What Does The Prayer Really Say?
W D T P R S

All you bloggers out there.

I recently had to correct my permalink settings.

If you have linked to specific entries on this blog in the last couple days, would you kindly check to make sure those links are working?

Thanks!

And all you bloggers out there who are linking yet to WDTPRS, please feel free to share the luuuuuv.

Okay, that title is a little provocative.   But…. but…

Here is a story from Hemscott

Alitalia president named as Vatican’s international financial controller

ROME (Thomson Financial) – Alitalia president Maurizio Prato has been named as the Vatican’s international financial controller by Pope Benedict XVI, according to a statement from the Holy See.

The council of international financial controllers is attached to the Vatican’s prefecture of economic affairs, which controls the administration of Vatican City and drafts the Holy See’s financial accounts.

The council has to comprise five professionals particularly competent in examining accounts and balance sheets, and who are prepared to give their services free of charge. The council members meet at least once a year.

Prato was already a councillor with the Vatican’s prefecture of economic affairs.

Prato will take on this new role ‘in addition to his functions at the head of Alitalia’, a spokesperson for Alitalia told Agence France-Presse.

AHHHHHRRGHPFFF!

Given the grand state of affairs at Alitalia these days, can this be good?

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Earl Boyea as the fifth bishop of the 10-county Catholic Diocese of Lansing. Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Bishop Carl F. Mengeling.

You should know that Bishop Boyea is a regular celebrant of the TLM at St. Josaphat in Detroit.

He will be celebrating Mass at St. Josaphat on Easter Sunday, 23 March, for the last time as Auxiliary Bishop.

Congratulations to Bishop Boyea, whom we will support with our prayers as we do all bishops.

 

Folks, I was recently contacted by a rather high profile Catholic figure who suggested I might be of some use on a Rome pilgrimage.

I just thought I would float this past some of your readers.

There are no fixed details yet, and this is just discussion stage.

• We are talking about the first part of November.
• The would be the opportunity of both the TLM and Novus Ordo for daily Mass, maybe even a High Mass or two.
• In Rome, mainly.
• Possible side trips to Assisi, or Orvieto, or Ostia Antica.
• It is a special year in honor of St. Paul, whose tomb is also in Rome, of course.

Here is a little poll just to see in a quick way how many readers might be interested.

I put YES, as the answer twice, because this plugin forces at least two responses and I only need to know who might want to go on such a thing.

 

OLD STUFF:

Folks, there were problems with the com box yesterday.  I fixed that.

I believe the feed problem is fixed.

The PODCAzT plugin is screwed up, and it has something to do with permalinks and the .htaccess.

I am going to have to get that resolved today. 

UPDATE:  Even as I type I am on skype with a very smart fellow in South Africa.

He has helped to fix the permalinks problem, which means that my links, comments and the PODCAzT player should all work again.

Hurray for Jacques!

The provisions of Summorum Pontificum are meeting with resistance on the part of some diocesan bishops.  

However, the Motu Proprio also speaks of the role of religious major superiors.  

Some parishes are run not by diocesan priests, but by religious.  While they are not entirely autonomous from the local bishop, they are very much influenced by the will of the superiors of the order or institute that take care of them.

Some religious superiors are showing their real attitude toward the Holy Father, his provisions, the rights of the faithful and the Roman Rite.

Let’s take two examples, one from the USA and one from Italy.

In the USA we have the case of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, OMV’s.

At Saint Peter Chanel in Hawaiian Gardens, CA, USA, there was a older form low Mass for a few months. One day as Mass was ending the pastor announced that the head of his order had told OMV priests to stop saying the older form of Mass because providing the TLM was an "apostolate" that the OMV does not embrace. He also said that the 170 person average Sunday attendance was insufficient to justify the Mass there.  Some parishioners expressed their dismay, but the pastor was adamant.

I wrote about this back on 13 February.

Some parishioners began writing to the superiors of the OMVs.

Here is an example of a response:

Dear Ms. _,
 
I want to thank you for your email and the concerns you shared regarding the Tridentine Mass at St. Peter Chanel.  I can understand how the news you have heard regarding the celebration of the extraordinary form is difficult. I appreciate the opportunity to clarify what has happened and to reaffirm our uncompromised fidelity to the Holy Father and the Magisterium of the Church.

