Fr. Z's Blog | Formerly entitled: "What Does The Prayer Really Say?" – Clear, straight commentary on Catholic issues, liturgy and life by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf o{]:¬)

QUAERITUR: Elements of the Extraordinary Form in the Ordinary Form

Posted on 22 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From a reader:

Can the Last Gospel and the prayers at the foot of the altar be a part of the Ordinary Form? Also, can the priest say, “May the body of Our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul unto life everlasting” instead of the theologically bland, “The Body of Christ”?

Good questions.

Regarding the Last Gospel and the Prayers at the foot of the altar… I think so. Given the fact that, in the Novus Ordo/Ordinary Form, they would technically be before Mass begins and after Mass concludes, you could probably do them as a sort of devotional practice. However, people in the pews would not see the distinction I am making and would, more than likely, see them as being part of Mass. I would therefore hesitate to do this.

As far as the form for distribution of Communion is concerned, I think that the older form cannot be used. The form for distribution of Communion is laid down explicitly in the Missale Romanum and there is no indication for any option.

One of Pope Benedict’s intentions with the provision of Summorum Pontificum was, through a wider use of the older form of Holy Mass, to kick-start the organic development of Holy Church’s worship. He was aiming to create a “gravitational pull”, as I call it, of the forms on each other. I believe that the older form will eventually have the greater pull in the long run. This gravitational pull is going to have to be slow. I don’t think we will necessarily see the results in our lifetime. We need stability in using the older, traditional forms so that they can be well-known and widespread. Only then might there be room for adjustments.

These questions, however, bring up another question. If it is desirable to make the newer form, the Ordinary Form, more like the Extraordinary Form, why not just use the Extraordinary Form? Sometimes it is said that the more the Ordinary Form is celebrated in the style of and with elements of the older form, the better it is. If that is the case, then I have to ask why not simply use the Extraordinary Form? It would take some patience and catechesis to establish it in a parish that hasn’t had it, but it can be done with the aid of some dedicated lay people and, of course, willing priests.

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, ASK FATHER Question Box, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, Our Catholic Identity, SUMMORUM PONTIFICUM, The future and our choices | Tagged Communion, Extraordinary Form, Holy Communion, Last Gospel, liturgy, Mass, Ordinary Form, Prayers at the foot of the altar, The Body of Christ, worship
83 Comments

QUAERITUR: SPIDER!

Posted on 22 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From a reader:

I have a guilty conscience regarding the irreverence towards the Blessed Sacrament.

I was alone during a middle of the night Holy Hour in our Adoration Chapel when I had a run in with a large and very aggressive spider. It scared the bejeebers out of me. I tried to kill it by stepping on it, but it was too fast for me at such an hour of the night.

At that point I completely forgot about the Blessed Sacrament, and went on a manhunt determined to kill this spider in the chapel.
Unfortunately it ran into the “sanctuary” part of the chapel where the Blessed Sacrament is kept and only the priest is permitted to go into, so I had to give up my manhunt. [arachnid hunt?]

I feel quite bad now that I think about it. Sometimes I forget that the Blessed Sacrament is more than just bread, and I didn’t show proper reverence to it. Do I need to confess this?

Large, fast aggressive spider. What could go wrong?

No, given the circumstances and your intentions. I don’t think you have to confess this.

Italians think well of spiders and consider having one around is good luck. In a Roman Catholic Chapel spiders might be given a break. The real problems come about when one of them winds up in Father’s chalice during Mass. I have written about that before. But that’s Father’s problem, not yours.

That said, perhaps you could – next time … and there will be a next time because that spider and his friends are obviously after you – use a liturgical beretta.

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, ASK FATHER Question Box, Lighter fare, Linking Back, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000 | Tagged beretta, spiders
52 Comments

NOTE TO READERS Re: Registration and Comments

Posted on 21 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Right now this blog is under siege by lots of spam and spammers trying to register and post their putrid slime. I have ratcheted up the drawbridge and have released the gators into the moat.

I direct you once again to my Litany For The Conversion Of Internet Thugs:

A work in progress.

I am willing to take some intelligent suggestions and additions.

