Free contraception is good for big business abortion

Posted on 24 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Abortion is big business.  Merchants of death such as Planned Parenthood, and now apparently the White House, know this.  Therefore they promote promiscuity, which will lead to more abortions which will produce more profits.  It isn’t difficult.  As part of the process, they will try to make sure there are free contraceptives (not to mention abortifacients) for as many people as possible.  The result will be “failures” of contraception, which then leads to more abortions.  This is why Planned Parenthood would hand the stuff out.  It’s good for the bottom line. See this for more on the tactic.

With that as a preamble, I read this at CNA:

Denver, Colo., Feb 24, 2012 / 09:21 am (CNA).- Advocates of President Obama’s contraception mandate should admit that its main purpose is sexual liberation and not “women’s health,” according to a feminist author who supports the mandate.

“The phrase ‘women’s health’ in the birth control dispute is the latest nimble euphemism,” author and blogger Pamela Haag wrote in a Feb. 17 essay.

Access to contraception, she said, “isn’t really about my ‘health.’ It’s not principally about the management of ovarian cysts or the regulation of periods.”

“Birth control isn’t about my health unless by ‘health’ you mean, my capacity to get it on, to have a happy, joyous sex life that involves an actual male partner,” wrote Haag, criticizing White House supporters for discussing contraceptives mainly as “preventive services” for women’s health.

“The point of birth control is to have sex that’s recreational and non-procreative,” wrote Haag approvingly. “It’s to permit women to exercise their desires without the ‘sword of Damocles’ of unwanted pregnancy hanging gloomily over their heads.”

Haag, a supporter of “reproductive rights” and “women’s sexual liberty,” accused “mainstream liberal voices in Congress” of publicly ignoring the real purpose of mandatory contraception coverage.

“Barbara Boxer frames the birth control issue ‘a la mode’ as about ‘defending women’s health,’” she noted. “EMILY’s List refers to the ‘war on women’s health.’”

“I understand why they’ve done this, in terms of narrow political expediency. We’ve been on the defensive about reproductive rights and women’s sexual liberty for decades. We’ve used a euphemism of ‘choice’ for years.”

[…]

Read the rest there.

Posted in Emanations from Penumbras, The Drill | Tagged , , , , , ,
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Dumb liberal idea #3464: Removing Holy Water during Lent

Posted on 24 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Some of you have been to church already this Lent. Some of you will go tonight for Stations of the Cross. All of you will go on Sunday.

Each year we are seeing a lessening of liturgical stupidity, as those of a certain age go to their retirement or reward (the so-called “Biological Solution”) and young people with less strange liturgical baggage step into their positions. Nevertheless, some aberrations continue. One particularly dumb and annoying liturgical oddity is the removal of holy water from stoups during Lent.

If you are a new Catholic or catechumen and haven’t yet seen that, just remember that the people doing this, … know not what they do.

To all the priests out there still… unbelievably still putting sand in holy water fonts during Lent…

KNOCK IT OFF!

And if you go into a church where you see this sort of idiocy… for the love of God, DON’T bless yourself with SAND.

Total FAIL.

Little beach chairs made from toothpicks and a drink umbrella would look good in there.  Maybe a golf ball? Some fast sprouting beans and a little water when no one is looking?

Have sand in your stoups?  How about some photos!?

Holy water is a sacramental.

We get the powerful theology of its use in the older ritual in the prayers for exorcism of the water and salt used and then the blessing itself.  I wrote about this in an article for the WDTPRS series and it is on this blog.  I’ll come back to it soon.

The rite of blessing holy water, in the older ritual, is powerful stuff.  It sounds odd, nearly foreign to our modern ears, especially after decades of being force fed ICEL pabulum.

Holy Water is a power weapon of the spiritual life against the attacks of the devil.

You do believe in the existence of the Enemy, … right?

You know you are a soldier and pilgrim in a dangerous world, … right?

