Was there a GOOD point made in the sermon you heard at your Sunday Mass of obligation?
Share the good stuff.
It was the 6th Sunday after Easter in the Vetus Ordo, aka Sunday after the Ascension of the Lord, and the 7th Sunday of Easter in the Novus Ordo.
Tell about attendance especially for the Traditional Latin Mass. Pretty much everywhere it seems to be growing.
Any local changes or (hopefully good) news?
I have some thoughts about the Sunday reading HERE.
A taste:
By the Ascension, all the transformative mysteries of the Passion and Resurrection are still available to us. The action and effects of the Last Supper continuous with Calvary and the empty tomb are not bound by clocks, calendars or by geographical location. The High Priest in Heaven now guarantees that we can have many Masses at many altars at the same time, many Communions. Christ is not just in this Host and then that Host but in every Host, not just on this altar but now every altar. There isn’t just one priest now acting in Christ’s person, but many. This is what Christ accomplished in His Ascension to the Father.
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Well, I think this is “good” in the sense that it got me thinking and has stayed with me . . . though I’m unsure if it’s true.
A young SSPX priest said that “no one goes to hell just because they’re weak”. He expanded a bit: someone who accepts all that the Church teaches but is weak is not going to end up in hell.
Since we’re all weak in various ways I thought this was intriguing, especially coming from an SSPX priest. It was the sort of thing (i.e., reassuring your flock that none of them are going to hell) one might expect from a very different sort of priest. I’d expect to hear it at a Novus Ordo Mass at a very liberal parish.
It doesn’t seem utterly implausible either. If someone accepts all that the Church teaches and tries to live out her teachings, and frequents the sacraments regularly but occasionally falls into even grave sin out of weakness, it’s not implausible to suppose that God will providentially provide for final absolution before death for such a one (which is many, perhaps most, of His flock).
Does it border on presumption to think along these lines? Anyway, it got me thinking more than usual about the four last things, so that’s good.
Another packed house for our 8:00 AM Low Mass (FSSP oratory). As usual, predominately younger families with many children. Our little parish in the boonies is growing each week. There is talk of expanding the parking lot to accommodate vehicles (those Transit vans take up a lot of space…lol). I expect the 10:00 AM High Mass is equally crowded; I am beginning to think we may need a third Mass at some point in the near future, with perhaps a second priest to serve our parish. Men’s and ladies groups, home school co-ops, etc. The younger members are working diligently to create a true parish community.
My family and I started attending this church before it was a church – when Masses were held by various priests in numerous places until we actually secured a Church – this back in the early 2000’s. My brood is grown now, so I am one of the outlying ‘boomers’, trying to make some amends for our disastrous generation of hand-holders and Marty Haugen fans. Tough job, but someone has to do it. In those early days my wife was unconvinced, and said ‘if a Mass becomes available locally she would accompany me’ (if you build it, they will come). She is now a hard core TLM attendee with no intention of returning to the NO. We were fortunate to have had a very supportive bishop when this all started (may he Rest in Peace – a Benedictine no less), and our present bishop has continued his support – even to the point of coming to do Confirmation in the old rite this year. We are blessed beyond measure.
Solid sermon on the importance of having a strong prayer life.
Not the sermon, but…
Our priest converted to Catholicism 10 years ago.
Yesterday he celebrated his first anniversary Mass.
His parents came into the Church last month at Easter and as fate or grace would have it, were seated directly behind us, allowing us to chat after Mass, welcome to the Church, your son is a great guy, etc
1830 Latin NO ad orientam. I had arranged for this Mass to be said for the soul of the recently deceased mother of Fr. David Nix, a/k/a https://padreperegrino.org/ . This Mass included what had to be the first Latin language confirmation in the Cathedral in over fifty years. Mutual enrichment. Brick by brick.
The rector is of English extraction. He riffed on the recent coronation – detailing its Catholic roots – and reminding all of the Kingship of Christ. “Here is your undoubted King.” He exhorted us all to be ambassadors of the King of Kings, as we are when in the state of grace and fortified by the sacraments.
also noteworthy: confessions started at 1700 and were still being heard as late as 2000 with two priests in service for most if not all of that span (Mass lasted until about 2030 and nearly no one left early); some seminarians sang a lovely polyphonic setting of the Magnificat during solemn vespers before Mass; less than 10% of those in attendance were boomers or older and the place was as full as you’ll see it outside of Christmas, Easter, etc.