Whispering Hope

This week, a young man started serving at my daily Mass in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite. He wanted to be a priest so that he could offer the Mass in the extraordinary form.

Yesterday, a seminarian from the Philippine Mission Society stayed with us the whole day for a mission appeal on behalf our Filipino missionaries. At the end of the day, as we ate supper, he told me that when he was in Mindanao, he was a servant leader of a basic ecclesial community. He was inspired by the "defensores fidei" who introduced him to the extraordinary form. He said that he wished that Summorum Pontificum be implemented more generously in the Philippines.

Sometimes I feel disheartened by the opposition of many bishops and priests to the reform of the reform. But then, seeing these young men...there is hope.

On the multiplication of loaves and fish

Aside from the passion and resurrection narratives, the story of the multiplication of the loaves is the only one story that is found recorded in all the 4 gospels. This only shows the importance of the narrative to Christianity. It is important because of the Eucharistic character of the story. Clearly, the multiplication of the loaves is a Eucharistic lesson because the 4 actions which Christ performed are the 4 actions that determined the pattern of the Eucharistic Sacrifice: Jesus took bread, blessed, broke the bread and gave it to the disciples.

Thus, we see the centrality of the Eucharist in the Christian mysteries. A true Christian is a believer in the Eucharist. A true Christian cannot live without the Eucharist because the Lord Jesus himself said: “Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you cannot have life in you.”

This makes me wonder how non Catholics can afford not to believe in the Eucharist even in spite of the wealth of Scriptural proof and Apostolic witness. How could they get past St. John’s chapter on the Bread of life without seeing the clear Eucharistic doctrine? I once chanced upon a non-Catholic commentary on the Bread of life chapter of John’s gospel which tried to explain that the Bread of life is actually the Word of God because Jesus, at the temptation in the desert, quoted to Satan an Old Testament passage which said: “Man does not live on bread alone but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God.” Thus, the center of non-Catholic worship is the sermon of the pastor. The center of the non-Catholic sanctuary is the pulpit.

But the story of the multiplication of the loaves proves this point wrong. If the Bread of life were simply the word of God, then the multiplication of the bread should not have taken place. After all, the Lord spent the whole day preaching and healing the people of their infirmities. But the Lord would not dismiss the crowd without feeding them. Thus, he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to the crowd to eat. The center of worship is not the sermon but the Eucharistic sacrifice. Blessed John Paul made it clear that the proclamation of the Word of God prepares us to recognize the Lord at the breaking of the bread: “It is significant that the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, duly prepared by our Lord's words, recognized him at table through the simple gesture of the ‘breaking of bread’. When minds are enlightened and hearts are enkindled, signs begin to ‘speak’. The Eucharist unfolds in a dynamic context of signs containing a rich and luminous message. Through these signs the mystery in some way opens up before the eyes of the believer.” (JPII, Mane Nobiscum Domine, 14.) Although we all appreciate a good sermon, let us not forget that the real reason we are here is to assist at the offering of the Lord’s body and blood to the Father and to receive him through Holy Communion. The Lord himself made it clear that what he wanted to give for the life of the world is his body: “My flesh is the food that I give for the life of the world.” Let us heed the invitation of the Lord: “All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat…Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well.” Having listened to the word of the Lord, assist now at the offering of the Eucharist. Eat his body and drink his blood so that you may have life in you. “For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed,” says the Lord.

Communion on one's knees

CNA has this article on His Eminence Antonio Canizares Llovera's recommendation that the faithful receive Communion on the tongue, while kneeling:

Lima, Peru, Jul 28, 2011 / 01:56 pm (CNA).- Spanish Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera recently recommended that Catholics receive Communion on the tongue, while kneeling.

“It is to simply know that we are before God himself and that He came to us and that we are undeserving,” the prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments said in an interview with CNA during his visit to Lima, Peru.

The cardinal’s remarks came in response to a question on whether Catholics should receive Communion in the hand or on the tongue.

He recommended that Catholics “receive Communion on the tongue and while kneeling.”