So why… why… why would these liturgists and priests REMOVE a tool of spiritual warfare precisely during the season of LENT when we need it the most??

Holy water is a sacramental.

It is for our benefit.

awardIt is not a toy, or something to be abstained from, like chocolate or television.

This is a response from the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments about this question. Enjoy.

The emphases are mine:

Prot. N. 569/00/L

March 14, 2000

Dear Father:

This Congregation for Divine Worship has received your letter sent by fax in which you ask whether it is in accord with liturgical law to remove the Holy Water from the fonts for the duration of the season of Lent.

This Dicastery is able to respond that the removing of Holy Water from the fonts during the season of Lent is not permitted, in particular, for two reasons:

1. The liturgical legislation in force does not foresee this innovation, which in addition to being praeter legem is contrary to a balanced understanding of the season of Lent, which though truly being a season of penance, is also a season rich in the symbolism of water and baptism, constantly evoked in liturgical texts.

2. The encouragement of the Church that the faithful avail themselves frequently of the [sic] of her sacraments and sacramentals is to be understood to apply also to the season of Lent. The “fast” and “abstinence” which the faithful embrace in this season does not extend to abstaining from the sacraments or sacramentals of the Church. The practice of the Church has been to empty the Holy Water fonts on the days of the Sacred Triduum in preparation of the blessing of the water at the Easter Vigil, and it corresponds to those days on which the Eucharist is not celebrated (i.e., Good Friday and Holy Saturday).

Hoping that this resolves the question and with every good wish and kind regard, I am,

Sincerely yours in Christ,
[signed]
Mons. Mario Marini [Later, the Secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, now with God.]
Undersecretary

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, ASK FATHER Question Box, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, Our Catholic Identity | Tagged , ,
52 Comments

Vespers with no frills and a request

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Vespers, no frils, from the Breviarium Romanum.

Please pray for a priest who is under serious attack by the forces of hell.

Posted in SESSIUNCULA |
17 Comments

QUAERITUR: Removal of Crucifixes from church during Lent. Fr. Z rants.

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From a reader:

At my parish, we have a tradition of taking down and stowing away the San Damiano Cross replica that hangs from the ceiling over our sanctuary. This year, I discovered the plenary indulgence for praying before a crucifix on Fridays during Lent, and now there’s no way for me to achieve that in our chapel (I have a crucifix in my bedroom, but the experience isn’t the same somehow). Is this something I should be concerned about?

I should say so. Other than the fact that that was a silly thing to do at the beginning of LENT, for the love of God, the removal of the Cross makes is that much harder for many people easily to gain an indulgence offered to all the faithful during Lent on Fridays.

Holy Church has attached a plenary indulgence to praying before a Crucifix on Fridays during Lent. I will grant that that grant does not specify the Crucifix in the parish, but why remove a Cross during Lent when we even have… wait for it… Stations of the CROSS?

There is a laudable custom of covering over images and the Cross on what in the traditional calendar is called (1st) Passion Sunday, which in the new calendar is the 5th Sunday of Lent. We do this because Holy Church enters into a greater and greater liturgical deprivation, in imitation of the Passion and death of the Lord, as we move through pre-Lent, Lent and Triduum.

I don’t understand what they priests are thinking when they take away things during Lent which are of benefit during our time of spiritual combat. The remove Holy Water from stoups, for example. That is a useful sacramental in a sacred season when the Enemy is working to make us fall. Meditation on the Crucified Lord can be of consolation to those who are suffering and for those who are feeling weak in their resolve.

“Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.” as my old pastor would have said… and did say when he heard of things like this.

In any event, here is the text about the indulgence on Friday:

8 §1. A plenary indulgence is granted to the Christian faithful who:

…

2° in any Friday in the season of Lent piously recite the prayer En ego, o bone et dulcissime Iesu, before an image of the Crucified Jesus Christ after communion; …

(Reference: Enchiridion Indulgentiarum, 4th edition, al. concessiones.)

