease, the *only* things we needed were the Sacraments!
I know some churches that operated "underground" during the lockdowns. People were at virtual masses but never shown on camera. They came to mass and he let them in. Very good brave priests to allow this to happen! I wonder how many more did this? It still feels like we cannot talk about the underground churches without fear of outing good people who may receive consequences... Something is still very wrong.
Yes totally and that's why I said "with exceptions" -- the limitations of space make it so I can't really go into the priests who did their best, nor would, as you say, it necessarily be a good thing to do.
BUT -- the point is, why was it underground?? Walmart was open! Home Depot was open! Was the Church not an essential service?
Who were the priests "underground" from? The bishops!!
We don't talk about those courageous priests because we are pretty sure we are going to need them again.
"...But bishops never require obedience in matters that actually pertain to their sphere, such as reverent worship."
Spot on, Mrs. Lawler! The hierarchy can *never* make anyone obey when it comes to Catholicism (nor do they try), but let anything come up with the state and they will not hesitate to use forceful words to make the faithful they supposedly "shepherd" fall into line. It would seem as if they cared more for the approval of the state than they do for that of God. But then... most of them probably do.
(By the way -- I'm not the sort of person who usually listens to article voice-overs [I'm more of a reading person], but I remembered your mentioning you had just started doing it, so I decided to take a listen. I think you did very well. I don't know if this might come out the wrong way, but I like it when women speak femininely (i.e. with a feminine tone of voice, not hard, loud or mannish), and you are one of those women, which made me enjoy listening to you. Your voice is quite suited for the purpose!)
Thank you! I appreciate it!
There is so much I could add here; the preference for useless hand sanitiser instead of holy water, the regimentation of going for communion, the fact that in England it was less onerous to go into a workplace than to go into a church, the stasi-like woman silently arguing with the priest trying to give me communion because he wasn't standing on the carpet sticker. It was madness. But what was worse was that bishops imposed this lunacy on the population, ordering priests to close their churches, not to give last rites and so abandoning their people. They told people church and the sacraments weren't essential and wonder why people don't go to church now. Great post.
Unfortunately the church as a whole (not just the Catholic Church) has been infiltrated by Socialism and by New Age. The only thing we can do is challenge ourselves to have a more Biblical Worldview, which means read and re-read the Bible. I know how difficult that is for us Catholics, but it is necessary. With love ❤️
It's not the only thing, but it's certainly a very important thing!
I'm looking to join seminary right now. Hearing things like this is extremely valuable.
Thank you for writing this
May God bless you in your discernment.