Receiving Communion in this way, the cardinal continued, “is the sign of adoration that needs to be recovered. I think the entire Church needs to receive Communion while kneeling.”

“In fact,” he added, “if one receives while standing, a genuflection or profound bow should be made, and this is not happening.”

“If we trivialize Communion, we trivialize everything, and we cannot lose a moment as important as that of receiving Communion, of recognizing the real presence of Christ there, of the God who is the love above all loves, as we sing in a hymn in Spanish.”

In response to a question about the liturgical abuses that often occur, Cardinal Canizares said they must be “corrected, especially through proper formation: formation for seminarians, for priests, for catechists, for all the Christian faithful.”

Such a formation should ensure that liturgical celebrations take place “in accord with the demands and dignity of the celebration, in accord with the norms of the Church, which is the only way we can authentically celebrate the Eucharist,” he added.

“Bishops have a unique responsibility” in the task of liturgical formation and the correction of abuses, the cardinal said, “and we must not fail to fulfill it, because everything we do to ensure that the Eucharist is celebrated properly will ensure proper participation in the Eucharist.”


Spanish cardinal recommends that Catholics receive Communion on the tongue :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Satan Hates the Latin Mass

Over at Rorate Caeli is a report about a priest who was beaten up for offering the Mass in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite.


Priest attacked, guilty of celebrating the Latin Mass
...
Tue, 26/07/2011 - 15:24


"You have been tough, but we will smash your head. Signed, Your friend Satan". That was one of several threatening messages sent to Father Hernán García Pardo, parish priest of San Michele, in Ronta [Mugello region of the Province of Florence, Tuscany]. His fault [was] that of celebrating the Latin Mass, liberalized by Benedict XVI in September 2007.


The warnings, which had been recurrent for some time, had not made the priest, who despite everything has continued to say Mass according to the ancient rite, give up. The last chapter [took place] last Wednesday, when he was beaten up by a 'faithful' in the town's rectory in the presence of his aged mother. The beating led to bruising on his back; having been sent to the emergency room of Borgo San Lorenzo, he was medicated.


The news item was published today in the Giornale della Toscana; the accusations made against Father Hernán are those of scattering the flock; above all, he is not forgiven for distributing communion in the mouth [to the] kneeling [faithful], instead of on the hand, in the same manner as Benedict XVI. For others, the Italian-Argentine priest has only brought back some sacred austerity to the parish, excluding guitars from the functions and bringing back to within the walls of the church the ancient Gregorian chant. ...

Clearly, "Satan loathes the Latin Mass", as one commentator said. Not only is the extraordinary form meeting so much opposition from within the ranks of the Church, it is also being opposed by Satan himself. Most of the priests who offer the Mass in this form suffer so much harrassment which are obviously orchestrated by the Prince of darkness. Let us continue to pray to St. Michael the Archangel and also to Our Lady who is destined to crush the head of the Serpent for the protection of our valiant priests who offer the Mass of all times.

O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

The Womb of St. Anne

Blessed are you, St. Anne, for in your womb the Mother of God was immaculately conceived. In your womb, the ancient prophecy was fulfilled: the perpetual emnity between the Woman and the serpent. In your womb, the Woman crushed the serpent's head. In your womb, God the Almighty has done great things for her. Holy is His Name!

The Spiritual Warfare and Santiago Matamoros

I joined our Diocesan Clergy Renewal in Dapitan. When we were there, we visited the Parish Church which was under the patronage of St. James the Greater (Santiago Major). I was amused by the tour guide who spoke about the town fiesta which is called the "Kinabayuhan Festival" in honor of the town patron. When asked why the name "kinabayuhan", he said that it is because Santiago rode a horse ("kabayo") in order to bring peace between the Christians and Muslims in Spain. Of course, those who are familiar with the story would immediately laugh as the story of the apparition of St. James in Spain was not to bring peace between the two groups. Rather, St. James led the Christian forces to victoriously defeat the Muslims who then subjected Spain to their rule. Thus, he is called "Santiago Matamoros" or St. James, the Moor slayer.