. . .

It doesn’t specify how long after Communion.  I suppose if you go straight home after Mass that’s fine.  I guess you could use the Crucifix on the Rosary hanging from your rear-view mirror, instead of from your hand.

Here is the prayer which could be useful.

Sometimes you get ready and get in place and then can’t think of what to say. Holy Church helped you out!

This is always good, especially after Mass… in the church… before the Crucifix which ought to be there:

En ego, o bone et dulcissime Iesu, ante conspectum tuum genibus me provolvo, ac maximo animi ardore te oro atque obtestor, ut meum in cor vividos fidei, spei et caritatis sensus, atque veram peccatorum meorum paenitentiam, eaque emendandi firmissimam voluntatem velis imprimere; dum magno animi affectu et dolore tua quinque vulnera mecum ipse considero, ac mente contemplor, illud prae oculis habens, quod iam in ore ponebat tuo David Propheta de te, o bone Iesu: «Foderunt manus meas et pedes meos; dinumeraverunt omnia ossa mea».

Behold, o good and most sweet Jesus, I fall upon my knees before Thee, and with most fervent desire beg and beseech Thee that Thou wouldst impress upon my heart a lively sense of faith, hope and charity, true repentance for my sins, and a firm resolve to make amends. And with deep affection and grief, I reflect upon Thy five wounds, having before my eyes that which Thy prophet David spoke about Thee, o good Jesus: “They have pierced my hands and feet, they have counted all my bones.”

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, ASK FATHER Question Box, LENT, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, Our Catholic Identity, Wherein Fr. Z Rants | Tagged , , , ,
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Tips for Lent from a bishop

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Now that we are one whole day into Lent, I bring your attention to something posted on the USCCB blog by His Excellency Most Rev. David Ricken, Bishop of Green Bay and chairman of the Committee on Evangelization.

Remember that whole “New Evangelization” thing that is supposed to take place?

In any even Bp. Ricken has a few good tips for Lent. I will give you the bullet points and you can go over there to read the rest.

1. Remember the formula. …
2. It’s a time of prayer. …
3. It’s a time to fast. …
4. It’s a time to work on discipline. …
5. It’s about dying to yourself. …
6. Don’t do too much. …
7. Lent reminds us of our weakness. …
8. Be patient with yourself. …
9. Reach out in charity. …
10. Learn to love like Christ. …

Good tips!

I prefer old-fashioned language such as “perform corporal and spiritual works of mercy” to “reach out in charity”, but he’s got it. I tend to think of “discipline” in the more ancient sense of Latin disciplina, but he’s got it. Don’t do too much, is good practical advise. You can always add to what you start with. Sometimes people try too much and they become discouraged.

Go read the rest over there.

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, Mail from priests, New Evangelization, Our Catholic Identity | Tagged , , , ,
1 Comment

Really picky old Mass privilege question

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

I had an interesting liturgical question today about an old privilege for priests in the USA to be able to say a Requiem Mass on Mondays.   I am pretty sure this is now defunct, but here is an article about it from the Catholic Encyclopedia of (1917)

The Monday Privilege

In the United States there is a faculty (“Fac. Ord.”, Form I, 20) ordinarily communicated to priests through the bishop which grants permission to celebrate a requiem Mass on Mondays non impeditis officio novem lectionem. The phrase officio novem lectionem gave rise to a doubt as to whether semi-doubles only were referred to, or if doubles also were understood. The Congregation of Rites answered (4 Sept., 1875, no. 3370, ad. 1) that this Mass was allowed on all Mondays during the year, except (a) on the vigils of Christmas and the Epiphany; (b) in Holy Week; (c) during the octaves of Christmas, the Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost, and Corpus Christi; (d) holy days of obligation; (e) greater doubles and doubles of the first and second class. If the enumerated cases hinder this Mass on Monday, the privilege is transferred to Tuesday, under the same conditions, but it lapses after that day.