Litany for the conversion of internet thugs.
(private use only, and when truly irritated, and when the alternative is foul language)

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God, the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God, the Son, Redeemer of the World, have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.

Lest internet thugs be eternally tormented by all the fiends of hell, convert them, O Lord.
Lest they pass eternity in utter despair, convert them, O Lord.
Lest they come to be damned for the harm they cause, convert them, O Lord.
Lest they roast forever in the deepest cinders of hell, convert them, O Lord.
Lest they suffer the unceasing pain of loss, convert them, O Lord.

Lest devils endlessly increase their physical agony, convert them, O Lord.
Lest devils twist their bowels and boil their blood in hell, convert them, O Lord.
Lest devils use them as their toys and tools, convert them, O Lord.
Lest devils gnaw on their skulls, convert them, O Lord.

Lest the innocent be harmed by their sins, convert them, O Lord.
Lest the innocent yield to them in weakness, convert them, O Lord.
Lest the innocent be drawn into their traps, convert them, O Lord.

From faceless Facebook admin drones, spare us O Lord.
From tweeting Twitter idiots, spare us O Lord.
From from heart-hardened spammers, spare us O Lord.
From blog combox trolls, spare us O Lord.
From rss feed problems, spare us O Lord.
From server memory resource difficulties, spare us O Lord.

From viruses, trojan horses, and all manner of snares, Lord save us.
From wasting our time, Lord save us.
From our own stupidity, Lord save us.

St. Isidore, defend us.
St. Francis de Sales, defend us.
St. Gabriel, defend us.
St. Michael, defend us.
Guardian angels, defend us.
All the angels and saints….. GRRRRR.

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord,
Lamb of God who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

V. Christ, Jesus who died for our sins.
R. Return, and return swiftly.

Let us pray.
Almighty and eternal God,
who according to an ineffable plan
called us into existence to do your will
amid the vicissitudes and contagion of this world,
grant, we beseech you,
through your mercy and grace,
both to protect the innocent who use the tools of this digital age,
and to convert all those who abuse them from their evil ways.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes | Tagged Litany for the Conversion of Internet Thugs, spam, spammers
23 Comments

U.S. court rules priests are not Holy See employees

Posted on 21 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From Vatican Insider:

The U.S. District Court in Portland clears the Vatican of any responsibility for a priest who was pronounced guilty of acts of paedophilia during the 1960s
ANDREA TORNIELLI
vatican city

On Monday, 20 August in Portland (Oregon), U.S. District Court judge, Michael Mosman, ruled that the Holy See “cannot be considered an employer” of members of the clergy and consequently cannot be held responsible in civil proceedings for sexual abuse committed by priests. Therefore each case should be judged individually and being a priest does not automatically mean the person in question should be treated in the same way as a company employee. In this specific case, the judge ruled that there was a total absence of any “employment relationship” between the Holy See and the priest who committed the abuse.

[…]

Read the rest there.

Posted in Brick by Brick, Clerical Sexual Abuse |
8 Comments

Fishwrap attacks Rep. Ryan. Double-standard ensues.

Posted on 21 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Over at the National catholic Fishwrap, one of the principal mongers, Tom Gallagher, launched an ad hominem attack on Rep. Paul Ryan, asking the question (and thereby suggesting the answer) that Ryan is a “fraud”. This is the usual green ink approach we expect from Fishwrap.

What got my attention is, at the end of Gallagher’s piece, his attack on Bp. Morlino of Madison. Here is a screenshot of the end of the entry. Draw your own conclusions:

And, just for fun and profit….

Posted in Biased Media Coverage, Green Inkers, Liberals | Tagged double standard, Fishwrap, National catholic Fishwrap, Rep. Ryan. Bp. Morlino, Tom Gallagher
96 Comments

Happy Birthday VOYAGER!

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From NASA (and remember that Pres. Obama has killed the manned space program… just another reason to vote against him):

August 20, 2012

Thirty-five years ago today, NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft, the first Voyager spacecraft to launch, departed on a journey that would make it the only spacecraft to visit Uranus and Neptune and the longest-operating NASA spacecraft ever. Voyager 2 and its twin, Voyager 1, that launched 16 days later on Sept. 5, 1977, are still going strong, hurtling away from our sun. Mission managers are eagerly anticipating the day when they break on through to the other side – the space between stars.

