Rush Limbaugh passed away

Posted on 17 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Rush Limbaugh passed away this morning.

We have lost a hero.

Pray for him.

Requiescat in pace.

Posted in PRAYER REQUEST | Tagged
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Ash Wednesday by Eliot

Posted on 17 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Back in 2013, with a remnant of a cold, I read T. S. Eliot’s Ash Wednesday.

It’s interesting to go back to that post and see the comments.  For example, Supertradmum is no longer with us.  Say a prayer for the repose of her soul.  There are names of some commentators we haven’t see around for a while.

HERE

 

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Posted in Poetry | Tagged ,
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You are NOT exempt from service, dear readers.  None of us are. Wherein Fr. Z rants.

Posted on 17 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

At Crisis today there is a good piece about “cancel culture” and the would-be despots who use it as a tool of bullying and intimidation.

“Cancel culture” is within the walls, now, of the Church as well, like orcs at Helms Deep, like New catholic Red Guards in your neighborhood.  Believe me.  I’m a recipient.

The stepping off point for the piece at Crisis was the cancelling of actress Gino Carano.

I am not a Star Wars fan over all… meh… but I have to admit I liked The Mandalorian.   Great theme music, too.

Carano had a good character.  But, she engaged in “Wrongthink” (have you read 1984? US HERE – UK HERE).  Thinkpol vaporized Carano at Miniluv.

Like Disney and Star Wars, hate Disney and Star Wars… this should not have been done to her.  It was simply an act of woke terrorism.

From Crisis

[…]

In the world of woke corporate fascism, making money has become secondary. While Goya Foods, Chick-Fil-A, and My Pillow saw their sales skyrocket when they refused to bend to the woke mob, the NFL and Target lost customers by being too woke. But instead of changing their policies, they doubled down on their wokeness.

The primary goal for woke corporations is power because power is the primary goal of all would-be tyrants. What do these corporations care if they lose a million or even a billion dollars if they can get everyone to bend to their will? Like a bully who enjoys making other kids cry “uncle,” these corporate tyrants love exerting their control over us. Americans must allow men to use the restroom with our little girls; we must stand and cheer for men who refuse to stand and cheer for our country; but most of all, we must never engage in Wrongthink!

[…]

The woke elites who run most of the world’s major corporations despise us. They think they are superior to us, that we are not smart enough, or cultured enough, or cosmopolitan enough to think correctly. Those of us who disagree with them must be reeducated or destroyed. They want us to not only be silenced, but to starve. They don’t want us to have jobs or friends or anything. If you dared to vote wrong, you must be reeducated until you grovel properly, or you must be shunned and starve. Because you engage in Wrongthink, you do not deserve to make a living to feed your family.

[…]

The writer comes to the big question:

“So, what can we as Catholics do?”

It is a good question to ask as Lent begins.

Lent is a time of spiritual “disciplina… discipline”.

I suggest that in this time of heightened spiritual warfare that we have clearly entered, we should use this Lent as either:

boot camp

or

special forces training.

Discern who and what you are and choose the appropriate level.  Be honest.  Some of you are more advanced than others in the spiritual life.  Time to do more.  Some of you are doing very little and you need to get to work.  START.

You are NOT exempt from service, dear readers.  None of us are.

As a deadly enemy of humanity once put it, “You might not be interested in war, but war is interested in you.”

The woke elites despise you.

The Enemy of the soul despises you.

They both want your spiritual reduction.

How about saying a Rosary, at least one decade…. RIGHT NOW.

And then make plans to

GO TO CONFESSION!

Posted in ¡Hagan lío!, "How To..." - Practical Notes, Be The Maquis, Hard-Identity Catholicism, New catholic Red Guards, Save The Liturgy - Save The World, Si vis pacem para bellum!, The Coming Storm, The future and our choices, Wherein Fr. Z Rants | Tagged , ,
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POLL: Distribution of ashes and the form used – #AshWednesday #Lent 2021

Posted on 17 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

This year we may have differing practices for the distribution of ashes today, Ash Wednesday.

Let’s have a poll to find out what you readers experienced.

Choose your best answer.

Anyone can participate.  To post a comment you have to be registered and approved.

If you are registered, I hope you will post a comment to describe what happened with the distribution of ashes today.

For 2021 Ash Wednesday about reception of ASHES

View Results

And also about the form used for distribution:

When I received ashes for Ash Wednesday 2021 the formula used was...

View Results

 

Posted in POLLS | Tagged ,
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Ash Wednesday – Fasting, Abstinence, and You (with notes on alligator, endothermic moonfish, &, of course, muskrat

Posted on 16 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

According to the 1983 Code of Canon Law for the Latin Church, Latin Church Catholics are bound to observe fasting and abstinence on Ash Wednesday.

Here are some details. I am sure you know them already, but they are good to review.

FASTING: Catholics who are 18 year old and up, until their 59th birthday (when you begin your 60th year), are bound to fast (1 full meal and perhaps some food at a couple points during the day, call it 2 “snacks”, according to local custom or law – call it, two snacks that don’t add up to a full meal) on Ash Wednesday and on Good Friday.

There is no scientific formula for this.  Figure it out.

ABSTINENCE: Catholics who are 14 years old and older are abound to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and on all Fridays of Lent.

In general, when you have a medical condition of some kind, or you are pregnant, etc., these requirements can be relaxed.

For Eastern Catholics there are differences concerning dates and practices. Perhaps our Eastern friends can fill us Latins in.

You should by now have a plan for your spiritual life and your physical/material mortifications and penitential practices during Lent.

You would do well to include some works of mercy, both spiritual and corporal.

I also recommend making a good confession close to the beginning of Lent.  Let me put that another way:

GO TO CONFESSION!