Posted in Liturgy Science Theatre 3000 | Tagged
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Latin language breakfast group

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From Catholic News Service comes a little video about … I am not making this up … Latin.

A few priests are interested in keep some Latin going.  The short also speaks about Veterum sapientia, about which I wrote – nay, rather, spoke –  HERE.

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I think it would be fun to have a Latin language breakfast group, ne pereat!

BTW… the priest at the end took over a lot of Fr. Foster’s work at the Secretariat of State.

Posted in Just Too Cool, Lighter fare | Tagged , ,
7 Comments

“The rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.”

Posted on 23 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From the Knights of Columbus.

Some good quotes in this video.

[wp_youtube]kwqHRkyBlQ4[/wp_youtube]

Posted in Our Catholic Identity, Religious Liberty, The future and our choices, The Last Acceptable Prejudice | Tagged , , , ,
6 Comments

Vespers with no frills

Posted on 22 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

For the Feast of the Cathedra of Peter with a commemoration of Ash Wednesday from the Breviarium Romanum, Vespers in Latin comes straight at ya’ without any bells or whistles.

The meter of the hymn is interesting.

Quodcumque in orbe nexibus revinxeris,
Erit revinctum Petre in arce siderum:
Et quod resolvit hic potestas tradita,
Erit solutum caeli in alto vertice;
In fine mundi iudicabis saeculum.

Patri perenne sit per aevum gloria,
Tibique laudes concinamus inclytas,
Aeterne Nate, sit superne Spiritus,
Honor tibi, decusque: sancta iugiter
Laudetur omne Trinitas per saeculum.

Cretics?  A sort of limping iambic trimeter?  Choliambic?  It is attributed to St. Paulinus of Aquileia, thus Carolingian, accentual rather than quantitative.  I am all at sea.  I took a quick look at the chant melody.  Strange stuff.  And that fourth line in the second stanza throws you, like a horse changing gate.

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Posted in Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, PRAYERCAzT: What Does The (Latin) Prayer Really Sound L |
10 Comments

Chris Matthews: anti-Catholic catholic

Posted on 22 February 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

NBC oaf Chris Matthews, yes, the guy who experienced a thrill up his leg when he saw Pres. Obama, has this to say about Catholics and probably also Anglican/Episcopalian converts.

From Newsbusters:

Chris Matthews appeared at Ford’s Theater in Washington D.C., Monday, for a President’s Day panel and sneered that Catholics are attracting bigots. While talking about Richard Nixon, the so-called Southern Strategy and racism, the Hardball host berated, “If you’re really anti-gay, you become a Catholic now.”

[…]

Presidential Leadership Panel
02/20/12
7:30

SCOTT WHITLOCK: Hi, Mr. Matthews, my name is Scott Whitlock. I’m with the Media Research Center and-

CHRIS MATTHEWS: What’s the Media Research Center?

WHITLOCK: We write about liberal media bias.

[Matthews visibly sighs and looks irritated. Audience laughs.]

WHITLOCK: Earlier tonight, you were talking about Nixon and the Southern Strategy and bigotry and things like that you and you said, quote, “If you’re really anti-gay, you become a Catholic now.” [Audience laughs.] I was wondering if you were saying that bigots become Catholic now and if you wanted to expand or apologize for that? [Audience laughs.]

MATTHEWS: I think there are people who have chosen to convert to the Catholic faith because they don’t like the liberal positions taken by their sectarian groups. That’s a fact. So, you can write that down. No, you can write that down.

WHITLOCK: So, you’re saying Catholicism is drawing bigots? Is that what you’re saying?

MATTHEWS: I’m saying that some people who are bigoted against gay people have changed religions. Yes. You got it right.

[…]

There is a video.

Posted in SESSIUNCULA, The Last Acceptable Prejudice | Tagged , ,
38 Comments