[…]

Voyager 2 became the longest-operating spacecraft on Aug. 13, 2012, surpassing Pioneer 6, which launched on Dec. 16, 1965, and sent its last signal back to NASA’s Deep Space Network on Dec. 8, 2000. (It operated for 12,758 days.)

[…]

Voyager 2 is about 9 billion miles (15 billion kilometers) away from the sun, heading in a southerly direction. Voyager 1 is about 11 billion miles (18 billion kilometers) away from the sun, heading in a northerly direction. For the last five years, both spacecraft have been exploring the outer layer of the heliosphere, the giant bubble of charged particles the sun blows around itself.

“We continue to listen to Voyager 1 and 2 nearly every day,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. “The two spacecraft are in great shape for having flown through Jupiter’s dangerous radiation environment and having to endure the chill of being so far away from our sun.”

Dodd and her team have been carefully managing the use of power from the continually diminishing energy sources on the two spacecraft. They estimate that the two spacecraft will have enough electrical power to continue collecting data and communicating it back to Earth through 2020, and possibly through 2025. While no one really knows how long it will take to get to interstellar space, Voyager scientists think we don’t have long to wait. And, besides, the first 35 years have already been a grand ride.

Posted in Just Too Cool, Look! Up in the sky! | Tagged NASA, The Doors, Voyager
22 Comments

Of things canicular and stellar, haedine and sabine

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

We are in “the dog days of summer”.

This phrase, for what is supposed to be the hottest part of the summer, believed by the ancients to be a time of bad omens, stems from the name of the bright star seen well at this time of year, Sirius (from Greek seirios, “blazing, scorching”). Sirius is called the “Dog Star”, because it is part of the canine constellation, Canis Major, which follows Orion the Hunter up into the sky at this time of year in the Northern Hemisphere. For your Tolkien fans, Orion is “Menelvagor with his shining belt”. Those of you who have satellite radio from Sirius now know why the logo involves a little dog.

For the ancient Romans the Dog Days began on 24 July. They would sacrifice a brown dog with the hope that the season wouldn’t be too hot or bring diseases. I would happily sacrifice a particularly annoying little brown dog I know of, as a matter of fact. I digress. Long before the Romans paid attention to Sirius, nisi fallor, the Egyptians used its rising to anticipate the all important flooding of the Nile. The Dog Days ended for the Romans on 24 August. Due to your planet’s axial precession, the date of the dog days has shifted over time.

I wonder if there is a connection between the Jetson’s dog, Astro and…. No. Probably not. But there may be a connection between Sirius Black and the Dog Star, since Sirius could shift-shape into a dog. I digress.

If you fall under the baleful effects of the Dog Star, you are said to be astroboletus,”star struck”, which probably means you are besotted with love or otherwise in a burning or flaming passion.

My favorite among the ancient Roman poets of the golden age, Q. Horatius Flaccus, Horace, has a delightful poem about the fresh running spring near his country home, his getaway from the chaos of Rome, which through the ages has been nicknamed his “Sabine Farm”. He mentions these canicular days.

O fons Bandusiae splendidior uitro,
dulci digne mero non sine floribus,
cras donaberis haedo,
cui frons turgida cornibus

primis et uenerem et proelia destinat.
Frustra: nam gelidos inficiet tibi
rubro sanguine riuos
lasciui suboles gregis.

Te flagrantis atrox hora Caniculae
nescit tangere, tu frigus amabile
fessis uomere tauris
praebes et pecori uago.

Fies nobilium tu quoque fontium
me dicente cauis impositam ilicem
saxis, unde loquaces
lymphae desiliunt tuae.

I believe I once recorded this poem in Latin for a PODCAzT.

For those of you whose Latin is not up to this poem (not my translation):

O Bandusian fountain, brighter than crystal,
worthy of sweet wine, not lacking in flowers,
tomorrow we’ll honour you
with a kid, whose brow is budding

with those horns that are destined for love and battle.
All in vain: since this child of the playful herd will
darken your ice-cool waters,
with the stain of its crimson blood.