I read a prayer to St. James in that Church. This prayer tried to make sense of the image of St. James as a warrior leading men to victory. I could not remember the exact text but, as far as I could remember, it invoked St. James to lead us in our struggles against our spiritual enemies. This calls to mind what St. Paul said about the Christian life being a struggle, a warfare, not only against human beings but against powers and principalities in high places. The image of Santiago Matamoros reminds us of the militant character of our Christian faith.

But how are we to engage in this spiritual warfare? The iconography of Santiago Matamoros shows us the answer. Usually, saints (especially Martyrs) are shown as people who are tortured or executed. Seldom do we see a saint in the act of "killing" somebody or something else. Aside from Santiago Matamoros, the only one I could think of at present would be St. George slaying the dragon. Santiago is depicted as one wielding his sword over the sarecenes. Santiago shows us that in order to engage in this spiritual warfare, we have to "kill" somebody - and that "somebody" would be our own self.

St. Paul said: "We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. For we are constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh."

The paradigm of the world associated victory with might. Gladiators, Greek and Roman soldiers are depicted as brawny men. We do not even have to look so far. The popular wrestling icons are bulky mascular men. But this is not the paradigm of the spirit. Ironically, victory in spiritual warfare is achieve not by the strength of the body but by its weakness. The spirit and the body pine against each other. When the body is comfortably pampered, the spirit is weak. But when the body is mortified, then the spirit is strong. Thus saints engaged in the mortification of their flesh in order to win the struggle against the spiritual enemy. The spiritual battle is won through self-denial. "For it is when you are weak, it is then that I am strong...My grace is sufficient for you," so said our Lord to St. Paul.

The Lord told Sts. James and John that they will have to drink his chalice. What is the Lord's chalice? In the garden of Getsemane, the Lord Jesus asked the Father to "let this chalice pass me by. But it is not my will, but your will be done." The chalice marked the death of our Lord's own will so that he could submit it to his Father's will. Is it not ironic that it was when he died on the Cross that our Lord conquered sin and death?

Our Christian life is a spiritual warfare. It is a struggle against very powerful enemies: principalities and powers in high places. The only way to defeat these spiritual enemies is by dying to our own selves - by drinking the chalice which the Lord drinks!

Viva Santiago Matamoros! Viva!

The Docile Heart

The Holy Father's Angelus Message for July 24, 2011 focused on the prayer of Solomon:

"Solomon asked God for 'a docile heart.' What does this expression mean? We know that in the Bible the 'heart' does not only mean a part of the body, but the center of the person, the seat of his intentions and his judgments. We might say that it is the conscience. 'Docile heart' therefore means a conscience that knows how to listen, which is sensitive to the voice of truth, and because of this it is able to discern good from evil. In the case of Solomon, the request is guided by the responsibility of leading a nation, Israel, the people through whom God had chosen to manifest his plan of salvation to the world. For this reason the king of Israel must seek to be in harmony with God, listening to his Word, to lead his people in the ways of the Lord, the ways of justice and peace.

"But Solomon's example is valid for every man. Each of us has a conscience to be in a certain sense 'king,' that is, to exercise the great human dignity of acting according to a properly formed conscience, doing good and avoiding evil. Moral conscience presupposes the capacity to hear the voice of truth, to be docile to its instructions. Persons who are called to the office of ruling of course have a further responsibility, and therefore -- as Solomon says -- have even more need of God. But each person has his own part to perform in the concrete situation in which he finds himself. An erroneous mentality suggests that we ask God for nice things and privileged situations; in fact, the true quality of our life and social existence depends on each person's properly formed conscience, on the capacity of each and every person to recognize the good, separating it from evil, and to attempt patiently to realize it.

So, let us ask for the help of the Virgin Mary, Seat of Wisdom. Her "heart" is perfectly "docile" to the Lord's will. Although she is a humble and simple person, Mary is a queen in the eyes of God, and as such we venerate her. May the Holy Virgin help us also to form, with God's grace, a conscience always open to the truth and sensitive to justice, to serve the Kingdom of God.

ZENIT - On Solomon's Heart