“But Father! But Father!”, some of you are saying anxiously, “What about my Mystic Monk Coffee?  I can drink my Mystic Monk Coffee, can’t I?  Can’t I?”

You can, of course, coffee with and as part of your full meal and two “snacks”.  No question there.

How about in between meals on Ash Wednesday?

The old axiom, for the Lenten fast, is “Liquidum non frangit ieiunium … liquid does not break the fast”, provided – NB – you are drinking for the sake of thirst, rather than for eating.

Common sense suggests that chocolate banana shakes or “smoothies”, etc., are not permissible, even though they are pretty much liquid in form.  They are not what you would drink because you are thirsty, as you might more commonly do with water, coffee, tea, wine in some cases, lemonade, even some of these sports drinks such as “Gatorade”, etc.

Again, common sense applies, so figure it out.

Drinks such as coffee and tea do not break the Lenten fast even if they have a little milk added, or a bit of sugar, or fruit juice, which in the case of tea might be lemon.

Coffee would break the Eucharistic fast (one hour before Communion), since – pace fallentes  – coffee is no longer water, but it does not break the Lenten fast on Ash Wednesday.

You will be happy to know that chewing tobacco does not break the fast (unless you eat the quid, I guess), nor does using mouthwash (gargarisatio in one manual I checked) or brushing your teeth (pulverisatio).

Concerning the consumption of alligator and crocodile – HERE  I included notes also on the eating of endothermic moonfish, peptonized beef, and muskrat… just in case.

If you want to drink your coffee and tea with true merit I suggest drinking it from one of my coffee mugs.  I’d like to offer an indulgence for doing so, but that’s above my pay grade.

I just happen to have available a “Liquidum non frangit ieiunium” mug!  HERE

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, 1983 CIC can. 915, ASK FATHER Question Box, Our Catholic Identity | Tagged , ,
5 Comments

“Let’s stop demanding perfection from potential allies.”

Posted on 16 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Over at The Remnant – they are upping their tech game there – Michael Matt has a video “From The Editor’s Desk” in which he makes a critically important point for all of us to consider … and then embrace.

The front part of the video gets into the politics of the swamp, etc.

Since I am a victim of the New catholic Red Guard campaign of online cancel terror, the part I am really interested starts at about 19:10:

“And by the way… we gotta get ready for war here. Let’s stop demanding perfection from potential allies, now, who are really rushing toward our side of the battlefield. They’re just waking up. They said crazy things not that long ago…. Let’s anticipate these people, shall we?”

Keep watching.  He has some good examples.

Libs are able to put aside small differences to work together. They want to tear down and they want all the help they can get. Conservatives, however, tend to defend their little wrinkle of turf and fight against others soooo close to them, but with a slightly different view of the battlefield. In the words of my old pastor, “They couldn’t organize a bird cage.”

Not the Left. Oh no. Look at how well networked and organized they are.

Michael Matt’s message is dead on target.

Let’s not make the perfect into the enemy of the good. We have to work together.

The Left might be woke, but we have to welcome to our lines those who are waking up.

Posted in The Coming Storm, The Drill, The future and our choices | Tagged ,
11 Comments

Daily Rome Shot 79

Posted on 16 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

 

Posted in SESSIUNCULA | Tagged
5 Comments

Meanwhile… Ebola

Posted on 15 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From Newsmax:

Ebola Epidemic Declared in Guinea

The West African country Guinea declared an Ebola epidemic Sunday after an outbreak killed several people and hospitalized others.

The Ebola virus killed at least three people and infected four others after a spread possibly traced to the Feb. 1 burial of a nurse. All the known cases involved people aged over 25.

“The government reassures the population that all measures are being taken to stem this epidemic as quickly as possible,” Guinean Health Minister Remy Lamah said per the Washington Examiner.

“It invites the populations of the affected areas to respect hygiene and prevention measures and to report to health authorities in the presence of suggestive signs.”

Cases of Ebola, which causes diarrhea, internal hemorrhaging, and fever, had been isolated to two cities, N’Zerekore and Conakry.

[…]

The Democratic Republic of the Congo last week confirmed four Ebola cases not linked to the Guinea outbreak.

[…]

Posted in Semper Paratus, The Coming Storm | Tagged
2 Comments

Proper Mass for Shrove Tuesday “in honor of the Holy Face”

Posted on 15 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent for the Roman Church.

I was sent this by a kind soul: a Mass proper for Shrove Tuesday, a Votive Mass in Honor of the Holy Face of Jesus. … Missa Votiva in honorem “Sacri Vultus”, which is celebrated in Red.   The Introit is “Humiliavit semetipsum“.

Extraordinary Mass in Honour of the Holy Face of Jesus Latin-English

There is a similar Mass on Tuesday of Septuagesima (the Agony in the Garden) and Tuesday of Sexagesima (the Column of the Flagellation).

In fact, if memory serves there were Votive Masses for all the “arma Christi“, the instruments of the Passion, and I believe this was promoted by the, yes, Passionists.

 

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000 | Tagged ,
1 Comment

Seven minutes of terror

Posted on 15 February 2021 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

No, I don’t mean the homily at “liturgy” by Sister Randi over at the merged cluster of “Sing A New Faith Community Into Being Faith Community” in the Diocese of Libville.

Here is a video explaining the landing of  Perseverance the Mars Rover that’s coming up on 18 February.

YouTube thumbnailYouTube icon

As an exercise, contrast that video with the must shorter video about the landing of Curiosity back in 2012.

YouTube thumbnailYouTube icon

You have sense that a lot of things have changed since 2012… apart from the fact that in the newer version the reader struggles to pronounce the name of the Rover.

The live feed that will cover the landing…

YouTube thumbnailYouTube icon

Posted in Look! Up in the sky! | Tagged
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