The implacable hour of the blazing dog-star
knows no way to touch you, you offer your lovely
coolness to bullocks, weary
of ploughing, and to wandering flocks.

And you too will be one of the famous fountains,
now I write of the holm oak that’s rooted above
the cave in the rock where your
clear babbling waters run down.

One of my Latin profs in grad school told me that you don’t really appreciate Horace until you are a little older. That was 30 years ago, and I understand what he meant.

I have visited Horace’s villa several times, with groups of friends and Latin students. We brought goodies for a picnic and chilled bottles of white wine in the spring’s pool and read Horace in Latin, shaded from the sun, surrounded by cicadas and flaming poppies.

Perhaps you might sacrifice a goat tomorrow evening, or alternatively a dog, and then roast it slowly over a fire of dried cutting from your vineyards and orchards, and then consume it with friends and large quantities of the red wine he also mentions.

Posted in Just Too Cool, Look! Up in the sky! | Tagged axial precession, Canis Major, Dog Days, Dog Star, Fons Bandusiae, hora canicula, Horace, J.R.R. Tolkien, Menelvagor, Orion, Q. Horatius Flaccus, Sabine Farm, Sirius
12 Comments

Are we witnessing the establishment of a “state religion”?

Posted on 20 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

My friend the great Fr. George Welzbacher, one of the five smartest people I know, issues weekly a “Pastor’s Page” in his parish bulletin (he is 84 and still pastor of a parish) which always deserve a close read. They are not your typical “pastor’s pages”.

This week this is what he offered. You can find all his pages HERE at the site of the parish.

Pastor’s Page
By Fr. George Welzbacher
August 19, 2012

It would seem that, for the first time in the history of our republic, we are witnessing here in the U.S.A. the establishment of a state religion, a religion so crafted as to delight the heart of a secularist, a religion with clearly defined dogmas, compliance with whose demands is to be enforced with all of the coercive powers at the disposal of the federal government. Here are the dogmas of this new faith.

Dogma #1: A woman has the right, the unrestricted right, to make arrangements for the killing of her unborn child whenever such course of action is convenient. [I would add that abortion thereby becomes a sacrament. Shades of Moloch.]

Dogma #2: The chief purpose served by the institution of marriage is the securing of social recognition for romantic attraction, together with the panoply of benefits accruing to such recognition. The begetting of children, together with such subsequent upbringing as will equip them to contribute responsibly to the society in which they will spend their lives, can be dismissed as of marginal importance. Thus every man, should this be his bent, has the right to marry another man, just as every woman, should she be so disposed, has the right to marry a woman. To suggest otherwise, to imply, for example, that a man’s realigning of his reproductive powers to adapt to another man’s digestive tract is in any way abnormal is to be guilty of a hate crime, in exculpation of which no appeal to the rights of conscience shall be allowed, this being an intolerable crime, properly punishable with fines and/or imprisonment.

Dogma #3: The sovereign pontiff in this new state religion is the people’s hero, Barack Hussein, now reigning gloriously in the White House. [Anti-Catholic, pro-abortion, against the 1st and 2nd Amendments (to begin with): The First Gay President.]

Dogma #4: Enemy Number One of the new state religion is, by and large, the Christian faith and, with special intransigence, the Catholic Church. Measures must accordingly be taken to compel the recusant authorities of the Roman Catholic faith to genuflect at the new religion’s altar. (Thus the new Health and Human Services mandate).

* * * * *

All of this represents at least one way of looking at President Obama’s arrogant trampling upon the First Amendment, not to mention his repudiation of God’s Commandments. A formally different but compatible “take” was recently offered by the political commentator Yuval Levin in an essay published in that excellent journal of opinion, The National Review. In his analysis of Mr. Obama’s attack on traditional religion and freedom of conscience Mr. Levin begins by citing the early nineteenth century French political philosopher, Alexis de Tocqueville, whose Democracy in America remains to this day a much admired, much consulted and much quoted classic.