The decision to no longer offer the extraordinary form was made by our Major Superior in Rome in consultation with his Council. He arrived at this decision after careful study of the Motu Proprio in light of our charism and the needs for the people we serve.  Each Religious Community and Institute of Consecrated Life, under the direction of its Major Superior has the freedom to determine which apostolic works they wish to undertake according to their charism and spirit. This freedom is described in Article 3 of the "Motu Proprio" and is given to the Major Superior by the Holy Father.

The decision of our Major Superior for our religious community does not mean we not recognize the beauty and the validity of this extraordinary form permitted by our Holy Father, or the real need it provides for some of the Catholic faithful. It means simply this is not an apostolic work that our Major Superior wants us to undertake as a Congregation.

As stated in Article 7, the bishop has the responsibility to provide this form to the Catholic Faithful in his diocese to meet their spiritual needs. We have encouraged those who feel called to worship in the extraordinary form to pursue the options available by the diocese. For example, this extraordinary form continues to be offered in the diocese, and we have encouraged the faithful to attend this Mass if they are feel called to this particular form of worship.

We are grateful to God for the opportunity to offer the beauty of the liturgy to thousands each week. Like the extraordinary form, these liturgies are reverent, prayerful and spiritually nourishing. There have been and continue to be great miracles that take place at St. Peter Chanel parish. Whether it is the approximate 800 people who attend the four daily Masses, the 8,000 people who attend the 12 Sunday Masses or the many hours of confessions on a daily basis, God is working in and through Oblate priests and the parishioners in a powerful way. Our commitment to this spiritual work of mercy, along with the many good works at St. Peter Chanel we pray will only continue.

I thank you again for taking the time to write me. I hope I have helped to clarify your concerns.

With my prayers and warmest regards in Christ,

Fr. Bill Brown, OMV
Provincial
Oblates of the Virgin Mary

In a nutshell, must we conclude that the OMV’s have determined that they are somehow separate from the rest of the Church in regard to use of the fullness of the Roman Rite?  That’s is what it looks like.  They don’t have the "charism", a slippery term, to provide for the spiritual needs of people through the TLM.  They have an apostolate that excludes such people. 

Okay.  That’s their choice.  Too bad.

Apparently the parishioners are still writing and working to resolve this situation and the Provincial has been communicating with the Rector Major, Fr Patrice Veraquin, OMV.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic…

On 23 December 2007 Holy Mass in the TLM was celebrated with great success and participation at a church, S. Stefano, held by the Jesuits at Sanremo, in Northern Italy.  

The Jesuits freaked out.

Here is part of a press release from Una Voce in my translation.

But, so much enthusiasm notwithstanding, or perhaps really because of it (if only a few people, maybe even old people, were interested in the old rite, no one would bother to block it) the Superior of the Jesuits in northern Italy, the vice-provincial Fr. Alberto Remondini, immediately went to check out the convent at Sanremo and, a few days before the next Mass was to be celebrated, he decreed, in accord with the Provincial of the Province of Italy of the Jesuits, Fr. Francesco Tata, that "in all the churches in Italy cared for by the Company of Jesus, the Pope’s Motu Proprio cannot be applied and Masses in Latin cannot be celebrated, except for occasional events to be pastorally justified on a case by case basis" (naturally what those "pastoral" exigencies are are not specified).  "In any case, " Fr. Remondini continues, "in no case can Mass in Latin have fixed or periodical term, even were it be to be only monthly as in the case of Sanremo."

So, the Jesuits in Italy have concluded that the provisions of the Motu Proprio do not apply to people who frequent their parishes.  They have determined that pastors of parishes who are Jesuits do not in fact have the rights given to them in Summorum Pontificum. 

 

So, there is some resistance on the part of some diocesans bishops.  Religious Superiors also have skin in the game, it seems.

This is a serious matter that only the Holy See can clarify.

 

WDTPRS send blogo-hermeneutical kudos to the great Fr. Finigan of The Hermeneutic of Continuity for his continuous service in the blogosphere. 

Fr. Finigan’s project just reached a milestone of half a million visitors, which is most gratifying.

Imagine what will happen to his blog when he is named as the next Archbishop of Westminster and elevated to the Sacred Purple!

Will he remember all of us, d’ya think? 

Do you ‘spose he’d bring me on as Vicar of Online Ministries? 

Maybe create a CyberChapter and make me a Canon, or something?

My friend Fr. Raymond Blake sent an interesting link to videos of the Sarum Rite celebrated for Candlemass posted at Valle Adurni.

Check it out!

Here is the first installment.

This looks like Merton College chapel in Oxford.

For descriptions of what is going on, head over to Valle Adurni.