In explaining America’s unique vitality and strength, Tocqueville assigns special importance to the vast proliferation of VOLUNTARY ASSOCIATIONS of every imaginable type that channel human energy towards productive ends and stand as a kind of buffer, a PROTECTIVE SCREEN, between the individual citizen and the overreaching state. Mr. Levin argues that the grand aim of the Obama administration has been the systematic demolition of that buffer, that protective shield of free associations, among which first and foremost are the religious groups, America’s churches and synagogues and other God-centered associations.

Here (abridged to accommodate our restrictions of space) is what Mr. Levin has to say.

Due to the marvels of the interwebs, I don’t have to restrict anything. Instead I can simply link you to Yuval Levin’s original article, The Hollow Republic.

Dead on.

Posted in Mail from priests, Religious Liberty, The Drill, The future and our choices | Tagged Alexis de Tocqueville, Fr. Welzbacher, HHS mandate, November 2012, Pres. Obama, state religion, voluntary associations, Yuval Levin
34 Comments

“catholic Dupes for Obama” claim their guy is really “pro-life”.

Posted on 19 August 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Some deeply confused catholics are supporting Pres. Obama. They are calling him “pro-life”.

This is from CNA. Read and laugh… or weep.

Obama’s Catholic supporters drop pro-life argument in 2012 appeal
By Benjamin Mann

Washington D.C., Aug 17, 2012 / 11:24 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Catholics for Obama has launched its 2012 initiative with a focus on economic issues, in an apparent shift from its 2008 presentation of the presidential candidate as “pro-life.” [What a farce.]

“We endorse the President because of his tireless focus on economic security for middle-class families,” the national co-chairs of Catholics for Obama wrote in an Aug. 13 letter, kicking off their effort to target a key voting bloc in the closely contested election.

Proclaiming their commitment “to our faith and our country,” the 21 signers devoted much of their letter to jobs and the economy, along with a variety of foreign policy items which have been seldom-mentioned in the presidential campaign. [Pres. Obama would force Catholics to violate a properly formed conscience.]

A brief mention was made of the president’s health care law, which has created a major controversy with the nation’s Catholic bishops after it led to the formulation of a rule requiring insurance coverage of contraception, sterilization, and abortion-causing drugs.

The letter cited the Catholic teaching “that every human being is made in the image of God,” as a warning against Republican policies that the signers said “would shred our nation’s compassionate safety net” by “gutting” social assistance programs.

A nuclear arms reduction treaty signed by the president was described as a “a priority for Catholic bishops around the world,” said to be “moving us closer to a world with no nuclear weapons.” [Pres. Obama supported infanticide when he was in Illinois.]

President Obama was also praised for concluding the Iraq war, and “working to bring our troops home from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.” [Pres. Obama lied to Card. Dolan.]

The focus on economic issues and foreign policy items contrasts with Catholics for Obama’s 2008 effort, during which time its website declared: “Is Barack Obama Really Pro-Life? The answer is ‘yes.’” [I am surprised that we haven’t read stories of lightening bolts striking down the signers.]

During that campaign, Catholics for Obama reached out to Church members with the slogan: “The most positive pro-life stance we can take may be pro-Obama.” [I may vomit.] The campaign material argued that Obama would reduce abortions though“anti-poverty programs,” “day care” and “job training.”

In contrast, Monday’s letter from the national co-chairs did not directly mention abortion, though the president’s “support for pregnant women and the Adoption Tax Credit” were briefly cited alongside his “pursuit of immigration reform.” [Obama is the most aggressive promoter of abortion we have ever seen in the White House.]

Although his administration’s contraception mandate has been criticized as a threat to religious charities, the co-chairs of Catholics for Obama asserted that the president “understands Catholics and our values, because he understands the importance of an active faith in pursuit of the common good.” [Is it possible that they really believe that?]

Catholic voters, they suggested, should regard the election as “a make-or-break moment for the middle-class” and for the country.

According to the co-chairs, the president’s “record, his character, and his values make the choice in this election clear.” [That’s for damn sure.]

Thanks to guys like JFK, Fr. Drinan, Card. Bernardin, Mario Cuomo, Doug Kmiec, etc., catholics use the argument that when placed in the balance, all these other social issues outweigh the right to be born.